It’s Constitution Day in America. The document that defines our basic framework of government was signed 225 years ago today. Of all the constitutions defining major governments around the world, ours is the shortest by word count, yet the longest-lasting.
It also inspires our Number of the Day: ZERO.
That’s the number of times God is mentioned in the Constitution. It simply doesn’t appear.
A lot of folks would find that surprising. But the Founding Fathers really did believe in the separation of church and state. And here’s another fact that might surprise you: The biggest problem in getting the Constitution ratified was that states were demanding a Bill of Rights. Folks wanted a greater definition of those inalienable rights that had just triggered our War of Independence. Those first 10 amendments were finally ratified in December 1791, and they guaranteed — first and foremost — the freedoms of religion, speech and the press.
Today, we are not just celebrating a document. We are celebrating free thought.
