Theodore Parker approves this message

“…Lincoln did not actually use the word “democracy” in his speech, so how can we be sure he had democracy in mind when he spoke? The answer is, because we know he adopted and adapted the phrase from a definition of democracy coined by the Rev. Theodore Parker (1810-1860), a New England transcendentalist and abolitionist. Looking at why Lincoln did so sheds light on the meaning the most famous passage of the most famous speech in U.S. history.” (The Root)