I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

These are the original words of the Pledge of Allegiance here in the United States of America. The pledge has gone through three subsequent changes. In 1923 the pledge was altered so the words "my flag" were replaced with the phrase "the flag of the United States". In 1924 the words "of America" were added. In 1942 the pledge was adopted as the official national pledge. In 1953 no less than six referendums were put to congress to alter the pledge yet again. In 1954 the first and only official amendment was made to the pledge. This amendment was the result of intense campaigning by a group called The Knights of Columbus but only made real headway when President Eisenhower attended a sermon based on the Gettysburg Address and the pastor made the claim that the pledge could be the pledge of any nation. He said that Lincoln's words "under God" were the words that defined the United States as a nation. The words "under God" were what set the United States apart from very similar pledges made by communist nations (keep in mind this took place during the communist scare). So in 1954 the words "under God" were added to the pledge.

In 1954 the pledge went from being merely idol-worship in the view of some religions (Jehovah's Witnesses in particular) to being unconstitutional according to the United States constitution. The rights of religious freedom granted by the first amendment are seriously violated by the words "under God" in the national pledge. In 2002 the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the phrase "under God" to be unconstitutional. In 2004 the Supreme Court heard an appeal of the Court of Appeals ruling but rejected the case because the man pressing charges "lacked standing". The Supreme Court thus avoided ruling on the controversial issue.

The above is not "my opinion" it is the truth. The truth is the truth whether you believe in God or Quetzecoatl. And the truth is that not only should the phrase "under God" be removed from the Pledge to allow it to be constitutional once more but also children (and people in general) should be given a choice about reciting it and not be pressed to commit idol-worship if that is against their religion. After all, freedom of religion is a major tenet of our country and our country was founded by pilgrims were fleeing religious persecution in Europe.


To be honest I wrote this post in response to the various "viral" status posts that were being passed around Facebook which, among other things, stated that they wanted to "flood Facebook" with a statement of the pledge that deeply emphasized the phrase "under God". I feel (and yes the following are my actual feelings and opinions which for obvious reasons need to be separated from facts) that saying the Pledge in this manner is using the country to further their monotheistic goals- a complete opposite of what America is all about. I found the pledge stated in this manner to be offensive. Clearly someone who loves their country so much they're posting the pledge on facebook ought to love it enough to take a look at the constitution occasionally and also to love it enough to care about its foundations and laws. And as I said, this last paragraph is just "my opinion". My opinion about the country I love and its foundations, laws, and tenets but hey- if you disagree with me that is a completely irrational but valid and perfectly legal opinion for you to have under the First Amendment which also protects freedom of religion.