The Separation of Church and State: One Wall That Needs to Remain Standing
by Cathryn Sykes
This is how I replied to a recent e-mail from an online "We agree
to disagree!" friend.
Wanda, bless her mischevious little heart, has once again dangled a
big fat chunk of political bait in front of me, specifically the
following:
I
PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER
GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!
I was asked to send this on if I agree or delete if I don't. What do
you think about this?
It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore I have a
very hard time understanding why there is such a mess about having
"In God! We Trust" on our money and having God in the
Pledge of Allegiance. Why don't we just tell the 14% to Sit Down and
BE QUIET!!!
If you agree, pass this on, if not delete.
I
AGREE!!!!
Wanda knows I'll rise to this bait. She just loves making me strain my brain. So here goes. (And hey, this little essay includes murder, mayhem, adultery and beheadings, so stay tuned!)
First, just because someone believes in God doesn't mean he agrees others should be forced to share that belief. So it's not necessarily true that because 86% of Americans believe in God, 86% also feel we should make everyone recite the Pledge with "under God" included.. ( I especially like the part about telling those who don't want "under God" in the Pledge to just sit down and be quiet. You use a different word to identify your Deity and suddenly, even though you're an American, you have no freedom of speech anymore?)
I actually have no problem with having "under God" in the Pledge as long as the Pledge is neither "official" nor required. Unfortunately, some schools are making it mandatory...which means that little kids who usually pray to Allah or Buddha or Vishnu
