How many of you knew "God" was a recent addition to our currency and the pledge?
This morning, at breakfast with my very well-educated friends (all atheists), they were surprised when I said that use of the word "God" on our currency and in the Pledge of Allegiance is a recent addition. Which led me to wonder how many DUers, who are so well informed, were equally unaware of these tidbits:
"In God We Trust" added in 1956: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_God_we_trust
"In God we trust" was adopted as the official motto of the United States in 1956 as an alternative or replacement to the unofficial motto of E pluribus unum, adopted when the Great Seal of the United States was created and adopted in 1782.[1][2]
Pledge of Allegiance and "under God" addition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pledge_of_Allegiance
The phrase "under God" was incorporated into the Pledge of Allegiance June 14, 1954, by a Joint Resolution of Congress amending §7 of the Flag Code enacted in 1942.[14]
And, in fact, "God" doesn't appear in the Constitution except as part of the signatory date:
http://www.usconstitution.net/constnot.html#god
"It has often been seen on the Internet that to find God in the Constitution, all one has to do is read it, and see how often the Framers used the words "God," or "Creator," "Jesus," or "Lord." Except for one notable instance, however, none of these words ever appears in the Constitution, neither the original nor in any of the Amendments. The notable exception is found in the Signatory section, where the date is written thusly: "Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven". The use of the word "Lord" here is not a religious reference, however. This was a common way of expressing the date, in both religious and secular contexts. This lack of any these words does not mean that the Framers were not spiritual people, any more than the use of the word Lord means that they were. What this lack of these words is expositive of is not a love for or disdain for religion, but the feeling that the new government should not involve itself in matters of religion. In fact, the original Constitution bars any religious test to hold any federal office in the United States."
So next time you hear Sarah Palin blabber about how the Founding Fathers wrote "One nation under God" in the Constitution, you'll know just what an idiot she is.
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This is the first US coin to carry that motto, the short-lived 2-cent piece:
In 1866, its use was made mandatory on all silver coins above 10 cents in face value, and all gold coins above $3 in face value.
