The 5000 Year Leap: A Miracle That Changed the World
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Cicero's compelling honesty led him to conclude that once the reality of the Creator is clearly identified in the mind, the only intelligent approach to government, justice, and human relations is in terms of the laws which the Supreme Creator has already established. The Creator's order of things is called Natural Law.
A fundamental presupposition of Natural Law is that man's reasoning power is a special dispensation of the Creator and is closely akin to the rational or reasoning power of the Creator himself. In other words, man shares with his Creator this quality of utilizing a rational approach to solving problems, and the reasoning of the mind will generally lead to common-sense conclusions based on what Jefferson called "the laws of Nature and of Nature's God" (The Declaration of Independence).
Let us now examine the major precepts of Natural Law which so profoundly impressed the Founding Fathers.
Natural Law Is Eternal and Universal
First of all, Cicero defines Natural Law as "true law." Then he says:
"True law is right reason in agreement with nature; it is of universal application, unchanging and everlasting; it summons to duty by its commands, and averts from wrongdoing by its prohibitions.... It is a sin to try to alter this law, nor is it allowable to repeal any part of it, and it is impossible to abolish entirely. We cannot be freed from its obligations by senate or people, and we need not look outside ourselves for an expounder or interpreter of it. And there will not be different laws at Rome and Athens, or different laws now and in the future, but one eternal and unchangeable law will be valid for all nations and all times, and there will be one master and ruler, that is God, over us all, for he is the author of this law, its promulgator, and its enforcing judge. Whoever is disobedient is fleeing from himself and denying his human nature, and by reason of this very fact he will suffer the worst punishment." 22
In these few lines the student encounters concepts which were repeated by the American Founders a thousand times. The Law of Nature or Nature's God is eternal in its basic goodness; it is universal in its application. It is a code of "right reason" from the Creator himself. It cannot be altered. It cannot be repealed. It cannot be abandoned by legislators or the people themselves, even though they may pretend to do so. In Natural Law we are dealing with factors of absolute reality. It is basic in its principles, comprehensible to the human mind, and totally correct and morally right in its general operation.
To the Founding Fathers as well as to Blackstone, John Locke, Montesquieu, and Cicero, this was a monumental discovery.
The Divine Gift of Reason
To Cicero it was an obvious and remarkable thing that man had been endowed with a rich quality of mind that does not exist among other forms of life except in the most minuscule proportions. Between man and other creatures there is a gigantic gap insofar as mental processes are concerned. Cicero as well as the Founders viewed this as a special, divine endowment from the Creator. Cicero wrote:
"The animal which we call man, endowed with foresight and quick intelligence, complex, keen, possessing memory, full of reason and prudence, has been given a certain distinguished status by the Supreme God who created him; for he is the only one among so many different kinds and varieties of living beings who has a share in reason and thought, while all the rest are deprived of it. But what is more divine, I will not say in man only, but in all heaven and earth, than reason? And reason, when it is full grown and perfected, is rightly called wisdom. Therefore, since there is nothing better than reason, and since it exists both in man and God, the first common possession of man and God is reason.
"But those who have reason in common must also have right reason in common. And since right reason is Law, we must believe that men have Law also in common with the gods. Further, those who share Law must also share Justice; and those who share these are to be regarded as members of the same commonwealth. If indeed they obey the same authorities and powers, this is true in a far greater degree; but as a matter of fact they do obey this celestial system, the divine mind, and the God of transcendent power. Hence we must now conceive of this whole universe as one commonwealth of which both gods and men are members." 23
No prophet of the Old Testament or the Gospel teachers of the New Testament ever said it any better.
The First Great Commandment
Cicero had comprehended the magnificence of the first great commandment to love, respect, and obey the all-wise Creator. He put this precept in proper perspective by saying that God's law is "right reason." When perfectly understood it is called "wisdom." When applied by government in regulating human relations it is called "justice." When people unite together in a covenant or compact under this law, they become a true "commonwealth," and since they intend to administer their affairs under God's law, they belong to his commonwealth.
Thus Cicero came to what Jews and Christians call the first great commandment.
It will be recalled that a lawyer tried to discredit Jesus by asking him, "Master, which is the great commandment in the Law?" Of course, there were hundreds of commandments, and the question was designed as a clever stratagem to embarrass Jesus. But Jesus was not embarrassed. He simply replied: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment."
