What did our country’s founding fathers mean by the “pursuit of happiness”? It’s different than what you might think.
Register For Jeffrey Rosen Event
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
“If you had to sum it up in one sentence, the classical definition of the pursuit of happiness meant being a lifelong learner, with a commitment to practicing the daily habits that lead to character improvement, self-mastery, flourishing, and growth.”
Owls Club invites you to a special evening with Jeffrey Rosen, author of “The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers On Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America.” He’ll speak at the Owls Club campus on Tuesday, May 14, at 7pm. The event will be moderated by local television celebrity Gary Sieber and held in the sanctuary at Trinity on Jackson, 2715 E. Jackson Blvd., Elkhart.
One of the nation’s foremost constitutional scholars. Rosen is CEO and President of the National Constitution Center and will take us on a journey examining what “the pursuit of happiness” meant to our nation’s Founders and how that famous phrase not only defined their lives but became the foundation of our democracy.
Rosen will give attendees a glimpse into the minds of America’s Founders through the literature that informed and inspired them at the birth of our country. He’ll share profound insights on what they meant by the unalienable right to the pursuit of happiness, and how it’s different than what you might think.
Some of the virtues he covers in his book include the habits of industry, temperance, moderation, and sincerity, which the Founders viewed as part of a daily struggle for self-improvement, character development, and self-mastery — but also as the foundation of self-government within democracy.
History buffs, philosophers, the politically-minded, and all who pursue personal growth and happiness will leave this event with a broader and more accurate definition of this unalienable right and the profound impact personal virtue has on democracy.