Or is the phrase—on coins, bills and now police cars—just patriotic?
A 1970 federal court decided otherwise . . .
“It is quite obvious that the national motto and the slogan on coinage and currency ‘In God We Trust’ has nothing whatsoever to do with the establishment of religion. Its use is of a patriotic or ceremonial character,” the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals wrote in Aronow v. United States.
With all due respect to the court, that’s empty-headed. While it “has nothing whatever to do with the establishment of religion, of course it’s religious. God of “In God We Trust” is the Deity, the Supreme Being, the Sovereign Lord. Methinks to declare him just another word for “flag” is not to his liking!
Paulson argues that, since the phrase is religious (despite the court’s ruling), putting it on money and police cars violates the first amendment. Now Mr. Paulson’s credentials far outshine mine (“BA, in Bible”—Wow, that’s impressive!). So dare I say that I think he misunderstands the first amendment? Its pertinent part is here . . .
“The First Amendment’s Establishment Clause prohibits the government from making any law ‘respecting an establishment of religion.’ This clause not only forbids the government from establishing an official religion, but also prohibits government actions that unduly favor one religion over another. It also prohibits the government from unduly preferring religion over non-religion, or non-religion over religion.”
I agree that police cars plastered with “In God We Trust” implies the government prefers religion over non-religion (unless we make a case that atheism is a “religion”—which, in fact, we can). But I disagree that by the motto the government is establishing “an official religion” or unduly favoring “one religion over another.” Or, to use Mr. Paulson’s words, the “government cannot promote a specific religion.“
To my knowledge (which admittedly is limited), I know of only one major world religion that has no God. Some religions have hundreds.
As I see it (I first tried to take the log out of my eye!), “In God We Trust” is a religious statement that the vast majority of the world’s religions can agree with. And therefore it does not prefer one religion over another. And it’s quite a stretch to argue that the government is preferring religion over non-religion.
Anyway, I’m sure Mr. Paulson will never read this, nor will I have set his academic pot boiling. In fact, unless God works some totally unexpected miracle (he has been known to do such), this post will pass largely unnoticed. But I just had to get it off my chest.
P.S. I’m thinking that if all us folks who sit safely at computers critiquing every little thing had to face life-and-death violence, we too might publicly declare our trust in God!
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