Recent Pledge Ruling Offends The Principles On Which Our Nation Was Founded

Latest Guest Column By Auditor of State Betty Montgomery

A recent court ruling that declares the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional in public schools is sad failure to recognize our national history.

The recent ruling came out of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco and states that it is unconstitutional to require students in public schools to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. At the heart of the issue is the phrase “under God.” The judge in this case ruled that the Pledge’s reference to “one nation under God” violates the school children’s right to be “free from a coercive requirement to affirm God.”

Our founding fathers were godly men. This country was founded on godly principals. It was not their intention to eradicate all religious references from our public conversation.

The phrase “under God” emphasizes is a simple statement of faith and hope for many people of all cultures and faiths.

The case was brought by the same attorney and admitted atheist who filed a legal challenge questioning a public school’s authority to require his daughter to recite the Pledge, given the statement of faith in God it includes.

His case went as far as the U.S. Supreme Court. Last year the Court issued an opinion on this matter, dismissing his case on the grounds that the father did not have legal standing since he did not have sole custody of his daughter.

It should come as no surprise that the father and attorney found a way to renew his challenge – this time suing on behalf of three unnamed parents who presumably have the legal standing he lacked.

For the time being, the ruling is enforceable only in the area of the country under the court’s jurisdiction. We can expect this case, however, to work its way through the legal system, potentially reaching the U.S. Supreme Court once again.

And it certainly won’t be the last attempt to strip references to God from the public arena.

I faced a similar debate a number of years ago as Attorney General when the ACLU challenged the constitutionality of our state motto, “With God all things are possible.” My office was responsible for defending the state motto – a battle I was happy to fight. In 2001, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld our state motto’s constitutionality. Soon after, the ACLU gave up its challenge. It was one of my proudest moments in more than two decades of public service.

Our nation’s rich history undeniably includes respect for a higher power. It has a rightful and recurring place in our nation’s history. References to God can be found at every turn. The President of the United States takes the oath of office with his hand on the Bible. Our currency is imprinted with the phrase “In God we trust.” The document on which this country was founded – the Declaration of Independence – recognizes that all people “are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.”

Phrases such as “under God” and “With God all things are possible” provide a positive message about our nation, our state, our past, and our future – all while respectfully acknowledging a sentiment that people of all faiths can embrace.

The Pledge of Allegiance teaches our children at an early age the importance of patriotism to the United States. It is a promise of devotion to a great country that gives its citizens the liberty to make their own choice of faith.

God bless America.

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