As Abraham Lincoln’s was trying to express his feelings about Civil War in his famous Gettysburg Address, he closed his speech with these words: “we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that his nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom”(Haynes 1). The words "under God" were added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954 to show the world the big contrast between the United States of America and the Communist countries. In June 2002, the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Court of Appeals because it violated the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution(Atwan 198). However, it is better to clear the meaning of “under God” in the Pledge before making such a decision. The phrase “under God” was used to express the faith of the most people in the nation. It does not violate the purpose of separation of church and state.
The phrase “under God” in the Pledge represents the fundamental principles and traditions of the nation. The men who created the government were the men who had strong faith. One of the clearest statements of that faith is found in the Declaration of Independence which states, “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence”(Haynes). By “divine Providence”, the founders acknowledged God in
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the country and they expressed their faith in God. And the majority of American followed this concept.
Throughout the history, this country has turned to Almighty God for guidance and comfort in times of struggle. In 1775, the Continental Congress called on the Colonies to pray for wisdom in forming this great nation. At the end of the War for Independence, George Washington, the first president of the United States, offered a prayer of thanksgiving (Haynes). When Pearl Harbor was attacked, the President called on the country to pray. During the years when this country was fighting the Cold War, "In God we Trust" was adopted as our national motto. When Apollo 13 was disabled in space, the President called on the country to pray. In 1988 President Reagan signed a bill declaring a National Day of Prayer(Haynes). In the past, the nation had been “under God”, which defines the phrase “under God” as the fundamental principles in the history of this great nation. Now, how can people remove the foundations of this nation?
Some people might believe that it is time to make some new changes since this country has become multicultural and there are many different religious views. There are even people who have no faith at all. Why would those people have to declare their allegiance “under God”? However, the United States is represented by the majority, and the majority of people in the United States have faith today. The people who do not have faith are a small group in the United States. There is also a small group who do not individualism, should the phrase “individual” be removed from the Pledge also? There are always some different beliefs on each issue. But a country is represented by the majority of the people and what
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they believe in. Even though there is diversity among the majority, people believing in different god in different religions, but they all have one common thing-faith. The phrase “under God” does not state clearly which particular god it’s referring in any religion. And from the history about the Pledge, “under God” was used to express the faith of the American leader who represents the majority of the people in the United States. People used the phrase “under God” to express their faith. Today, the majority in the United States still have faith. Why cannot they express their faith in the Pledge anymore?
America is the most religious country in the world. “We have old-line churches and storefront churches. We have Muslims, Buddhists, Shintos, native American religions. We have cults, sects, people who set themselves up as gods”(Rosenblatt). And people still turn to God when they face any difficult struggles. President Clinton called on this country to pray when the tragedy at Columbine High School occurred. And on September 11, 2001, this country experienced a tragedy that was unlike anything we had seen since Pearl Harbor and it was to God that the majority of this country turned. President Bush called on people across this nation to pray, a memorial service was televised across the country including many prayers, and many members of Congress, Republicans and Democrats alike, gathered on the steps of the capitol building to sing, "God Bless America"(Haynes). During the current war with Iraq, people are praying. “American Idols” are recording the single song “God Bless America”. This is the American way of life. In God people trust. The country goes to the war with God. The leaders of the government pray to God. United States is a nation “under God”. Why can’t the people in the nation declare that?
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The U.S. Court explained that people can’t declare “under God” because it is unconstitutional. They concluded that from the words in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise …”(Atwan 196). These words mean that the church and state must be separated. They gave the people freedom in religions, and let people believe in whatever they wanted to do. The law was set because the framers of the U.S. Constitution wanted to avoid the continual wars that were motivated by religions, which had damaged many countries within Europe. “They decided that a church and state separation was their best way to assure the U.S. to remain free of inter-religious strife”(Church). It does not refer that any religious expression cannot be used in any political documents. In that case, the phrase “under God” does not interfere with the original purpose of the First Amendment in any way. Again, the phrase “under God” was added in the Pledge only to express the faith of majority in this nation.
Some people argue that the “under God” should be removed for the concept of separating of church and state. However, they ignored the purpose of the separation of church and state and the level of the separation. Jefferson wanted separation of church and state in order to remove all fears that the state would make dictates to the church (Haynes). Separating the church and state is because people wanted the freedom of religion. Since “under God” in the Pledge only express the faith of people, which does not interfere the freedom of religion at all, why should it not be kept? Moreover, in the first Amendment, there is no words indicated how separate the church and state should be. There are no words
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referring that anything related to the government should be separated from religion. The government made the Christmas national holiday. And Christmas is a religious holiday. Should the government cancel Christmas holiday to separate church and state? Since there are no regulations of how separate of church and state should be, people can measure the level of separation according to the purpose of separation church and state. As long as the phrase does not interfere with the protection of church, it is fine to express the religion of the nation.
United States is based on faith. The history of this nation is full of faith. And today, the majority of this nation still has faith. United States was a religious nation and still is. Before changing anything, there should be some declaration of the definition. What does the phrase “under God” mean, and what is the purpose of separation of church and state? If people declare “under God” in the Pledge just in order to express their faith, should the phrase removed? The Constitution separated church and state to give people freedom of religion. Does “under God” in the Pledge take away people’s freedom of religion? If anything about religion should be removed from the government, the motto “In God We Trust” on U.S. currency should be removed too, also, this motto in public school classrooms should be removed. Anything on contains the word “God” in any political document should be removed. Then the United States will become a nation that is separated with religion. Is that the separation of church and state wanted in the Constitution> Otherwise, there should be some Amendments to the Constitution to establish a more clear definition of the separation of church and state. Americans better protect the freedom to express faith in this country.

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