The Principle of Self-Government
by Sheriff Ray Nash

During my recent trip to Romania, the Principle of Self-Government was reinforced to me. If you ask most Americans what self-government means, they will most likely say something like, "Well, I get to vote for my elected representatives. And that's self-government." Interestingly, the Founding Fathers had a different idea.

James Madison, known as the Father of the American Constitution and our nation's 4th president, had this to say:
"We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."

Robert Winthrop, an early Speaker of the House, said:
"Men, in a word, must necessarily be controlled either by a power within them or a power without them, either by the Word of God or by the Strong Arm of man, either by the Bible or by the Bayonet."

In Romania, the nation is struggling with new freedoms. The strong arm of communism that maintained peace and order has been removed and there is a lack of internal restraints. The West is pumping in huge amounts of destructive influences in the way of drugs, pornography and immoral media. Consequently, crime and violence are high; there are great numbers of orphans, many of them roaming the streets and subways; the economy is depressed; the government is not trusted; and many are in despair.

Contrast that with our own country. America was founded on the principles of internal restraints and good character. The Founders knew it could not long endure without such controls. But now our culture is abandoning those very values; and we are suffering the consequences. America and Romania are not dissimilar. Today, both nations are struggling in similar ways.