The tombstone of Thomas Jefferson
by Kathleen McCoy |
Are essential elements of the founding of the American republic contained in Thomas
Jefferson's epitaph? Charles Kesler, Professor of Government at Claremont McKenna
College, will present this case. Professor Kesler, a senior fellow of the Claremont
Institute for the Study of Statesmanship and Political Philosophy, will lead an exploration
of what Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and our
nation's third president, wanted inscribed on his tombstone. Jefferson directed that
his epitaph reflect three of his accomplishments: That he was author of the Declaration
of Independence, author of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom and father of
the University of Virginia. What these three items have in common is that each was
an essential part of founding republican government in America, which in order to
sustain itself would have to rely to a surprising degree on political and religious
principles upheld and transmitted by public education, according to Professor Kesler.
A UAA Polaris Society Lecture, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the UAA/APU Consortium Library
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The UAA Polaris Society supports this lecture with additional support from the Alaska
Humanities Forum. It is open to the public and free of charge.
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