One Nation Under God
I pledge allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America,
and to the Republic for which it stands:
one Nation under God, indivisible,
With Liberty and Justice for all.
In the September 8th 1892 issue of "The Youth Companion," Francis Bellamy penned these words: "I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one Nation, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all." This was the first incarnation of the pledge that would eventually become our National Pledge of Allegiance. It was not, however, the final pledge. The first change to the pledge came exactly one month later when the word "to" was inserted between the phrases "to my flag" and "and the republic for which it stands".
In 1923 and 1924 the National Flag Conference under the leadership of the American Legion and the Daughters of the American Revolution made the next change to the pledge. The phrase "my flag" was changed to "the Flag of the United States of America" I would like to point out to yall that at this point in time the "Pledge" was not official, nor was it even that widely recited.
It became the "Official" National Pledge on June 22nd 1942 when the Congress included it in the United States Flag Code (Title 36). It received its official name three years later.
In 1954, following a campaign by the Knights of Columbus, the United States Congress took an active hand in the wording of the Pledge. They added two words, some say that these two words were added to accent our differences from the Soviet Empire. Some of our younger readers may not remember that from 1945 till 1989 the United States was engaged in a Cold War with the Soviet Union. The two words added were "Under God". That was 51 years ago.
On September 14th 2005 US Federal District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that the Pledge of Allegiance was Unconstitutional. He ruled that the pledge's reference to One Nation "Under God" violated school children's right to be free from a coercive requirement to affirm God.
I would like to quote two other Federal Documents and you decide for yourself if the Pledge violates the Constitution.
1) The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
2) The Declaration of Independence
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
You Decide!
Disagree or Agree feel free to add your own comments.
Please send any feedback to UnkHiram@BHocutt.com