Preview

Compare And Contrast Declaration Of Independence Vs Constitution

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
667 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Compare And Contrast Declaration Of Independence Vs Constitution
Comparison Paper

1

Comparison Paper
Jennifer Shannon Vaught
Liberty University GOVT-200 D16

Comparison Paper

2

Abstract
The Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution have common themes and one could have not been created without the other. However, we had to claim our freedom first to establish order. At the same time, the Biblical Worldview clashed with a Naturalistic/
Rationalist Worldview which our founding fathers were influe nced by. This would help shape our nation and laws.

Comparison Paper

3

The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are two separate documents, but are forever linked to one another. The Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776, written before the
U.S. Constitution by Thomas Jefferson
…show more content…
Both did express the individual rights of the people, and "The recurrent themes, arguments and accusations of civil and political violations against the American people and against the states, which are delineated in the Declaration of Independence and attended to in the U.S. Constitution, contribute to the pedigree of American political thought.

Hence, what the

Declaration of Independence begins, the US Constitution finished" ("The Woven Fabric",2010).
The U.S. Constitution, just like the Declaration of Independence, of course held a ChristianRationalist view as well. "They held that government is a creation of man" (Martin, 2006).

However Jefferson 's Letter to the Danbury Baptists, January 1, 1802 states "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between Church and State"(Jefferson, 1802). Again at this time, "Civil government was no longer viewed as a creation of God for humans for justice and order in a fallen world, but a by-product of human cognitive abilities... (Ferdon,2014). They wanted to separate religion from government, but further protect religion from governments interference of how they should worship.

Comparison Paper

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    3. The first article Southern Manifesto carefully focused on the legal institutional traditions from when the United States was founded on a basis for the “State” independence from the federal government. King, knowingly on the other hand emphasized that freedom of the person is to contribute fully in society and as well as in freedom through the same approach and treatment. In summary, the disagreeing definitions of freedom between the two camps go to the heart of a theoretical dilemma: People are sidelined and therefore free when they are included on an equivalent foundation and with identical protections, or is it the other way around, where the individual states should be boundless to set up their societies in their own way without anything or anyone interfering from the federal government and the Supreme Court as well. As of the 1950s the United States has…

    • 394 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Today, the promotion of democracy as a form of freedom blares through the mainstream media. However, the American system of government is not a democracy it is a constitutional republic. In ancient Athens, the majority put Socrates to death for the simple reason; they did not like what he was saying. Now, the biblical principles of government, leadership, and Statesmanship relevant to founding of the nation acquires interruption, from human expertise of statecraft or humans ruling other humans, thereby, supplanting living under divine guidance. Nevertheless, even as right and wrong does not fluctuate, still, it has always been subject to human interpretation in time and space paradigms. Therefore, the basic principles governing the government from…

    • 1909 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The rule of some men over others, ubiquitous throughout human history, cannot arise from the nature of the ruler or the ruled, but only and necessarily from some human arrangement. As Jefferson wrote in 1826, two weeks before his death, which fell on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, “All eyes are open to or opening to … the palpable truth that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride it. For more than a year, the Americans had sent petitions to England proclaiming their grievances against the British government. Colonists even appealed to the British people, pleading with them to elect different members of Parliament who would be more open…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    The U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence present many ideas which can be traced back to the time of classical antiquity. Many of the concepts within the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence can be linked to ideas that were present in ancient Greece and Rome. These ideas and concepts have helped form our society into what it is today. In Article 1 of the Constitution it states that, the House of Representatives and the Senate have all legislative powers. They have the power to pass the laws that control and influence our society. In history, the Romans had a system similar to this. Their government consisted of an Assembly, Senate and a Consul which controlled their society. A second concept can be found within the first amendment in the Bill of Rights, it states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” (amend. I). This grants United States citizens religious freedom. Despite of the fact that the Roman Empire was not religiously tolerant until the reign of Constantine the Great, there was a point where Roman citizens had religious freedom. Another parallel between America’s government and the worlds of classical Greece and Rome would be in the Writ of Habeas Corpus. It is a common idea that was first instituted by Emperor Justinian can be found in the sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Another idea found within the Declaration of Independence, the idea that, “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness,” (line 7, Declaration of Independence) also finds its roots in the classical world. The concepts within this quote mirror some of the component of Greek Stoicism. They believed that all men were created equal and because of that we are all brothers. The last concept deals with the right of the people to alter or…

    • 1581 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Fourth of July is much more than hamburgers and fireworks. On this day in 1776, 56 people signed a document declaring the thirteen United States of America’s independence from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence was written mainly by Thomas Jefferson with input from other members of congress. The document was created to declare independence from the Tyrant British Rule which controlled the United States. After many efforts to detach from British Rule, this document was written to peacefully explain the reasons for which the states wanted to separate themselves. Jefferson effectively explains these reasons by using Aristotle’s style of rhetoric which includes ethos, pathos, and logos.…

