The Reflection Of Francis Bellamys Pledge Of Allegiance

In the early year of 1893, Francis Bellamy beautifully crafted a pledge that will be twisted over years of alteration, creating a constrained symbol of national bond submersed in religious controversy. The original text of Francis Bellamy’s Pledge of Allegiance was recited with a salute as, â€Å"I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic for which it stands-one nation, indivisible-with liberty and justice for all.† Reading this text, one may notice a lack of a well known excerpt; â€Å"under God.† People refer to this line as being a part of American culture, something so immersed into the history of the country it can not be altered; though, after finding that the original Pledge did not include this phrase Americans question the true†¦show more content†¦By 1954, Eisenhower had made the decision to add â€Å"under God† into the pledge as well as make it an encouraged act to recite of the pledge in public schools (1). Eisenhower stated tha t the inclusion would â€Å"strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our countrys most powerful resource in peace and war (Marshall 1).† He used the inclusion as defence against communism, giving the modern Americans something cozy to cling to within the Pledge. It was from that point that active atheists and agnostics spoke against the inclusion stating that it made non-religions or religions of multiple gods second-hand citizens. In a time where having beliefs other than Christian could get one accused of being communist, it was difficult to get a strong hold in the courtroom (1). The few cases were overlooked and time passed on the subject until the trivial history was forgotten (1). In modern times most Americans are not aware of this part of the Pledge’s history. As cases have grown, many say that they are invalid due to the historical value of the phrase. Many wonder, if the history was better known, would viewpoints on the subject differ? Desp ite the unknown answer to that,the statistics of what modern Americans think on the subject are at hand. There is no question that the numbers say majority rule rules over minority rights. Lifeway Research conducted a telephone survey of over 1,000 American citizens residing in Nashville, Tennessee, asking if â€Å"under God†