Introducing 'The Civitas Collection 250'

Editor’s Note: Below is my Introduction essay for The Civitas Collection 250, which the Civitas Institute publishes today in partnership with the University of Texas Press. This book features 25 essays by leading scholars dedicated to the study of the Declaration of Independence, including many contributors who teach at the newly established schools of civic thought. We are grateful to the contributors, our design firm, Vovi, UT Press, my colleague, Lindsay Eberhardt, for her editorial work, and to Laura Swain for the much-needed layout assistance. We hope that you will read and engage with the civic and intellectual work it issues to the reader. 

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On July 2, 1776, representatives from twelve colonies voted in favor of the resolution for independence from the British Empire (New York’s delegates abstained because they didn’t have instructions from their state until July 9). Richard Henry Lee of Virginia authored and introduced to the Continental Congress on June 7, 1776, what became formally known as the Lee Resolution, declaring:  

That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States… 

The Declaration of Independence was approved on July 4, 1776, and presented a complex set of arguments drawn from natural theology, moral philosophy, natural rights, common law, classical virtue, and biblical religion that would propel the cause of the rebellious American colonists into the Western world. The Declaration’s rich tapestry of thought and the “Facts” that are “submitted to a candid world” also feature a remarkable comprehensiveness that addresses God, Nature, Man, and History, while also appealing to the opinion of mankind. The Declaration’s perennial wisdom remains accessible to us, but we must also allow it to judge us. This idea evokes the Declaration’s bold assertion of revolutionary independence grounded in enduring principles. In this semiquincentennial of the Declaration, we should show gratitude for this precious document, which draws a crucial distinction between tyranny and free government, grounded in principles that don’t change.  

Much of our thinking about the Declaration focuses on the celebrated second paragraph. And deservedly so, because it permanently establishes the selfevident truths of equality, life, liberty, happiness, the consent of the governed, and the right of revolution in our constitutional foundation. However, the Second Continental Congress, responsible for drafting, approving, and signing the Declaration, never saw discord in the rest of the document or downplayed it, relegating it to a secondary role. To read the Declaration as a whole doesn’t mean that we are engaging in traditionalism or that we are downplaying natural rights. It makes us honest readers and practitioners of its principles.  

We should interpret the self-evident truths in light of the document’s full nature and purpose. This helps us see new layers of meaning in the familiar words, which we especially need today. The Declaration is not merely a theoretical document; rather, it is highly practical. It utilizes key terms and phrases to explicate its deliberation and the decision to act in a specific manner. 

The Declaration presents the principles of well-ordered politics with logical clarity, showcasing confidence in reasoning. Its ordered thinking addresses immensely difficult subjects, such as political right, tyranny, and revolution, categories that aren’t always seen as rational. The document highlights reasoning by asserting natural rights, presenting facts, pointing out villains, and deriving consequences from causes. To this rational public philosophy guiding revolutionary politics, we add an ardor for liberty, which the Declaration ultimately aims to advance. 

One aspect of reason that the Declaration supports is the ability to make valid political judgments about legitimate forms and functions of government. The document provides 27 grievances that establish with facts the “abuses” and “usurpations” of the King and Parliament. This list points to specifics that imply principles, providing a pedagogy in political judgment. The grievances highlight principles essential to a lawful government: representative government, judicial independence, executive power limited by law, and civilian control of the military, among others. We should also note that each grievance has a remedy in the written Constitution. 

The contributors have strived to evaluate the Declaration in its entirety, a document whose excellence serves as the foundation of American political life. We also recognize that the legacy and principles of the Declaration are being questioned in this, the two-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary year. What the reader should understand is that the authors featured in this volume are not in doubt about the principles of the Declaration and their meaning for American citizens and politics. With essays on the Declaration’s teachings on natural rights, freedom, anthropology, natural theology, legal standing, revolutionary principles, civic virtue, executive power, biblical religion, foreign policy, and notably its influence on our culture and memory, we hope that you, the reader, will deepen your understanding of the Declaration and develop greater devotion to this remarkable country we have been called to uphold and cherish. 

In this light, the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin presents this volume to the reader, featuring essays by 25 scholars examining all aspects of the Declaration of Independence. A large majority of contributors teach in the newly established centers and schools of civic thought and education that now inhabit major universities across the country, deepening public instruction for students, ensuring that a richer set of ideas circulates on campus, and inevitably improving higher education in America. This volume will contribute to those efforts. The Civitas Institute is grateful to all who have skillfully shaped this collection of essays. 

Richard M. Reinsch II is editor in chief of the Civitas Institute’s Civitas Outlook.