Community | November 18, 2009 | 25 comments

US lawmakers rally for 'In God We Trust'

source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5imWEEvz3T5DSzBSNRAj6Wi55yF0A

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DeliaTheArtist

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5imWEEvz3T5DSzBSNRA...

"The Freedom From Religion Foundation filed suit in July to scrub "In God We Trust" -- designated the modern US national motto in a 1956 law -- and the US Pledge of Allegiance from the wall of the Capitol Visitors Center.

The pledge, a daily ritual for millions of US schoolchildren, has referred to the United States as "under God" since 1954, when the US Congress added the words to the existing text as a Cold War rebuke to Soviet atheism.

But the American Center for Law and Justice think tank, backed by 41 Republican members of the House of Representatives and three Republican senators, has filed a "friend of the court" brief urging the case be dismissed.

The brief assails the lawsuit as a misguided "crusade" and says the inscription does not violate the first amendment to the US Constitution, which forbids the US Congress from legislating "an establishment of religion."

"While the First Amendment affords atheists complete freedom to disbelieve, it does not compel the federal judiciary to redact religious references in every area of public life in order to suit atheistic sensibilities," it says.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation contended in July, two months before the engravings were unveiled, that they amounted to "government endorsement and advancement of religion," while excluding nonreligious Americans."

What do you think- should In God We Trust be plastered all over government funded buildings? Should this be a consideration when they are being built? Does "In God We Trust" promote belief systems over non belief, and is that constitutional? What do you think?


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25 comments // US lawmakers rally for 'In God We Trust'

  • tangibleparadox
    • 0
      tangibleparadox  

    • change it to "in god(s) or godess(es) we may or may not trust" and you're good to go.

      when i was christian, i believed in a god. when i was wiccan, i believed in a goddess. when i was buddhist, i believed in no god. as an agnostic, i doubt god exists but do not deny the possibility. in all instances, i never believed my currency should presume to speak for my beliefs, and shut my mouth during the "under god" part of the allegiance while in public school.

      of course it's not constitutional. take it out.

    • 3 years ago
  • CreatioExNihil
    • 0
      CreatioExNihil  

    • I'm not religious. This "country" was founded on a belief in a certain religion, yes. However, just like it says about amending the constitution, things change. If the people see the need to amend something, do it. This country is now known for being a melting pot, and there are several different religions. If you put one on a federal building, it makes other people feel less like this is a place they belong. How about not putting up anything religious at all. Just believe what you believe and don't try to force it down the whole country's throat.

    • 3 years ago
  • ibrake4rappers13
  • Mudboy16
  • DeliaTheArtist
    • 0
      DeliaTheArtist  

    • The engravings in question here are brand new. I do wonder if we will see more and more lawsuits involving God being put on government property...

      I personally do not think it's necessary to put "In God We Trust" on any NEW buildings, statues etc- it's not a call to "redact religious references in every area of public life in order to suit atheistic sensibilities", but an issue of constitutional respect and awareness of America's diverse population...just as I'm sure most people wouldn't want "In Allah we Trust" or "In Earth Goddess Gaia We Trust" engraved into government concrete with your tax dollars...

    • 3 years ago
  • akamaial
    • 0
      akamaial [removed]  

    • FROM THE BILL OF RIGHTS:

      ~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.

      ~2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is LIBERTY.

      ~It need be realized here that the key founding fathers intentions are recognized in their writings as well as the US Constitution that… God granted liberty to all equally.

      ~Hence the foundational core from the founding fathers belief that we are created equal as endowed by the Creator (God) from which came the national embracing of the term : "In God We Trust"

    • 3 years ago
  • mako2424
    • 0
      mako2424  
    • akamaial:

      "We hold these truths..." was from the Declaration of Independence.

      And "God" is mentioned no where in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights.

      (But what good are facts these days?)

    • 3 years ago
  • unimatrix0
    • 0
      unimatrix0  

    • The phrase "In God we trust" directly endorses theism, and indirectly endorses the judeo-christian god of abraham. As such, it is a violation of the first amendment's establishment clause and is unconstitutional.

      The adoption of "in God we trust" was motivated by cold war hysteria, as a means to distinguish the USA from the godless commies in China and Russia.

      The founding fathers would be deeply disappointed by the motto - it is a clear violation of the spirit as well as the text of the US Constitution.

    • 3 years ago
  • retro_Syl
  • mako2424
    • 0
      mako2424  
    • unimatrix0:

      What is that supposed to prove when the phrase was added to coinage during the Civil War? The Founding Fathers, especially Jefferson, would have, as unimatrix points out, been very disappointed.

    • 3 years ago
  • retro_Syl
  • DeliaTheArtist
  • retro_Syl
  • DeliaTheArtist
  • akamaial
  • DeliaTheArtist
  • retro_Syl
  • DeliaTheArtist
    • 0
      DeliaTheArtist  
    • retro_Syl:

      Give me a break, Ak, certainly you don't want to have a who-can-generalize-and- insult-who-more contest. Don't turn a silly joke into a mean spirited ordeal.

      UH...Where'd your comments go? Don't I feel out of context...

    • 3 years ago
  • akamaial
    • 0
      akamaial [removed]  
    • retro_Syl:

      Of course it is - it's as vacuous as those who believe that only they are the creative, cool, eccentric, freethinking, skeptic people who only have a tenuous grip on reality with a "Alice in Wonderland" mentality. . . & here's a cool new motto for your Brave New World - - - "To the Moon, Alice." !

    • 3 years ago
  • akamaial
  • retro_Syl
  • akamaial
  • retro_Syl
  • akamaial
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