Fr. William Danaher served parishes in Sewanee, Tennessee, New Haven, Connecticut, and New York City in addition to his current role as the 8th Rector of Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
Below is the full transcript of his reflection on Independence Day as America celebrates 250 years.
Transcript: Fr. William Danaher Reflects on the Fourth of July
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the founding of our country — which happened on July 4th, 1776, when the Continental Congress passed the Declaration of Independence — I want to invite you to think back to an even earlier sermon that many have seen as the true birth of the American idea.
It happened on the decks of the Arabella. It was given by John Winthrop, who was then the newly appointed Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Company. Winthrop gave a sermon entitled A Model of Christian Charity, and in that sermon he said that we should be as a city built upon a hill. He was quoting the Gospel of Matthew 5:14 — “You are the light of the world; a city built on a hill cannot be hid.”
The Vision That Built a Nation
When Winthrop gave that vision of our country, he was drawing his followers’ attention to the fact that the world was watching them. What they did was try to build something that had never been attempted before — they were trying to build a nation that would do right in a world that was often wrong.
Much later, President John F. Kennedy alluded to this sermon just before he was inaugurated as president. He said that vision of a city on a hill was as true then as it was in that first founding moment — because the United States was called to be a place that would know itself through its courage, judgment, integrity, and dedication. That vision of a city on a hill inspired Kennedy when he said: “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”
And even later, President Ronald Reagan, in his farewell address, referenced the city on the hill. He said America should continue to be:
“A city built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace. A city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity. And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors, and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get there.”
This is a magnificent vision of us — one that has been reinterpreted again and again, often in times of national challenge.
The Heart of Winthrop’s Sermon
As I prepared to reflect on this moment, I found myself reading Winthrop’s sermon again. And the core of that sermon is a passage not just from Matthew, but from Micah 6:8.
“What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
This was the point of inspiration for Winthrop as he sought to build a new country. He wanted this nation to be a place where there was justice, kindness, mercy, and humbleness before God. And here is what he said to those who were listening to him:
“The only way to avoid shipwreck and to provide for our posterity is to follow the counsel of Micah — to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God. For this end, we must be knit together in this work as one. We must entertain each other in brotherly affection, in all meekness, gentleness, patience, and liberality. We must delight in each other, make each other’s conditions our own, rejoice together, mourn together, labor and suffer together — always having before our eyes our commission and community in the work, our community as members of the same body. So shall we keep the unity of the spirit and the bond of peace. For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us.”
A Prayer for Our Country
As we approach this wonderful celebration and milestone in this great nation, I invite you to affirm with me the words of the prophet Micah — that we should be a people who do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God.
I invite you to affirm with me that we are a nation that, from the very beginning, has been held together by the idea that everybody belongs in this country.
And I invite you to pray for our country.
May God bless you this 4th of July. May God bless America. May you have a wonderful celebration.
Rev. Dr. William Danaher serves as Rector at Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. This reflection was delivered to the congregation in advance of Independence Day 2026.