IV

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 215

Calling on the President and the American people to renew their commitment

to the fundamental principles which guided the Founders of this Nation.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

OCTOBER 28, 1999

Mr. LAMPSON (by request) submitted the following concurrent resolution;

which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Calling on the President and the American people to renew

their commitment to the fundamental principles which

guided the Founders of this Nation.

Whereas the Founders of this Nation held the following to be

fundamental truths:

(1) that there is a Creator who has made all things

and governs them by His Providence;

(2) that the Creator has revealed a moral code of behavior which distinguishes right from wrong;

(3) that the Creator holds each individual and nation responsible for the way it treats others;

(4) that all individuals live beyond this life; and

(5) that, in the next life, individuals are judged by

the Creator for their conduct in this one;
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Whereas their belief in these fundamental principles compelled the Founders to proclaim in the Declaration of

Independence that ‘‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,

that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’’;

Whereas the Founders’ devotion to these godly principles produced their individual commitments to the cause of

human liberty declared in that great document when they

stated: ‘‘And for the support of this Declaration, with a

firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we

mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes,

and our Sacred Honor’’;

Whereas the writings of the Founders and their actions as

private citizens and as public servants, which are recorded in the history of our Nation, testify to the sincerity and conviction with which they held these fundamental beliefs;

Whereas the Founders proclaimed, both publicly and privately, that our Nation was founded with the aid and

protection of divine Providence;

Whereas the Founders held that religion (a belief in a supreme being who has revealed His will to man, created

a duty to obey His will in a state of reward and punishment, and holds man accountable for his actions) and

morality (exact conformity to truth or to the rules prescribed for moral conduct, either by divine or human

laws) were necessary and essential ingredients for good

government and the happiness of mankind;
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Whereas the Founders embedded these godly principles in the

foundation upon which the legal system, social fabric, political institutions, and character of our Nation were

built;

Whereas the Founders held that our Nation would enjoy the

protection of divine Providence as long as we uphold

these fundamental godly principles; and

Whereas our national and individual commitments to these

godly principles are fundamental to the preservation of

liberty and freedom for ourselves and for future generations: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That the Congress—

3 (1) urges the President to call on the American

4 people to remember the godly principles of our

5 Founding Fathers and recognize both the influence

6 these principles have had in the founding of our Na7 tion and the character, honor, sense of duty, and

8 commitment they produced in our Founders;

9 (2) calls on every official, whether elected, ap10 pointed, or employed, to lead our citizens in the revi11 talization of these godly principles;

12 (3) encourages every public school or institution

13 to display and teach these foundational principles as

14 a matter of history and as a matter of law; and

15 (4) requests and encourages all citizens to re16 discover these principles contained in the history of
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1 our Nation and our founding documents, and to

2 renew their individual commitments to promote and

3 defend the godly principles by which our Nation will

4 be preserved.

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