Letter and op-ed by MarkxThomas |
Letter to Representative Anna Eshoo
I had sent her my article on the Pledge of Allegiance (at the bottom). See Representative Eshoo’s letter below.
Re: saying "under God" in our Pledge of Allegiance
You say that a reference to God is not religious, but merely a traditional reference to a higher power,
and does not suppress someone's religious or non-religious beliefs.
First, any reference to God, gods, Yahweh, Zeus, or Brahma IS religious in nature, and thus respects
an establishment of religion.
Second, continuing an action or way of thinking simply
because it is traditional is insufficient reason.
If Americans had followed this form of logic, we would have had no revolution, no emancipation of the
slaves, and no suffrage for women. Until 1954, it was also traditional to not have "under God" in our
Pledge of Allegiance.
Third, any reference to a higher power is a reference to God or gods (ignoring the trivial concepts of
higher power meaning nature or something within the
individual).
Fourth, referring to God DOES suppress someone's religious
or non-religious beliefs -- if those beliefs
are not monotheistic.
What part of the First Amendment is confusing? "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment
of religion..."
Most God-believing people should be loudly protesting the
trivialization of God that you and many other
government officials are espousing.
They probably won't, because it serves their
interest of inserting more
religion into our government.
Our nation was founded as the first country that derived its
power from a purely secular, nonreligious basis.
It is true patriotism to fight to keep it that way.
As shown by this national uproar and debate, religion is
divisive. The Pledge of Allegiance is supposed to
help unite Americans.
Having "God" in it divides us. Let's return the Pledge to its
previous form, so we can
ALL once again say "one nation, indivisible, with
liberty and justice for all."
I have collected a list of excellent web articles on
this. I urge you to educate yourself on
this important issue.
http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/MikeHonda.htm
"On the Pledge
of Allegiance"
by CA Representative Mike Honda
http://www.au.org/press/pr072202.htm
"One Nation
Under God?"
Q & A by
Americans United for Separation of Church and State
http://www.au.org/press/pr062602.htm
"Decision
Respects Freedom Of Conscience"
by Rev. Barry Lynn
of Americans United for Separation of Church
and State
http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/AA_pledge.htm
"Victory for
Separation, Individual Rights"
by American Atheists
http://www.americanhumanist.org/pledge.html
"Pledge Talking Points"
by American Humanists Association
http://secular.ws/pledge
Pledge Restoration Project
A Campaign To
Restore Freedom Of Conscience For All Americans
http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/Pledge.htm
"'Under God' is
Unconstitutional and Divisive"
by
MarkxThomas of Atheists of Silicon Valley
http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/UnderGod.htm
"'Under God' is
Un-American"
by Jim Heldberg of
San Francisco Atheists
http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/BACOR_pledge.htm
"Support for
the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals"
by the Bay Area
Communities of Reason
Sincerely,
Mark W.xThomas
472 Lotus Lane
Mountain View, CA 94043
One of the founding principles of America is freedom of religion. This includes freedom from religion, because everyone has the right to say no to other religions. Our founding fathers understood the need for this, and carefully kept religion out of our government. They even put this in the 1797 Treaty of Tripoli, which stated, "The Government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion."
We all have the right to think whatever we want, including prayer. For many Christians, freedom of religion isn't enough. They seem to want their religion forced on others by the government and in schools. This is un-American and antithetical to our pluralistic society.
Two hundred and fifteen years ago our Constitution took effect, creating a new kind of government. The United States of America was founded as the first country that derived its power from a purely secular, nonreligious basis. Nations before then had kings and queens who used their supposed “God-given divine right” to rule. Instead of this top-down power structure, our founders wisely created a government that derived its powers from the consent of the governed. They also realized the inherent dangers of religion, and specifically kept it out of our Constitution and government. While the deists' “Nature's God” is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, there is no reference to a god in the Constitution. In addition, the Treaty of Tripoli, written during the administration of President George Washington, signed by President John Adams and unanimously approved by the Senate in 1797, stated, “The Government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion.” Six years later James Madison wrote, “The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries.”
Our Constitution is also designed to protect the rights of the minorities from the tyranny of the majority. References to God by our government officials imply that the 14% of Americans who don't believe in any god are lesser citizens. This is similar to when white men once discriminated against blacks, women and other minorities, often using the Bible as an endorsement. It wasn't right then. It isn't right now.
Almost two years ago, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled correctly on the inserted reference to God in the Pledge of Allegiance, saying that it conflicts with the First Amendment. To those who disagree, I ask, “What part of the First Amendment is confusing?” “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...”
Enshrined in the First Amendment is the idea that all Americans have a constitutional right to freedom of religion. This must include freedom from religion, because we can’t have true freedom unless we have the right to choose “none of the above.” References to a god in the Pledge of Allegiance, our national motto, our national anthem, or on our money respect an establishment of religion, and thus are unconstitutional.
Freedom of religion is an ideal that is held by most Americans -- from the devoutly religious to the devoutly nonreligious. However, many religious fundamentalists are battling to insert their religion into our government, to turn the U.S. into a theocracy. This mixing of government and religion is a threat to the freedoms of us all. Make no mistake about this. The United States cannot be based on the belief that all persons are created equal when it implies that a god prefers some.
As shown by the national uproar and debate, religion is still divisive. The Pledge of Allegiance is supposed to help unite Americans. Having “God” in it divides us, and attempts to link patriotism to public professions of religious belief. Let us return the Pledge to its previous, nonreligious and inclusive form -- so we can all once again say “one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
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