Quotes on Liberty

“The Constitution was never meant to prevent people from praying; its declared purpose was to protect their freedom to pray.”—Ronald Reagan

“Liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker. But if we had not, our fathers have earned and bought it for us, at the expense of their ease, their estates, their pleasure, and their blood.”—John Adams

“[July 4th] ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.”—John Adams

“The general principles upon which the Fathers achieved independence were the general principals of Christianity… I will avow that I believed and now believe that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.”—John Adams

“The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: that it connected, in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.”—John Quincy Adams

“It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”—Patrick Henry

 “Those people who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants.”—William Penn

“Where liberty dwells, there is my country.”—Benjamin Franklin

“There is a certain enthusiasm in liberty that makes human nature rise above itself, in acts of bravery and heroism.”—Alexander Hamilton

“The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty, and the destiny of the republican model of government, are justly considered deeply, perhaps as finally, staked on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.”—George Washington

“It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”—George Washington

“To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.”—George Washington

“Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war will speedily pass away.”—Abraham Lincoln

“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives.  I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.”—Abraham Lincoln

“Our institutions of freedom will not survive unless they are constantly replenished by the faith that gave them birth.”—John Foster Dulles

“The things that the flag stands for were created by the experiences of a great people. Everything that it stands for was written by their lives. The flag is the embodiment, not of sentiment, but of history.”—President Woodrow Wilson

“It is to the United States that all freemen look for the light and the hope of the world. Unless we dedicate ourselves completely to this struggle, unless we combat hunger with food, fear with trust, suspicion with faith, fraud with justice, and threats with power, nations will surrender to the futility, the hopelessness, the panic on which wars feed.”—General Omar N. Bradley

“A patriot without religion in my estimation is as great a paradox as an honest man without the fear of God. Is it possible that he whom no moral obligations bind, can have any real good will towards men? Can he be a patriot who, by an openly vicious conduct, is undermining the very bonds of society?… The Scriptures tell us, ‘Righteousness exalteth a nation.’”—Abigail Adams

“We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”—John Hancock

“The secret of my success? It is simple. It is found in the Bible, ‘In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths.“—George Washington Carver

“God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever.”—Thomas Jefferson

“The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.”—Plato

“I sought for the greatness of the United States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests—and it was not there. I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system, and in her institutions of higher learning—and it was not there. I looked for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution—and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great!”—Alexis de Tocqueville

“No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.”—General Douglas MacArthur

“An America that is militarily and economically strong is not enough. The world must see an America that is morally strong with a creed and a vision. This is what has led us to dare and achieve. For us, values count.”—Ronald Reagan

“To preserve our blessed land we must look to God….It is time to realize that we need God more than He needs us….We also have His promise that we could take to heart with regard to our country, that ‘If my people, which are called by my name shall humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”—Ronald Reagan

“We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls.”—Robert J. McCracken

“It is the duty of the clergy to accommodate their discourses to the times, to preach against such sins as are most prevalent and to recommend such virtues as are most wanted.”—John Adams

“I only look to the gracious protection of the Divine Being whose strengthening support I humbly solicit, and whom I fervently pray to look down upon us all. May it be among the dispensations of His Providence to bless our beloved country with honors and with length of days; may her ways beways of pleasantness, and all her paths be peace.”—Martin Van Buren

“Ours is the only country deliberately founded on a good idea.”—John Gunther