Beginnings

Nearly 400 years ago, my ancestors made a journey across the ocean in search of freedom...freedom from persecution of their religious beliefs and from the caste system. They sought a better life for themselves and their families. When they arrived, they had very few political barriers in their life. They had to contend with the physical barriers of the new world and in doing so, community was an important part of their lives. Communities worked together to ensure the survival of all members. They learned to work with tribes and gleaned survival skills. This was a community that did not believe in violence, they didn't even believe in getting angry. Discipline was strictly enforced and God was the center of everything for them.
My first American forefather was an important part in one of these communities, he was a leader and provider in many ways. He was known as a man of integrity, until such day as he had the audacity to question the baptism of infants. I don't wish to discuss the theology of his claims, I bring it up only to discuss the consequences. He was excommunicated from the church, which would be expected. However, he was excommunicated from the community as well.
I feel a connection with this man and his family. Obstacles to his belief were often placed before them, and yet they persevered through their challenges and clung to their beliefs. I believe that the same things that these fathers of mine were seeking have been passed down through hundreds of years of values passing from generation to generation.
More and more pilgrims came to our land, some with peaceful ways, and others with conquering ways. Our nation began to evolve until its journey brought them to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. Men, women and children were again willing to place all they had at risk for the chance at what they believed. What did they believe in, though, and how do we feel about those beliefs still today?
"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." These ideals were used as a guideline as our Constitution and subsequent laws were established.
By Life, did they mean simply the right to survive or the right to have a life? Certainly today one can argue that most people seem to believe that it is the governments job to provide all of its citizens with a life, ripe with all of their expectations of what that means. But was that the intention? And is my perception of how Americans today interpret this phrase accurate? In either case, does this right in fact extend to all human life - prisoner and fetus? Scientists can determine if and ameoba on Mars is life or not, but that cannot seem to determine whether or not a fetus is alive or a virus. It seems quite baffling to me.
Liberty. What did it mean to have liberty 240 years ago? Was liberty predicated on the freedom of a community or of individuals? Was the liberty of an individual worth the liberty of a community or was it established the other way around?
Pursuit of Happiness. It doesn't appear to me that our ancestors believed that we each had the right to be happy, only the right to try to be happy. I would wonder how our fathers would feel about our victim society that has developed.
I am going to close for now, but I am interested in the discussion of these thoughts and where I will be led in the process. I don't know if I am seeking an answer, but more in search of the journey to a better understanding of what it means to be an American, and subsequently, how that effects being me.