14 September 2005 - 2:35pm
What's God got to do with it?
Once upon a time, there was no Pledge of Allegiance. Then there was a Pledge of Allegiance, and children recited it in schools across the nation:
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic, for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.
It was only later that "under God" was added.
Now a federal judge has ruled that the Pledge is unconstitutional for including that religious phrase:
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that the pledge's reference to one nation "under God" violates school children's right to be "free from a coercive requirement to affirm God."
Karlton said he was bound by precedent of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which in 2002 ruled in favor of Sacramento atheist Michael Newdow that the pledge is unconstitutional when recited in public schools.
The Supreme Court dismissed the case last year, saying Newdow lacked standing because he did not have custody of his elementary school daughter he sued on behalf of.
Newdow, an attorney and a medical doctor, filed an identical case on behalf of three unnamed parents and their children. Karlton said those families have the right to sue.
Karlton, ruling in Sacramento, said he would sign a restraining order preventing the recitation of the pledge at the Elk Grove Unified, Rio Linda and Elverta Joint Elementary school districts in Sacramento County, where the plaintiffs' children attend.
I can already hear the outrage from people whose faith is so weak they need the United States government to reinforce it.
Karlton dismissed claims that the 1954 Congressional legislation inserting the words "under God" was unconstitutional. If his ruling stands, he reasoned that the school children and their parents in the case would not be harmed by the phrase because they would no longer have to recite it at school.
Apparently the good judge doesn't understand that the dominionists are being oppressed if they can't force their brand of religion on everyone. By Sunday, I predict several "Christian" leaders will be calling for his death. Such are the ironies of this modern age.
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Comments
What if the Congress said, "one nation, under Darwin, indivisible..."? as part of the pledge.
And if Congress has the power to add God to the Pledge, could they alter the liturgy to demand prayers for the Chief Executive - as some denominations do? What if it was the law that the stars and stripes must be flown at every place of religious worship and that all church services must include the pledge and the singing of the national anthem. In some wing nut religious services, that's exactly how it goes down.
I often tell the story that I am old enough - most baby boomers are - to remember when the stuck Under God, in. I was in first grade and "teacher" and to help us remember to add this and the cadence of the pledge to this day goes, "one nation . . . under god . . . with liberty and justice for all." The pause is as out little brains tried to remember to put the change in.
Before the cadence was, "one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Personally I dropped the "under god" part long ago. Just as it is not illegal to fly a 48-star flag - which I still do (not that I have anything against Alaska or Hawaii, but it was the cherished flag my parents flew) so to it is not unpatriotic (in my view) to leave god out of the pledge.
I have a t-shirt that says that. I also have one that says "Goddess bless America" and it is common in the Pagan community to refer to the matron goddess of America as Lady Liberty and represent her as the Statue of Liberty. Now, how would the dominionists like it if we passed a law that their kids had to say that every day? That's exactly the reaction I have to the "under God" phrase. It has no business in the Pledge, especially by Christian standards - idolotry is a big no-no - but they seem to not really believe in those Commandments, they just want to beat people over the head with them.
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Wasn't the phrase "under God" added to show some spite to the Soviet Union? I'm not old enough to remember, but am wondering why religious leanings are thought to bolster love of one's country. Or is the idea of having control so intoxicating?