The Fourth of July by Isaac Mayer Wise – Essay Summary

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This is written upon the celebration of the 82nd July 4th in 1858.

July 4th is a celebration of liberty that transcends time and space. It is the second most important holiday after Passover. The fourth of July, as a story of liberty, is a second Passover, a second redemption of mankind, as it is a release from slavery to freedom. The exodus is similarly a first declaration of independence. These two events form a history. In fact, the American Revolution is "the ultimate result of biblical theories", that is, a product of the bible and the exodus.

The doctrines (of America and the Bible, I suppose) will ultimately revolutionize all nations. Their effect is registered all over the world, with population growth and increasing civil rights everywhere. Soon liberty, equality and justice will vanquish monarchies and other forms of non-democratic government and conquer the world.

There is one God, "one law and one judgment" and in celebrating the 4th we celebrate both the exodus and the Revolution and in fact liberty for all nations.

Isaac Mayer Wise

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