An inspiring example of thankfulness

Editor's note: This is part five of a five-part Thanksgiving week guest column series.

Perhaps the highest honor of a federal judge is the honor of administering the oath of allegiance to new citizens. Each year, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals from most every country in the world become United States citizens through the rigorous process of naturalization. In fact, the number of people who were naturalized in the United States increased from 2.1 million during the 1980s to 5.0 million during the 1990s to 7.9 million during the current decade through 2009. Last year, in the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri alone, 49 naturalization ceremonies were conducted in which 2,434 petitioners became U. S. citizens.

And who are these people? Over the generations, this country has welcomed legions of the "tired," the "poor," and the "huddled masses yearning to breathe free" who have come at the express invitation that adorns our Statue of Liberty. Some, too, have been luminaries -- from Albert Einstein to Albert Pujols (the latter having achieved a perfect score on the citizenship examination, though one may assume that the former did so as well). Interestingly, the majority of people naturalized in Cape Girardeau in recent years are either physicians and their families, or those who have some connection with Southeast Missouri State University, whether as students or faculty, and their friends and families. Whatever the background of our immigrants, in the long run they have assimilated and contributed to the well-being of the whole and made the melting pot that is our society and culture ever more commendable.

In general, each was required to secure permanent resident status and reside in the United States continuously for at least five years, to prove the ability to speak, read and write the English language, to demonstrate a working knowledge of United States government and its history and to show good moral character. But the most telling indication of their suitability for citizenship was their all-consuming commitment to pull up their roots, to leave their country of origin and often their families and to embark on a life-changing mission in the pursuit of the rich abundance of freedom and opportunity that is the essence of our great nation. Indeed, to secure the privilege of United States citizenship was, for many, the greatest blessing of their lives.

The naturalization ceremony, itself, is one of the most compelling and uplifting and ultimately patriotic celebrations one can witness. In the soaring atrium of the new federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau, for instance, the scene is not only festive, but altogether magnificent. The petitioners and their families gather between the two grand staircases bedecked in red, white and blue bunting. Directly above at the common apex of the staircases, a musical ensemble plays selections from the repertoire of musical Americana. Then court is called to order, a color guard posts the colors, a soloist gives a stirring rendition of the national anthem, the dignitaries deliver their impassioned speeches and a motion is made for the admission of the new citizens. But of course, the central moment of the ceremony and the emotional culmination of the petitioners' long journey occurs when they rise to their feet and raise their right hands and repeat in unison the solemn oath. If ever a government mandate were justified, every native-born citizen should be required to attend at least one of these celebrations to observe, first hand, the outpouring of joy and pride and fulfillment from the new citizens and their overflowing gratitude for their abundant good fortune. And lest there be any question about the extent of the petitioners' commitment, one need only compare the substance of the pledge of allegiance recited by native-born citizens with that required of the new citizens, who state:

"I hereby declare on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and adjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of American against all enemies foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

In contrast to the celebration of new citizenship, it is quite unfortunate that our nation is at times besieged by native-citizen naysayers and doomsayers who profess that our society is in a woeful state, that our populace is spoiled and decadent, that our nation is ungovernable, that our democracy is hopelessly gridlocked and otherwise incompetent to address the many crises of the day and that the country is in an irreversible decline altogether. Some of these complaints, of course, are prompted by the recent election cycle that was characterized by what seemed to be unusually bitter partisanship and increasingly raucous and caustic political activities. These views, however, have little grounding in history. Since the time of the Founding Fathers, our society and our democracy have always been fraught with the same kind of problems and shortcomings that we confront today, and sure enough, each generation has been pestered by the same kind of naysayers and doomsayers. But whatever the state of the nation today, Churchill's famous quip about the nature of democracy still holds: that it is the worst form of government, except for all the others. To be sure, when the day comes that so many millions of the freedom-loving people of the world no longer flock to our borders and shores to seek the blessings of United States citizenship, only then need we concern ourselves with the decline and demise of our great nation.

In this season of Thanksgiving, may all native-born citizens take full measure of their own blessings by looking to the inspiring example of our naturalized citizens. And may all Americans rejoice, give thanks and pledge themselves anew to our founding principles, as if all had only now been granted the high privilege of U.S. citizenship.

Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. is the resident U.S. district judge in the new Rush Hudson Limbaugh Sr. U.S. Courthouse in Cape Girardeau.