Our strength as a nation comes in our unity. We are the United

Hear the voice of Ben Carson, who spoke in the spirit of guardianship over his people: “Our strength as a nation comes in our unity. We are the United States of America, not the divided states. And those who want to divide us are trying to divide us, and we shouldn’t let them do it.” These words are simple, yet they resound like the tolling of a great bell across the ages. For they echo the truth known since the dawn of nations: that the might of a people is not found in their numbers alone, nor in their armies, nor in their wealth, but in their unity.

The meaning is both clear and urgent. Strength is born when people stand as one body, one voice, one purpose. Division, however, is the seed of weakness. A kingdom torn against itself cannot endure, no matter how mighty its walls. The United States was founded not upon sameness, but upon unity in diversity—many states, many peoples, yet one nation. Carson’s warning reminds us that the greatest enemies of a nation are not always those who march against it with weapons, but those who sow discord within it, setting brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor.

History is filled with lessons of this truth. Consider the fall of Rome. Its legions were still strong, its wealth still vast, yet inward division eroded its strength. Corruption, infighting, and betrayal weakened its spirit until the barbarians at the gates found an empire already hollowed from within. Contrast this with the American Revolution, when thirteen colonies, scattered and weak, bound themselves together in unity. Though outnumbered and out-armed, they endured, because their shared cause was stronger than their differences. In unity, they found victory.

The origin of Carson’s words lies in his vision as a healer and servant, for as a surgeon he once united mind and hand to heal the broken body. In politics, he carried that same vision to a nation. His plea was not for uniformity but for solidarity—that Americans remember their shared destiny, that they resist the voices that profit from discord, and that they guard the sacred bond of unity as their true fortress of strength.

The deeper meaning is that unity is not passive, but active. It requires humility, sacrifice, and the courage to listen. It is easy to be divided, for division feeds on pride, fear, and suspicion. But unity demands labor: the labor of forgiveness, the labor of understanding, the labor of choosing the common good over selfish gain. It is in these acts that a people become truly great, for their strength flows not from force, but from fellowship.

The lesson for us is clear: beware of those who profit from division, who magnify hatred, who whisper that your neighbor is your enemy. Guard your heart from such poison. Remember always that your destiny is bound to the destiny of those around you. Just as the threads of a rope gain strength when woven together, so does a people gain unbreakable might when joined by shared purpose.

Practical steps are these: seek first to understand before condemning. Speak words that heal rather than words that wound. Work for causes that lift not just yourself but your community. In times of conflict, ask not only, “What divides us?” but also, “What unites us?” For in that question lies the path to renewal. And when you see division sown, resist it with truth, with compassion, with courage.

Thus Carson’s words become more than a political plea; they rise as an eternal principle: “Our strength as a nation comes in our unity.” Let us remember this truth in our homes, in our cities, in our nations. For the divided fall, but the united endure. And when we stand together, bound by a shared hope, no storm of man or fate can bring us down.