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What
is known as “The Dunlap Broadside” was first printed on July 4, 1776. Copies of
this broadside were read to announce independence in New York on July 9th and
in Boston on July 18th. Only 26 copies of this broadside are known to exist
(the 26th was recently discovered in the collections of the British National
Archives). It is the earliest of the documents to have actually been done on
July 4th.
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John
Adams’ Draft Copy of the Declaration of Independence was written by hand and
included in the Addams Family Papers. It is one of the early drafts later to be
amended and changed by the full Continental Congress.
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On
July 3, 1776, John Adams sent a letter to his wife, Abigail. In this letter,
Adams predicts the great celebrations which would mark future Independence Days
(but he suggests it will be 2 July, not 4 July, which would be so honored: “But
the Day is past. The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable
Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be
celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It
ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion
to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews,
Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this
Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” We ought to
remember that Congress voted for independence on July 2nd, and approved the
text of the Declaration two days later.
As believers we have
our “Independence Day.” We celebrate it during Easter Week every year. The
Apostle Paul gives us this brief explanation:
Now
the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Corinthians 3:17 ESV).
We should not diminish
the act of the Founders and all those who fought and died for our political
freedom; however, we must remember that the greatest freedom is not derived
from a political solution. It comes only through the work of grace in the
death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus! Enjoy your holiday and remember the
real freedom waiting for you in eternal life through Jesus!
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