Saturday, November 10, 2012

Ronald Reagan and the Judeo/Christian Tradition of the Bible





 
And we’re also remembering the guiding light of our Judeo/Christian tradition. All of us here today are descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, sons and daughters of the same God. I believe we are bound by faith in our God, by our love for family and neighborhood, by our deep desire for a more peaceful world, and by our commitment to protect the freedom which is our legacy as Americans.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

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Of the many influences that have shaped the United States into a distinctive nation and people, none may be said to be more fundamental and enduring than the Bible.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)


For centuries the Bible’s emphasis on compassion and love for our neighbor has inspired institutional and governmental expressions of benevolent outreach such as private charity, the establishment of schools and hospitals, and the abolition of slavery.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988) 

Inside the Bible’s pages lie the answers to all the problems that mankind has ever known. I hope Americans will read and study the Bible.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

We’re blessed to have [the Bible’s] words of strength, comfort, and truth. I’m accused of being simplistic at times with some of the problems that confront us. But I’ve often wondered: Within the covers of that single Book are all the answers to all the problems that face us today, if we’d only look there. “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever.” I hope Americans will read and study the Bible in [the coming year]. It’s my firm belief that the enduring values, as I say, presented in its pages have a great meaning for each of us and for our nation. The Bible can touch our hearts, order our minds, refresh our souls.

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

The Congress of the United States, in recognition of the unique contribution of the Bible in shaping the history and character of this Nation, and so many of its citizens, has by Senate Joint Resolution 165 authorized and requested the President to designate the year 1983 as the ‘Year of the Bible.‘

- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

Deep religious beliefs stemming from the Old and New Testaments of the Bible inspired many of the early settlers of our country, providing them with the strength, character, convictions, and faith necessary to withstand great hardship and danger in this new and rugged land. These shared beliefs helped forge a sense of common purpose among the widely dispersed colonies – a sense of community which laid the foundation for the spirit of nationhood that was to develop in later decades.

 Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)

The Bible and its teachings helped form the basis for the Founding Fathers’ abiding belief in the inalienable rights of the individual, rights which they found implicit in the Bible’s teachings of the inherent worth and dignity of each individual. This same sense of man patterned the convictions of those who framed the English system of law inherited by our own Nation, as well as the ideals set forth in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution
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- Ronald Reagan, Former U.S. President (1980-1988)


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