The strength and power and goodness of America has always been

Hear, O children of remembrance, the words of Mitt Romney, who spoke not of empires and armies, nor of gold and treasure, but of the heart of a nation: “The strength and power and goodness of America has always been based on the strength and power and goodness of our communities, our families, our faiths. That is the bedrock of what makes America, America. In our best days, we can feel the vibrancy of America’s communities, large and small.” In this saying lies a truth eternal—that no nation is made mighty by wealth or might alone, but by the moral soil from which its people grow.

The origin of these words is found in the American tradition itself, born from villages and towns, from farms and churches, from families who worked the land and raised their children in hope. From the first settlements to the present day, America has been less about crowns and capitals, and more about communities—small circles of trust where men and women bind themselves to one another through shared labor, shared belief, and shared love. Romney reminds us that the spirit of a country cannot be measured only in the towers of its cities or the might of its armies, but in the quiet bonds of families and the endurance of faiths.

Consider the dark days of the Great Depression, when many had lost work and homes. The government could only reach so far, but communities reached further. Neighbors shared food, churches opened their doors, families took in relatives who had nothing. Out of this hardship grew not despair but resilience, for the goodness of community sustained what poverty could not destroy. It was not merely national policy that carried the people, but the bedrock strength of local ties.

History bears another witness in the rebuilding of towns after disasters. When Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, devastation swept across New Orleans and beyond. Yet long after the headlines faded, it was not only institutions of power but small groups of volunteers, families, and churches who carried the people through. The vibrancy of communities—neighbors helping neighbors—proved the truth of Romney’s words: the heart of America beats strongest in its communities, both large and small.

O listeners, take this teaching to heart: the strength of a nation is not forged solely in palaces or parliaments, but in the hearths of homes. When families are bound in love, when faiths inspire hope and mercy, when communities nurture their young and care for their old, then a nation cannot be broken. But when these bonds weaken—when families falter, when faith is forgotten, when community grows cold—the nation’s strength, no matter how vast, begins to crumble.

The lesson is clear: guard and nourish your communities. Do not despise small acts of goodness, for they are the bedrock of nations. Teach your children well, care for your neighbors, strengthen the ties of faith and service. When you do this, you do not only bless your own life, but you uphold the pillars of your country. For what is true in America is true in all lands: the nation rises or falls with the health of its families and the vibrancy of its communities.

Practical is this counsel: join your strength to the common good. Serve where you live—whether in schools, in charities, in houses of worship, or in the quiet acts of neighborly care. Do not wait for the distant hand of government to heal what lies within your reach. The power of a nation is born in such places, multiplied by millions of hands, until it becomes the unshakable bedrock Romney names.

Thus remember his words: “The strength and power and goodness of America… has always been based on the strength and power and goodness of our communities, our families, our faiths.” Let this be your creed: that in honoring these bonds, you honor the nation itself. And in its best days—when such bonds are alive and vibrant—you will feel not only the strength of America, but the enduring strength of humanity itself.