The lawyer was amazed by this astute and ready response from the Galilean carpenter. But Jesus was not through. He added: "And the second is like unto it. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." 24
The astonished lawyer simply replied: "Well, Master, thou hast said the truth!"
Jesus had picked out what he considered to be the foremost commandment from Deuteronomy 6:4-5, and then selected what he considered to be the second most important commandment clear over in Leviticus 19:18.
The Second Great Commandment
It is interesting that Cicero, without being either a Christian or a Jew, was able to discover the power and fundamental significance of obedience, not only to the first great commandment, but to the second one as well. His great mind instinctively led him to comprehend the beauty and felicity of what Jesus had identified as the second great commandment: "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."
Dr. William Ebenstein comments on this rather fascinating insight among Cicero's writings by saying:
"There is another note, too, in Cicero that points forward, toward Christianity, rather than backward, to Plato and Aristotle: Cicero's consciousness of love as a mighty social bond." 25
Cicero raises this point in connection with his discussion of Justice. He points out that Justice is impossible except under the principles of God's just law:
"... For these virtues originate in our natural inclination to love our fellow-men, and this is the foundation of justice." 26
So to Cicero, the glue which holds a body of human beings together in the commonwealth of a just society is love -- love of God; love of God's great law of Justice; and love of one's fellow-men which provides the desire to promote true justice among mankind.
All Mankind Can Be Taught God's Law or Virtue
Cicero projected throughout his writings a particularly optimistic view of the potential improvement of human beings by teaching them the elements of virtue through education. He wrote:
"Out of all the material of the philosophers' discussion, surely there comes nothing more valuable than the full realization that we are born for Justice, and the right is based, not upon men's opinions, but upon Nature. This fact will immediately be plain if you once get a clear conception of man's fellowship and union with his fellow-men.... However we may define man, a single definition will apply to all. This is a sufficient proof that there is no difference in kind between man and man.... in fact, there is no human being of any race who, if he finds a guide, cannot attain to virtue." 27
Legislation in Violation of God's Natural Law Is a Scourge To Humanity
We cannot complete our review of Cicero's disc
ourse on Natural Law without including his warning against legislators who undertake to pass laws which violate the "laws of Nature and of Nature's God." Cicero wrote:
"But the most foolish notion of all is the belief that everything is just which is found in the customs or laws of nations.... What of the many deadly, the many pestilential statutes which nations put in force? These no more deserve to be called laws than the rules a band of robbers might pass in their assembly. For if ignorant and unskillful men have prescribed deadly poisons instead of healing drugs, these cannot possibly be called physicians' prescriptions; neither in a nation can a statute of any sort be called a law, even though the nation, in spite of being a ruinous regulation has accepted it." 28
All Law Should Be Measured Against God's Law
Cicero then set forth the means by which people may judge between good and evil laws. All laws must be measured by God's Law, which is described by Cicero as follows:
"Therefore Law [of the Creator] is the distinction between things just and unjust, made in agreement with that primal and most ancient of all things, Nature; and in conformity to Nature's standard are framed those human laws which inflict punishment upon the wicked and protect the good." 29
Cicero also emphasizes that the essence of an evil law cannot be mended through ratification by the legislature or by popular acclaim. Justice can never be expected from laws arbitrarily passed in violation of standards set up under the laws of Nature or the laws of the Creator. Here is his argument:
"But if the principles of Justice were founded on the decrees of peoples, the edicts of princes, or the decisions of judges, then Justice would sanction robbery and adultery and forgery of wills, in case these acts were approved by the votes or decrees of the populace. But if so great a power belongs to the decisions and decrees of fools that the laws of Nature can be changed by their votes, then why do they not ordain that what is bad and baneful shall be considered good and salutary? Or, if a law can make Justice Injustice, can it not also make good out of bad?" 30
Cicero's Conclusion
It was clear to Cicero as he came toward the close of his life that men must eliminate the depravity that had lodged itself in society. He felt they must return to the high road of Natural Law. They must pledge obedience to the mandates of a loving and concerned Creator. What promise of unprecedented grandeur awaited that future society which would undertake it! He wrote:
"As one and the same Nature holds together and supports the universe, all of whose parts are in harmony with one another, so men are united in Nature; but by reason of their depravity they quarrel, not realizing that they are of one blood and subject to one and the same protecting power. If this fact were understood, surely man would live the life of the gods!" 31
The American Founders believed this. They embraced the obvious necessity of building a highly moral and virtuous society. The Founders wanted to lift mankind from the common depravity and chicanery of past civilizations, and to lay the foundation for a new kind of civilization built on freedom for the individual and prosperity for the whole commonwealth. This is why they built their system on Natural Law.
