The American Soul

Golden Rule, Public Schools, And Faith

• Jesse • Season 5 • Episode 179

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A simple memory at a memorial changed the tone of the day: a third-grade classroom with the Golden Rule on the wall, memorized by kids who carried it into adulthood. That image opened a bigger conversation about what we teach our children, how we understand liberty, and why our public institutions should reflect the moral roots that shaped this country.

We walk through the case for centering tax-funded education on the principles that animated the American project—love of neighbor, the dignity of conscience, and the Scriptural wisdom that formed our earliest laws and customs. Along the way, we confront the modern “separation of church and state” narrative that grew after 1947 and contrast it with Jefferson’s original concern about a national church. The goal isn’t coercion at home; it’s clarity in the public square. We also move from civics to the heart, reading 1 Corinthians 7 as a mirror for marriages that need mutual care, prayer, and unity, and noting how strong homes train the same virtues a free people require.

Scripture readings from Matthew, Psalms, and Proverbs bring the story into focus: Joseph’s obedience, the Magi’s courage, and the promise that delight in God’s law turns lives into rooted trees. We honor Private Robert D. Booker’s Medal of Honor sacrifice as the hard-earned fruit of formation, not accident, and we revisit Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1933 Christmas messages, where “love thy neighbor” rises as a national ethic in anxious times. If history is bending toward a rougher season, we can still prepare: strengthen local institutions, equip those who serve, speak up at school boards, and teach the Golden Rule with conviction.

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SPEAKER_00:

Hey folks, this is Jesse Cope back with another episode of the American Soul Podcast. Hope y'all are doing well wherever y'all are in whatever part of the day you're in. Sure do appreciate you joining me. Giving me a little bit of your time and attention, a little piece of your day. I will try and use that widely. Hopefully, y'all are getting to listen to this with someone else. For those of y'all who continue to share the podcast with others, tell others about it. Thank you. Very, very grateful for that. For those of y'all who continue to pray for me and for the podcast, thank you. Very grateful for your prayers. Need them and want them. Father, thank you for today. Thank you for you, Father, and your son Jesus Christ and your Holy Spirit. Thank you for your love and your mercy, your grace, and your forgiveness of sins through the merit of your son Jesus Christ. Thank you for the blessings we admit, Father, and the ones we don't, for whatever reason. Be with those who are scared and alone, who feel abandoned. Help us to care for the widow and the orphan, the poor and the needy, not with just words, but with deeds, with actions. Help us to follow the commands of your son Jesus Christ, to love you with all that we are, to love our neighbors as ourselves. Be with those of us who are married, help us to love our spouses to reflect that relationship between Christ and the church. Help our nation here in America to turn back to you, Father, and your Son Jesus Christ, and the nations of all those around the world who are listening. Please be with those who are listening, Father. Thank you for them. Comfort them, give them your peace and your joy, your comfort, encourage them. Help us to encourage one another. Be with those who go out and work on our power lines, our roads, our sewers, our infrastructure.

SPEAKER_01:

Keep them safe, bring them home safe to their families. Thank you for them.

SPEAKER_00:

Be with those who defend us, our military, our law enforcement, firefighters, EMS. Be with them. Keep them safe, bring them home safe. Be especially with our ICE officers lately.

SPEAKER_01:

Give them wisdom and courage. Protect them from evil men and women. Bring them home safe to their families. And God no words here, Father, please. Your son's family pray. Amen. I had the privilege of getting to go to a funeral service. Memorial service for a man I have known pretty much my entire life. And it was a privilege for a number of reasons.

SPEAKER_00:

He was just a good man, as good as men can be, acknowledging Christ's comment that none of us are really good.

SPEAKER_01:

He was a Marine, which also sweetened the deal a little bit for me. And he always seemed interested in me and my life and those around me.

SPEAKER_00:

There's another number of reasons I could sit here and talk for a long time about this gentleman, but the reason I brought it up today is because at his service there was a man that spoke a few words, and he he had known this man his whole life, gone to elementary school with him.

SPEAKER_01:

I guess back in the 50s.

SPEAKER_00:

And he made this comment about this Bible verse that they had memorized in school that was on the wall of their third grade classroom. And it was the golden rule.

SPEAKER_01:

And they had memorized chapter and verse and the words, and he said that he knew that that stuck with this man his whole life.

