Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln, My Founder

Last updated on: February 12, 2013 at 10:30 am by Chris Henrichsen

Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln, My Founder 2013-02-12T10:30:34-08:00 Chris Henrichsen

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

We have in many ways ruined Abraham Lincoln. I love him because of his flaws. He was surely a work in progress. Yet, the progression of his thought is a work of beauty in and of itself.

He was not a pretty politician. He was not a pretty man. But he brought with him a humility and a moral vision of the nation-state which in many ways correctly many of the major failings of the founders.

I feel closest to Abraham Lincoln when I read about his struggles with depression.

I think that the image of “Honest Abe” makes Abraham Lincoln to be a far more simple or innocent man that he actually was. He was a very ambitious man. No person is elected President without have a large amount of ambition. So, how can I call him humble? Well, humble is relative. Lincoln was not the ideologue that many wanted him to be, nor is he the ideologue that many still wish he was.

Lincoln’s rhetoric was very much in the mold of John Locke. His early criticisms of slavery where criticisms of the idea that one could profit from the labor and sweat of somebody else. This is very much rooted in a Lockean view of property where property gains value and the status of a right because of the labor put into it. Slavery is a gross violation of this conception.

Yet, Lincoln had a vision of the state that was more Rousseau than Locke. Rousseau viewed the state as a key element of liberty. We cannot be free without it. Nature may have been a nicer place, but that place is gone and it is not coming back.

Lincoln’s recognition of the United States, and not the states, as the key unit for preserving liberty goes in the face of many ideologies which still exist today. Lincoln also pushed us toward a more democratic vision of American freedom.

We were not founded as a nation “of the people, by the people, and for people.” Instead, Lincoln used the horrible tragedy of the Civil War as an opportunity to transform our vision of the Constitution. It is Lincoln’s aspirational vision of the Constitution that I sustain, not that of the founders.

Now, we did not become a nation “of the people, by the people, and for the people” immediately after the Civil War. However, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendment (direct outgrowths of the Civil War) made our progress in that direction possible. We are still striving. We are Approaching Justice.

American History

American Political Thought

Political Philosophy

Previous Post

February 12, 2013

Welcome to Approaching Justice

Next Post

February 12, 2013 Join Me Tonight for a State of the Union Open Thread Discussion

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Adventures in Parenting Adventures in Sunday School American History American Political Thought American Politics American Religion Blog Admin Books Campaign Chronicles Culture Current Events Faith & Social Justice News Roundup General Conference Green Party Guest Post Guns HuffPost Live Hymns of Social Justice Independence Rock Group Las Vegas Marginalia Mormon Studies Mormonism Music Personal and Family Philosophy Political Philosophy Pop culture Queer Pioneer Week Quote of the Day Rawls Rawls and Religion Religion Social Justice Social Justice Book Club Sports Theology U.S Constitution Uncategorized Unions Video Wyoming

Select a Month February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What is a "scroll" most similar to today?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Carpet Table Book Statue