"Since the dawn of the Republic, America’s search for freedom has been driven by the belief that the principles that rule political and social life are closely related to a moral order, which is based on the Lordship of God the Maker". This was said by the Pope, as at the White House he reread American history, starting from the role that has been historically played "not only by the Catholics, but by all believers", who "here have found the freedom to worship God according to the dictates of their conscience, while being accepted as part of a confederation in which every individual and every group may make their voice be heard". A "belief", this one, on which "the authors of the documents for the constitution of this Nation" relied, as they "proclaimed the self-evident truth that all men are made equal and are provided with inalienable rights, based on the law of nature and on the God of such law". "The walk of American history said the Pontiff highlights the difficulties, the fights and the great intellectual and moral determination that were needed to form a society that might faithfully incorporate such noble principles". "Along that process which shaped the soul of the Nation highlighted the Pope , the religious beliefs were an endless inspiration and a steering force, such as for instance in the fight against slavery and in the civil rights movement". (to be continued)
