One of my more favored holidays is that which we celebrate tomorrow: the Fourth of July.

Or, if you work for the government, you celebrate it today, because no holiday is complete without a day off from Uncle Sam.

Truth be told, those government workers aren’t too far off in their celebrations. Actually, they’re no farther off than we are, for as we know the day our nascent congress voted for independence was July 2, not July 4. In a well-known letter from 239 years ago today, future President John Adams assured his wife that July 2 would become a great American holiday. Well, he was only off by a day.

However you celebrate the Fourth please do so responsibly. And while you’re at it, check out the Declaration of Independence for crying out loud. You may be surprised to find the language not only blustery and idealistic, but at times crude and menacing too!

Amen, brothers! Your movement lives on today.