On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the intellectual foundations of the Deceleration of Independence before introducing Wilfred McClay.

Americans have overcome many challenges throughout our history, including the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Great Depression, two World Wars, and the Cold War. Studying the great stories from our past inspires us to preserve the blessings of liberty in our day. Now you can study these stories with Hillsdale College.

Hillsdale’s free online course, “The Great American Story: A Land of Hope,” explores the history of America as a land of hope founded on high principles. In presenting the great triumphs and achievements of our nation’s past, as well as the shortcomings and failures, it offers a broad and unbiased study of the kind essential to the cultivation of intelligent patriotism.

The British imperial system fostered habits of self-rule in the American colonies, which were strengthened by the Great Awakening and the Enlightenment. This revolution of self-rule culminated in the resonant words of the Declaration of Independence, which cited “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.”