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 be-
havior which distinguishes right from wrong;
(3) that the Creator holds each individual and na-
tion 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;
•HCON 215 IH
Whereas their belief in these fundamental principles com-
pelled the Founders to proclaim in the Declaration of
Independence that ‘‘We hold these truths to be self-evi-
dent, that all men are created equal, that they are en-
dowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,
that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of hap-
piness’’;
Whereas the Founders’ devotion to these godly principles pro-
duced 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 re-
corded in the history of our Nation, testify to the sin-
cerity and conviction with which they held these funda-
mental beliefs;
Whereas the Founders proclaimed, both publicly and pri-
vately, that our Nation was founded with the aid and
protection of divine Providence;
Whereas the Founders held that religion (a belief in a su-
preme being who has revealed His will to man, created
a duty to obey His will in a state of reward and punish-
ment, and holds man accountable for his actions) and
morality (exact conformity to truth or to the rules pre-
scribed for moral conduct, either by divine or human
laws) were necessary and essential ingredients for good
government and the happiness of mankind;
•HCON 215 IH
Whereas the Founders embedded these godly principles in the
foundation upon which the legal system, social fabric, po-
litical 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 genera-
tions: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That the Congress—
(1) urges the President to call on the American
people to remember the godly principles of our
Founding Fathers and recognize both the influence
these principles have had in the founding of our Na-
tion and the character, honor, sense of duty, and
commitment they produced in our Founders;
(2) calls on every official, whether elected, ap-
pointed, or employed, to lead our citizens in the revi-
talization of these godly principles;
(3) encourages every public school or institution
to display and teach these foundational principles as
a matter of history and as a matter of law; and
(4) requests and encourages all citizens to re-
discover these principles contained in the history of
•HCON 215 IH
our Nation and our founding documents, and to
renew their individual commitments to promote and
defend the godly principles by which our Nation will
be preserved.
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