Forty Days To November Day 31 - Second Amendment Edition

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According to the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

Having fled persecution, the Puritans required every family to own a gun, carry it in public, and train children in its use. In 1619, Virginia required everyone to bear arms.  Conneticut law in 1650 required every male above the age of sixteen to possess "a good musket or other gun fit for service."

See: Religious Roots of the Second Amendment HERE

Notice the Bayonet!

America's early laws were very clear: citizens were responsible for depending themselves and protecting their freedoms.  Thomas Jefferson said, "The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to bear arms is, as last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government." At the time, there was no concept of a professional army, paid to defend the colonies. Furthermore, for the most part, the colonial churches believed that to revolt against tyrants like King George was to obey God.  Jefferson also said, "Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God."

This conviction, perhaps having its roots in the Old Testament accounts of Israel's wars for freedom, sparked by a powerful fire that impassioned the citizenry. James Madison was inspired to write the Bill of Rights through his knowlege, study and faith in the Scriptures, He was also worried that the Constitution alone provided insufficient commands to keep the people free from tyrants. 

The Declaration of Independence contains these words:

Revolutionary War Gun

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

James Madison knew that to back up those words in the Declaration, there needed to be an Amendment to the Constitution. The Second Amendment is short and simple for a reason. We are endowed by our Creator the right to protect the lives of others as well as their own. With a history that spans almost 400 years, Americans continue to value their right to keep and bear arms.

Patriot's Prayer: Lord, please guard America, keep us under our Your wing. We praise You, our Defense, our Fortress.

Patriot's Promise: Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in Heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations." ~Psalm 119:89-90

NOTE: All source material(unless otherwise noted)from God's Promises for the American Patriot by Dr. Richard D Lee & Jack Countryman; In God We Still Trust by Dr. Richard D Lee; and The American Patriot's Bible: The Word of God and the Shaping of America(NKJV) by Richard G Lee (general editor).