Let us consider a few examples.
Examples of Natural Law
It may be surprising, even to Americans, to discover how much of their Constitution and their life-style is based on principles of Natural Law. For example:
The concept of unalienable rights is based on Natural Law. Twenty-two of these unalienable rights are listed on pages 125-26.
The concept of unalienable duties is based on Natural Law. Twenty of these unalienable duties are listed on pages 134-35.
The concept of habeas corpus is based on Natural Law.
The concept of limited government is based on Natural Law.
The concept of separation of powers is based on Natural Law.
The concept of checks and balances to correct abuses by peaceful means is based on Natural Law.
The right of self-preservation is based on Natural Law.
The right to contract is based on Natural Law.
Laws protecting the family and the institution of marriage are all based on Natural Law.
The concept of justice by reparation or paying for damages is based on Natural Law.
The right to bear arms is based on Natural Law.
The principle of no taxation without representation is based on Natural Law.
These few examples will illustrate how extensively the entire American constitutional system is grounded in Natural Law. In fact, Natural Law is the foundation and encompassing framework for everything we have come to call "People's Law."
This is precisely what Thomas Jefferson was talking about when he wrote in the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness."
These well-remembered phrases from America's initial charter of liberty are all primary pre-suppositions under the principles of Natural law.
Now, having covered the highlights of the Founders' first fundamental precept, let us proceed to the second.
Second Principle: A free people cannot survive under a republican
constitution unless they remain virtuous and morally strong.
Modern Americans have long since forgotten the heated and sometimes violent debates which took place in the thirteen colonies between 1775 and 1776 over the issue of morality. For many thousands of Americans the big question of independence hung precariously on the single, slender thread of whether or not the people were sufficiently "virtuous and moral" to govern themselves. Self-government was generally referred to as "republicanism," and it was universally acknowledged that a corrupt and selfish people could never make the principles of republicanism operate successfully. As Franklin wrote:
"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters." 32
George Washington later praised the American Constitution as the "palladium of human rights," but pointed that it could survive only "so long as there shall remain virtue in the body of the people." 33
What Is "Public Virtue"?
Self-Doubts
Thomas Paine
The Tide of Reform
How the Moral Reform Accelerated the Revolution
The Lessons of History
A Warning from the Founders
What is the Key to Preserving a Virtuous Nation?
What Is "Public Virtue"?
Morality is identified with the Ten Commandments and obedience to the Creator's mandate for "right conduct," but the early Americans identified "public virtue" as a very special quality of human maturity in character and service closely akin to the Golden Rule. As a modern historian epitomized it:
"In a Republic, however, each man must somehow be persuaded to submerge his personal wants into the greater good of the whole. This willingness of the individual to sacrifice his private interest for the good of the community -- such patriotism or love of country -- the eighteenth century termed public virtue.... The eighteenth century mind was thoroughly convinced that a popularly based government 'cannot be supported without virtue'." 34
Self-Doubts
The people had an instinctive thirst for independence, but there remained a haunting fear that they might not be "good enough" to make it work.
These self-doubts were actually the eye of the hurricane during those final pre-revolutionary years when Americans were trying to decide whether they had the moral capacity for self-government. Great names of later years were among the doubters in those pre-revolutionary days. John Jay, Robert Morris, Robert Livingston, and even John Dickinson were among them. Their doubts gradually diminished as their patriotic indignation was aroused by the harsh and sometimes brutal policies of the British crown. They were also moved by the powerful expressions of faith and confidence pouring forth from men of "admired virtue"
such as John Adams, George Washington, Richard Henry Lee, and Josiah Quincy.
Spirits continued to rise so that by the spring of 1776, thousands of confident voices were heard throughout the colonies affirming that there was sufficient "public virtue" in the people to make republican principles work successfully.
Thomas Paine
One of the most strident voices in the debate was Tom Paine, whose Common Sense had been a best-seller. He followed up this initial success with other writings assuring Americans they were ripe for independence. He pointed out that most of the people were "industrious, frugal, and honest."
He added that few Americans had been corrupted with riches the way people had been debilitated in Europe, where all they wanted was "luxury, indolence, amusement, and pleasure." Furthermore, there was a spirit of equality and public virtue unheard of in other nations because "the people of America are a people of property; almost every man is a freeholder." 35