Tag Archives: Happiness
When I first realized individual happiness was not a recognized objective in the 17th century, I assumed happiness as a civic goal was a more recent but laudable social invention. Then I learned Jefferson cut out a great deal of the Bible before concluding pursuit of happiness was one of the top 3 objectives. “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” documents where I began to question his work. Today is International Happiness Day as set by the United Nations,…..
When Roger Williams was banished he set out alone into a blizzard in a harsh New England winter. He would survive to separate church and state in a brand new settlement that would become Rhode Island. Roger Williams wrote little that has survived about his 14 week winter stay in the wilderness of New England. The resulting absence of fact has led to a plethora of theories. There are many alternatives to the one in the novel Rekindled. What we do…..
Roger stood in the 1600’s for life and liberty. Since the 1700’s we’ve believed in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The goal of happiness may spawn from an increased focus on the individual, a focus that took a big step forward with Christ’s recognition of each soul as valuable. However individualism did not fully flower until after Roger Williams was gone. It seems now that happiness has overtaken life and liberty as the most sacrosanct goal. If we…..