Foreword, Acknowledgments, & Preface
7
FOREWORD by David Barton
Welcome to “The Citizen Guide to America’s Founding Documents.”
Founding Father John Jay, an author of the Federalist Papers and the original Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court, wisely recommended: “Every member of the State ought diligently to read and to study the constitution . . . By knowing their rights, they will sooner perceive when they are violated, and be the better prepared to defend and assert them.”
And Samuel Huntington, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, similarly reminded us: “While [citizens] are acquainted with the duties which they owe to their God, to themselves, and to men, they will remain free. But if ignorance and depravity should prevail, they will inevitably lead to slavery and ruin.”
Knowing and understanding our Constitution is the key to preserving not only America’s liberties and freedoms but also our own individual liberties and freedoms.
Today, there is greater hunger to read, study, and understand this great but simple document than there has been in generations – there is a hunger to preserve rather than lose the liberty, prosperity, and limited government that have been at the root of American Exceptionalism.
The classroom presentation you are about to join is an opportunity for you to regain the intimate working knowledge that every citizen and student once had of our Constitution. But as Founding Father John Jay noted, it is not enough just to read the Constitution, we must also study it – and we must study it according to its original intent. This means studying the lives of the men who gave us the document as well as studying the meaning of the Constitution’s words and phrases at the time they were written.
8
CONSTITUTION ALIVE! Class Workbook
This course will be led by my friend and colleague, Rick Green. Rick is an attorney and former State Legislator who for years has worked with me at WallBuilders as a speaker, writer, and teacher on the Constitution and the Founding Fathers.
Throughout this course, Rick will take you back to the events of 1776 and the Declaration of Independence, then on to 1787 and the Constitutional Convention, and then step by step through the constitutional Amendments and right up to the current debates in our nation today over topics such as nullification, D.C. Statehood, impeachment, the Electoral College, 1st Amendment Freedom of Religion, individual God-given rights versus group government-given rights, evolving the Constitution, and much more.
As Rick walks you through the course, remember to identify your numerous constitutional rights. As John Jay said, it is important to know your rights! But then also remember the wise counsel of John Quincy Adams when he said: “The connection between a people and their government is a connection of duties as well as of rights.”
And Founding Father James Wilson, who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, agreed, declaring: “To each class of rights, a class of duties is correspondent.”
Therefore, as you go through the course looking for your constitutional rights, also remember to identify the specific duties that you have as a citizen, for with every right comes a commensurate responsibility. By understanding both our rights and our duties, together, Lord willing, we can preserve our constitutional heritage for this and for future generations.
Thanks for taking time to study our Founding Documents and for embracing our duty as “We the People” of the United States!
God Bless,
David Barton
9
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Though an attorney (please do not hold that against me!) and former Texas State Representative involved in defending our founding principles for twenty years, I am not in any way claiming to be a Constitutional guru. I am not, by a long shot, the foremost expert on the Constitution. In fact, I am just like you. I am a citizen that is learning as I go. I’ve been nicknamed America’s Constitution Coach because I’ve taken more than 100,000 people through this citizen guide to the Constitution, and you too can be a coach by simply sharing this information and hosting your own classes using these materials.
One of the great benefits of co-hosting “WallBuilders Live! with David Barton and Rick Green” is the privilege of always learning new things about the Constitution and new pieces of history that help me to understand the document even more.
I have the privilege of working with someone who is one of the foremost experts on the Founding Fathers and our Founding Documents, David Barton. Through my work with David, I also get to interview and spend time with some of the greatest legal and constitutional minds of our day. Mat Staver, Kelly Shackleford, Brad Dacus, Ed Meece, John Eidsmoe, Newt Gingrich, Mike Farris, Congressman Louis Gohmert, and so many others. We also work with some amazing individuals who have been responsible for re-igniting interest in our founding documents: Glenn Beck, Dennis Prager, Rabbi Daniel Lapin, Bob McEwen, Todd Dubord, Chuck Norris, Chuck Colson, and more great Americans than we have space to list here. It is from these individuals that I almost daily discover new golden nuggets of information that send me back to the writings of the Founding Fathers for more understanding about the greatest government documents ever conceived in history.
I include all of that information to simply say that you
do not need to be an attorney or professor or any other kind of “expert” to study the Constitution and understand the principles of America. In this class, we will discover the admonishment of America’s Founders for “every citizen,” regardless of background,
10
CONSTITUTION ALIVE! Class Workbook
education, or position, to read and study the Constitution. The very purpose of this book is to give all of us the tools to do that. We are in this together, so together let us study and learn and improve.
Special thanks to my sister, Reba Griesinger, and my nephew, Kyle Griesinger, for feverishly helping with last minute typing and formatting; and to Rachel Franks for her edits within an impossible timeframe.
To David Barton, forgive me for being repetitive, but the same words apply even more today than when I wrote Freedom’s Frame. You live more like Christ than any other man I have ever known. Thank you for your example, your mentorship, and your friendship. Like many others, I am taking a leisurely stroll down a path that you labored long and hard to blaze. Generations are indebted to you for the role you have played in preserving our nation’s heritage.
Thanks to everyone on the WallBuilders staff, for all that you do behind the scenes to make it possible for this organization to have the tremendous impact that it does.
To the Torch of Freedom Foundation Board and supporters, thanks for investing in the next generation.
To Mom and Dad, thank you for instilling a love of America and Her principles.
To my wife Kara, thank you for accepting the calling the Lord has put on our lives. No matter how many twists and turns, victories and defeats, highs and lows, you continue to be the most amazing, steadfast partner I could ever have dreamed I would have.
To my Sovereign Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, thank you for the most important freedom of all.
11
PREFACE
This Classroom Workbook is your easy to use note taking tool during the classroom presentation of CONSTITUTION ALIVE!
If you are attending the abbreviated version of the course, there will be many blanks or sections left uncovered…think of that part as homework! All of the answers are found in the back of this workbook and more detail can be found by watching the full DVD or online version of the class. Some questions and answers are purposefully not covered in the videos so that you can enjoy the process of your own hunt for national treasures!
Though a black and white copy of The Constitution Made Easy is included in the back of this Study Guide, all participants are encouraged to get a spiral bound, color version for their continued daily use.
12
CONSTITUTION ALIVE! Class Workbook
(this page intentionally left blank)