I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
-Francis Bellamy’s original Pledge of Allegiance…1892
There has been much written in the past day or so regarding NBC’s intentional editing of the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance prior to the US Open. In case you missed it, they cut out the words “Under God, Indivisible”.
Almost immediately the grumbling and outrage began. “How dare they, this nation was founded on Christian principles, etc…” While I agree this nation is one rooted deeply in Judeo-Christian values, the pledge did always have God in it.
For those that aren’t aware, the words “Under God” were not officially added to the pledge until 1942! (during a time of war and fear.) I really have no issue whatsoever with the amendment, and as a Christian I am happy we added the phrase.
But not for one second do I believe that our nation between 1892-1941 was somehow less Christian or less of a nation because we didn’t have that phrase in the pledge. As with everything in life, our actions speak much louder than words. While America does have many things wrong with it, it still gives more time and money to the poor and helpless than any other nation on Earth.
The bottom line is I think NBC was silly to edit out the phrase, since Under God is now officially part of the pledge via an act of Congress…and if you are going to show the pledge, you should show it in its entirety. I do not, however, buy the argument that by having the phrase in our pledge we are somehow closer to God.
Nor do I believe that those who would have the phrase removed, or to be more accurate, those that would have us go back to the original pledge, are a bunch of godless Sodomites plotting the destruction of America whilst having gay sex on a burning copy of The Bible.
They simply believe, (wrongly, in my opinion) that the functions of government should not in any way acknowledge God or religion for fear of religious leaders (ie…The Pope’s of old) gaining to much power and forcing their way of life on non-religious people.
The bottom line is the name calling and the “us versus them” mentality has to end somewhere. And since my Bible teaches me to love my enemies and to pray for those who persecute me,(Matt 5:44, Rom 12:14) then perhaps it is we Christians who should be the ones to extend the olive branch.
Reasonable, rational, academically honest conversations filled with understanding, love, and true discourse are a good place to start. So next time someone disagrees with a value you hold dear…like the pledge…instead of yelling and pointing fingers, you can have a rational discussion.
“I understand where you are coming from, and you are right, we didn’t add the words ‘Under God’ until 1942, but I believe the addition of this phrase was a good thing, since it reflected the values and principles we as a nation hold dear….”
is much better than
“You America hating, Godless moron…burn in hell”.
Just think about it.
Pledge of Allegiance,NBC,God,Christianity
