The phrase “In God We Trust” has been a part of American culture for many years. It is in our national anthem. It officially became our national motto in 1956. The phrase could be found on American currency as early as 1864.
However, a group of 41 atheists has decided to challenge that. Michael Newdow is representing a group of atheists who want to take “In God We Trust” off our money. This is not the first time that our national motto has been challenged by angry atheists.
On previous occasions, Michael Newdow has personally tried to remove “In God We Trust” or some variation of it from our currency, the presidential oath, and the Pledge of Allegiance. He has never been successful with any of his cases. This is because our courts understand that our national motto is a reminder of our nation’s religious heritage. It’s not an endorsement of a particular religion.
Newdow claims that having the motto on our money makes it impossible for him to live out his atheistic faith. In the case, Newdow says that the government is “promoting and reinforcing negative and injurious attitudes not only against Atheists in general, but against him personally.”
The truth is that having “In God We Trust” is not an attack on any group of people. The motto is a reflection of the foundation on which our nation was built. We feature the faces of famous presidents on our currency for the same reason.
We want to encourage Americans to look back to those men and ideas that made our nation great. Understanding our country’s culture of faith in God is an important part of understanding our country’s success.
This court case challenging the constitutionality of our nation’s currency will likely have the same result as all of the others. However, Americans should take this opportunity to learn more about our country’s religious heritage so that they can have a better understanding of what makes America the freest nation in the world.
See an error in this article?
To contact us or to submit an article