SPEAKER_00:

It stuck with him. To love your neighbors yourself, to treat others the way that you want to be treated. We have done such a huge disservice. Benjamin Rush, one of our founding fathers, talked about this by not teaching our children the Bible, by not centering public education on God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit in the Bible. Folks, we were founded as a Christian nation. That's what we've done on this podcast for the last four and a half years. And there are mountains of evidence that we were founded as a Christian nation. Any education in this nation funded by public tax dollars, and it doesn't matter whether that school is private or public or charter or anything else, if it's getting any form of tax money, taxpayer dollar, it ought to be centered on God and Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit and the Bible. We should make no apology.

SPEAKER_01:

We should make no exception.

SPEAKER_00:

And that in no way infringes on an individual's religious liberty in their home to require that public education, that tax dollars used for public education in a nation founded on the principles of Jesus Christ are centered on those principles. The left has managed to sell this lie to propagandise since the Supreme Court decision of Everson versus Board of Education back in 1947 to propagandize this modern version of separation of church and state. It's a complete lie, it's a complete twisting of the original phrase and what it meant in Jefferson's letter and when it was used before that. Jefferson wasn't even the originator of the phrase. And it really today means separation of God and state. And our founders in no way, no way intended that. And anybody you can talk to about this, folks, talk to. And if you feel like writing a senator, representative, governor, mayor, it doesn't matter, school board member.

SPEAKER_01:

Talk to somebody somewhere. A neighbor, anybody. Marriage verse for today.

SPEAKER_00:

1 Corinthians 7 verses 3 through 6, 5, 3 through 5. The husband should fulfill his wife's sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband's needs. The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife. Do not deprive each other of sexual relations unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time, so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won't be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control. We could sit here and talk about this for quite a while, folks. I'll just make the comment that the majority of marriages inside the church today clearly, by their own admission, are not following Scripture when it comes to this. Bible readings for today. We're going to start with all the way back at the beginning again. Matthew 1 verses, or Matthew 1, 1, verses 2 through 2, verse 12. This is a rec record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, descendant of David and of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Terah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez was the father of Herzan. Herzon was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Aminab. Aminab was the father of Nashan. Nashan was the father of Salmon. Salomon was the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother was Bathsheba, the widow of Uriah. Solomon was the father of Raboam. Rehaboam was the father of Abigah. Abigail was the father of Atha, Atha was the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram. Joram was the father of Uzziah. Uzziah was the father of Jotham. Joseham was the father of Ahaz, Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh. Manasseh was the father of Amon. Amon was the father of Josiah. Josiah was the father of Jehoatin, and his brothers born at the time of the exile to Babylon, after the Babylonian exile. Jehoatin was the father of Shiltil. Sheilti was the father of Zerubabel. Zerubabel was the father of Abud. Abud was the father of Elichim. Elichim was the father of Azor. Azor was the father of Zadok. Zadok was the father of Akim. Akim was the father of Eliad. Eliad was the father of Eliazar. Eliazar was the father of Mathan. Mathan was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Mary gave birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah. All those listed above included fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile, and fourteen from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah. This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother Mary was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly. So he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. Joseph, son of David, the angel said, Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord's message through the prophet. Look, the virgin will conceive a son, she will give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel, which means God is with us. When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife, but he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born, and Joseph named him Jesus. Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from the eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem asking, Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him. King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, Where is the Messiah supposed to be born? In Bethlehem and Judea, they said, For this is what the prophet wrote. And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah are not least among the ruling cities of Judah. For a ruler will come from you, who will be the shepherd for my people Israel. Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. Then he told them, Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child, and when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him too. After this interview the wise men went their way, and the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. They went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. They entered the house and saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never never wither, and they prosper in all they do. But not the wicked. They are like worthless chaff scattered by the wind, that will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. For the Lord watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction. Proverbs 1, verses 1 through 6. These are the proverbs of Solomon, David's son, king of Israel. Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline, to help them understand the insights of the wise. Their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help them do what is right, just and fair. These proverbs will give insight to the simple, knowledge and discernment to the young. Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser. Let those with understanding receive guidance by exploring the meaning in these proverbs and parables, the words of the wise and their riddles. Private World War II, Bravo Company, 133rd Infantry, 34th Infantry Division, U.S. Army, April 9th, 1943, near Fawn Duke Tunzinia. For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty in action. On April 9th, 1943, in the vicinity of Fawn Duke Tunzania, Private Booker, while engaged in action against the enemy, carried a light machine gun and a box of ammunition over 200 yards of open ground. He continued to advance despite the fact that two enemy machine guns and several mortars were using him as an individual target. Although enemy artillery also began to register on him. Upon reaching his objective, he immediately commenced firing. After being wounded, he silenced one enemy machine gun and was being beginning to fire at the other when he received a second mortal wound. With his last remaining streak, he encouraged the members of his squad and directed their fire. Private Booker acted without regard for his own safety. His initiative and courage against insurmountable odds are an example of the highest standard of self-sacrifice and fidelity to duty. Accredited to Callaway, Custer County, Nebraska, awarded posthumously, born July 11th, 1920, Callaway, Custer County, Nebraska, died April 9th, 1943, Tanzania, buried at Rose Hill Cemetery, D Tac 2, Callaway, Nebraska, United States.

