Father Damian and July 4th

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Of the 56 men who signed our Declaration of Independence, only one was a Catholic--Charles Carroll. Carroll was one of the wealthiest men in America. But because he was a Catholic, he could not vote or hold public office in his native Maryland. Because he was Catholic, commonly referred to as a papist, he was regarded as something foreign, his very religion suspect. Maryland had enacted many laws against Popery, but it wasn't alone.

There was a culture of anti-Catholicism, indeed the colonies that enacted laws against Catholics were proud of it. Carroll was willing to risk his wealth because he knew that something far more precious was at stake: freedom. He knew that an America where people were free to worship God as they saw fit would be a land where Catholics and others would flourish and prosper.

Of course, he was joined by many others who already enjoyed religious freedom and success. They had a lot to lose, and they risked it all. They sought not glory or their own ambition or profit but the good of the people, the common good. Their public service required personal sacrifice.

They all paid a heavy price...
Of those 56 who signed the Declaration of Independence, nine died of wounds or hardships during the war. Five were captured and imprisoned, and several lost wives, sons, or entire families. One lost his 13 children, and two wives were brutally treated. All were at one time or another the victims of manhunts and driven from their homes. Twelve signers had their homes completely burned. Seventeen lost everything they owned. Yet not one went back on his word.

It is truly right to note, to rejoice in all that has been achieved. It is important to recognize that this has been won at great cost. It has been won by the struggle of many, indeed, the supreme cost of those who have fallen in battle and the many men and women in every walk of life who have sought to discern God's will and follow it. To do the right thing even if it's not popular. The forming of this nation didn't take place in a single day or century. We did not emancipate the slaves until the 1860s, and women did not vote until 1920. Since then each generation has taken up a contemporary challenge.

A Nation is more than a bunch of individuals. Yes, we come from every race in the world, every religion, culture, yet as it says on the great seal of the united states E Pluribus Unum, out of many, we are one. Ben Franklin said famously, "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”  They were very different men, with very different politics and faith, yet if they had not persevered in unity, we wouldn't be standing here in this Independent United States.

We, too, have an obligation and duty to work together to serve the common good; to keep forming and creating this nation. Each generation has challenges and uncertainties that threaten to swallow us up, yet we persevere together. It is the people in every generation that create the nation that form it and shape it. We are not the recipients of a culture; we can't wash our hands of our part and responsibility. Many people seem overwhelmed; their image might be of a man standing against the ocean and being swept away however, I'd like to suggest another image.

We are the Ocean, men, women, families, children, neighborhoods. We are the culture; we have to take responsibility for it. Our nation will be renewed only when we renew our own lives when we choose faith hope and charity over fear, hate, and greed. We have to choose virtue.

Independence day, exercise your own liberty, take responsibility for your life, and be a good father, mother, son, daughter. Build up your marriage, your family, make it your priority. Be a good employer, a good employee. Be a real member of the community, of the parish, of the neighborhood. Be the change we want to see, be the nation we want to be.


Father of the family of nations,
Open our hearts to greater love of your Son.
Grant that the boundaries of nations
Will not set limits to our love,
And give us the courage to build a land
That serves you in truth and justice.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.

With Love and Blessings,

Fr Damian