Brother Howard Coop

Chaplain of Lancaster Lodge #104 F & AM

Brother Howard Coop is a frequent contributor to such Masonic publications as; THE COMMUNICATOR, THE SCOTTISH RITE JOURNAL, and THE ROYAL ARCH MASON

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      Anniversaries are significant, and March 4 is an exceedingly significant anniversary for those who care about the history of our country. 

          According to the calendar, March 4 is the 221 anniversary of the adoption of the constitution of the United States of America, a nation that has been described as “a nation under God” and one that was “conceived in liberty” and is “dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” 

           On September 17, 1789, the Constitution of the United States was completed.  When word was received that New Hampshire had ratified the constitution, a timetable was set for the new government to begin, and on March 4, 1789, that government, created by the constitution, met for the first time and became operational.

          “We the people,” the first words of the preamble of that constitution, are most important.  They assert unequivocally that the people of this land created the government of the United States of America and that government receives its power from them.  As Abraham Lincoln said in the famous Gettysburg Address, this government is “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”  The Declaration of Independence, a document of primary importance for citizens of this nation, declares that, when this ceases to be true, the people have the right and the duty “to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.”  This is recognition of an inherent right of the people of this nation.

          At a critical moment in human history, “We the people” assumed responsibility and acted to accomplish a specific purpose.  They wrote a constitution “in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.”  Although the constitution they wrote 221 years ago has been amended sparingly across the years, the purpose of government has remained unchanged.

          As that constitution has been a faithful guide for this nation for 221 years, may it continue to do so for years to come?