[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 117 (Friday, July 15, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E744-E745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          NORTHWEST ORDINANCE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. GARY J. PALMER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 15, 2022

  Mr. PALMER. Madam Speaker, Wednesday was the 235th anniversary of the 
passage of the Northwest Ordinance.
  The Northwest Ordinance, passed on July 13, 1787 under the Articles 
of Confederation, created the Northwest Territory which would 
eventually become the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and 
Wisconsin.

[[Page E745]]

  Two portions of the Ordinance capture important principles that are 
worth recovering 235 years later.
  Section 13 of the Ordinance notes that the fundamental principles of 
civil and religious liberty form the basis upon which republics are 
erected and that they are the basis of all laws.
  Article 3 affirms that religion, morality, and knowledge are 
necessary for good government and the happiness of mankind.
  We've strayed far from these truths in the years since the Northwest 
Ordinance was passed.
  However, it isn't too late to recover and encourage a robust respect 
for civil and religious liberty while acknowledging the fundamental 
truth that religion, morality, and knowledge are essential for America 
and her people to flourish.

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