CHARLOTTE – “We, the people of the State of North Carolina, grateful to Almighty God, the Sovereign Ruler of Nations, for the preservation of the American Union and the existence of our civil, political and religious liberties, and acknowledging our dependence upon Him for the continuance of those blessings to us and our posterity, do, for the more certain security thereof and for the better government of this State, ordain and establish this Constitution.” (emphasis added)

The underlined words are identical to those within the U.S. Constitution.  Ordain is commonly used today for ministers of the Gospel.  Ordain means to invest with sacerdotal (sas-er-dot’-al) power.  Sacerdotal means to be dedicated, devoted, and consecrated to God and His service.  Establish means to set and fix firmly.  As a result, our Constitutions are to be unalterably consecrated to God.

The North Carolina Constitution “Declaration of Rights” is within Article 1.  Section 1 states that “We hold it to be self-evident that all persons are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor, and the pursuit of happiness.”  (emphasis added) Furthermore, the Declaration of Independence makes clear that the role of good government is to protect such rights.