SPEAKER_01:

Robert D. Booker. Christmas messages for today. I think we have two of them.

SPEAKER_00:

This is a public radio address from President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. This first one is on December 24th, 1933, broadcast live from the White House South Portico after lighting the community Christmas tree. We and the nation's capital are gathered around this symbolic tree, celebrating the coming of Christmas. In spirit, we join with millions of others, men and women and children, throughout our own land and in other countries and continents, in happy and reverent observance of the spirit of Christmas. For me and my family, it is the happiest of Christmases. To the many thousands of you who have fought of me and have sent me greetings, and I hope all of you are hearing my voice. I want to tell you how profoundly grateful I am. If it were within my power so to do, I would personally thank each and every one of you for your remembrance of me. But there are so many thousands of you that that happy task is impossible. Even more greatly my happiness springs from the deep conviction that this year marks a greater national understanding of the significance in our modern lives of the teachings of him whose birth we celebrate. The more and more of us the words thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself have taken on a meaning that is showing itself and proving itself in our purposes and daily lives. May the practice of that high ideal grow in us all in the year to come. I give you and send you one and all, old and young, a Merry Christmas and a truly happy new year. And so for now and for always, God bless us, everyone.

SPEAKER_01:

Franklin D. Roosevelt.

SPEAKER_00:

Second message for that year was the holiday message sent to U.S. Diplomatic and Councillor officials overseas. It was sent out in late October in order to be delivered on Christmas. As the year draws to a holiday pause before it's closed, I take much pleasure in sending out to you and through you to your personal and official family and to the Foreign Service staffs. My heart felt My heartiest good wishes. Your loyal and intelligent cooperation with us in Washington has made these recent months of our association a source of great satisfaction and encouragement to me in this important period of our country's development. In offering my best greetings for Christmas and the new year, I look forward in confident anticipation to continuing mutual cooperation in 1934. One of the things you'll notice as we go through over the next few days, getting closer to Christmas, and we get closer to World War II, we do this each year kind of on purpose. The closer we get to war, the darker the times get, you're going to notice the seriousness of these Christmas messages increases pretty dramatically. I think you'll notice a dramatic shift as we go from 1933, kind of like we did going into the Korean War, going heading up into World War II. And I would argue, again, we're in a very similar state of affairs today, folks. Just like the 1760s, early 70s, the 1850s, early 60s, and the 1930s into the 1940s. And now, again, I think history will look back probably on this time, maybe this decade, maybe the next, as one of those of going into dark times. And I would just encourage you again, anyone that you can encourage, to really try to prepare for this coming fight, to increase the quantity and quality of training and quality of equipment for our military, our militia, that is, and our local law enforcement firefighters, EMS, that's a practical step you can take in your Christian and conservative areas. If you're looking for a family-friendly middle grade read, kind of along the lines of Narnia, The Hobbit, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, that kind of stuff, if you would check out the countryside series, there's hardback, paperback, ebook of the first two books. And if you enjoy those, if you would leave a review somewhere online, I would greatly appreciate that. And if you feel like you're getting something out of the podcast and you have three or four or five dollars a month you can donate, you can do so. There's a web page on the Buzz Sprout website for the podcast where you can set up that monthly donation, and I would be very grateful for that as well. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not to temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen. God bless you all. God bless your families, God bless your marriages if you're married. God bless your nation, wherever you are around the world listening. God bless America. We'll talk to you all again real soon, folks. Looking forward to it.