    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As the push for independence from the British in the late 1770s became more evident prior and post the revolutionary war, the true seed of the American identity was planted with the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress at the Pennsylvania State House on July 4, 1776. The colonies soon began taking their first steps as a nation as they took on the enlightened views of John Locke and Sir Isaac Newton, evidently leading to the establishment of the 10 amendments that would act as the fundamental principles of the blooming nation, and establish a foreground for the coming ones which define the United States today. Unended for and in a fragile state, the now independent colonies were strong patriotically…

    • 1164 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    These two documents of Jefferson and Lincoln’s are different in more ways than they are similar. More specifically, the clear difference between the two in organization and contradiction of arguments that each expresses are what show that the Gettysburg Address and the Declaration of Independence were two documents written on completely different ends of the spectrum. Because of this, the two are just as significant to each other as they are individually to the construction and shaping of America and its rich history. The fact that these two documents are so different from one another is what makes them such great pieces of history. Jefferson’s idea of decentralization and freedom versus Lincoln’s theory of one centralized, unified, and indivisible nation and government represents the change and difference of opinion between two people of different eras in American history. This change and difference of opinion was the result of a growing country and is what was needed in order to build it and develop it into the country that it is today.…

    • 1480 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Thee American Confederation and Constitution has caused several colonist to be reluctant for several years. The United States government ratified these articles creating unity between the states and the representations for all citizens. Articles of Confederation and the Constitution are justified for an effective United States rule and law. To better understand what the level of economics and drawbacks were during this time, it is imperative to compare and contrast the situations in which the documents contradict.…

    • 1102 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Jefferson's resolution for Kentucky, he went even further by declaring that ultimate sovereignty rested with the states, which empowered them to reject federal laws to which they objected. He stated, "To their resolutions passed at the last session, respecting certain unconstitutional laws of Congress, commonly called the alien and sedition laws, would be faithless indeed to themselves, and to those they represent,…

    • 675 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Dbq Red Three

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages

    What outside information/events does this refer to? Constitution gives states’ power, anything that goes to the states, independence – states.…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1800 Jefferson entered office with the intention to move away from the Federalist policies of Washington and Adams and to put the nation onto a path that he thought would be best. He wished to minimize the power of the central government by strengthening the state governments. “Our country is too large to have all its affairs directed by a single government…” (Document A). Jefferson and the Republican Party envisioned a government that was going to work for the people, a government with the people’s interests at heart. They believed that having stronger state governments would accomplish this. The leaders of a state were closer to the people they were governing; therefore they should know what the public needed. Document B refers to Jefferson’s belief in the strict interpretation of the Constitution, especially when it is about the freedom of religion. “Certainly no power to prescribe any religious exercise, or to assume authority in religious discipline, has been delegated to the general [federal] government. It must then rest with the states, as far as it can be in any human authority…” It is clear that Jefferson believes that the…

    • 1211 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The pillars of citizenship in our country, the United States of America, have been constructed through three essential documents. The Declaration of Independence, US Constitution, and the Bill of Rights have furnished much of our countries civil rights and liberties of the US political system. The Declaration of Independence of 1776 was a document that stated official separation between the 13 colonies and Great Britain. The Declaration mainly argued for the colonies most central law, which was that “all men are created equal” and there are certain unalienable rights that governments need to respect such as the “right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” It also argued “Intolerable Acts” would be considered unconstitutional under the new nation. It also argued if a government is not supporting the rights described in the document, citizens should and could overthrow that government as devoted citizens. The declaration of Independence was created to form a new government that’s main duty was to support the rights of citizens through only the power of the people that it represented. The US Constitution was constructed after we won our independence from Great Britain, which resulted in the formation of our new Government. It was the foundational document that setup all of our nations branches of our newly constructed Government. As a whole, this documents main purpose was the construction of our relationship between the Federal Government and the United States Citizens. When the US Constitution was constructed there was many debates between the Anti-Federalists and Federalists. The Anti-Federalists were scared that there would be to much Government regulation and the citizens would lose some of their rights. In regards to this, both sides agreed on the US constitution, but only if there would be a construction of a “Bill of Rights”. The Bill of Rights sole purpose was to maintain the United States citizens liberties including freedom of speech,…

    • 401 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When Jefferson speaks of laws of nature he is referring to the laws entitled to all men by God.…

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the year 1800, Thomas Jefferson viewed the Constitution as a document that should be interpreted very strictly. He felt that the country could not be united if the Federalists were making so many interpretations of the words of the Constitution (Doc. A). He believed that the Constitution was made the way it was purposely because the Framers knew that that was how the country could best use it. An example of how he was a strict constructionist was in 1808 (in the middle of his presidency), when he created the phrase "separation between church and state." He felt that the Constitution does not provide the National Government with the right to impose religious laws upon the citizens (it can only make civil laws), and therefore those types of decisions are for the people to make for themselves (Doc. B).…

    • 605 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    [3]- The American Pageant- Twelfth Edition By David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays