>> What... a desire to "stick it" to Commies?
> No, an expression of our trust in God.
ERRR. The "In God We Trust" bit came about in the 1950's as, officially, a poorly-conceived thumb in the eye to Commies (in reality, just the usual sort of pander one comes to expect from politicians). It replaced the much more accurate and magnificent E Pluribus Unum.
>> Framing document? I don't seem to remember that Deist teminology in the Constitution...
> It's not. It's in the Declaration of Independence.
The DoI is not a "framing document" for the US. That would be the Constitution.
>By the way, I don't recall any mention of forbidding Christianity in the Constitution either.
By the way, I don't recall any mention of forbidding Wicca in the Constitution either.
> Our legal system is based on English common law
Which was derived from *Saxon* common law. Roman law formed the backbone of French Napoleonic Code, buit not English or American law (outside Louisiana, which still uses the Napoleonic Code). You're not French, are you?
> The Empire that DEFINED Western culture?
That would be the *Roman* empire, with a lot of help from the Greeks, Scandihoovians and Germans. Buncha pagans.
Bzzzzt!
1) The "Star-Spangled Banner" was written in 1814. Its fourth verse contains the phrase "And this be our motto: "In God is Our Trust."
2) The phrase was placed on US coinage by act of Congress in December of 1863. In fact, the letter from Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase requesting said legislation might prove illustrative:
Dear Sir: No nation can be strong except in the strength of God, or safe except in His defense. The trust of our people in God should be declared on our national coins.
You will cause a device to be prepared without unnecessary delay with a motto expressing in the fewest and tersest words possible this national recognition.
Thanks for playing. No home edition of the game for you.
It replaced the much more accurate and magnificent E Pluribus Unum.
Bzzzzt. Another loser. "E Pluribus Unum" is still used on American currency. It is part of the Great Seal of the United States.
The DoI is not a "framing document" for the US. That would be the Constitution.
The document that literally asserted the independence of this nation, detaching it forever from the sovereignty of Great Britain and establishing a "new order of Nature" is not a framing document? Then the title to your car does not confer ownership of the vehicle.
By the way, I don't recall any mention of forbidding Wicca in the Constitution either.
I don't recall saying anything about forbidding Wacka ... er, excuse me, Wicca. I said that the Board was free to select the Moonbat ... er, I mean, "priestess" for the invocation, then leave the room. Or would you have them chained to their chairs so that they could experience the joys of "tolerance"?
Which was derived from *Saxon* common law.
Alright, since you seem to want to fixate on this trivial aspect of law, let's look into it a bit. It is arguable that Saxon law was defined by the Capitulary of Charlemagne (the HOLY ROMAN EMPORER Charlemagne, that is) in 775 A.D. (that's an abbreviation for the Latin Anno Domini, "in the year of Our Lord," an odd designation for a culture not founded on Judeo-Christian tenets). That Capitulary lists at least two dozen laws that define punishment (up to and including death) for participation in pagan rituals. It prescribes that infants shall be baptized within a year of birth. It allows priests to issue a final judgement on capital cases. It requires the death penalty for murder of a bishop, priest, or deacon. And is spares the life of penitents "on account of the honor due to God and the saints, and the reverence due to the church itself." Doesn't sound like Saxon law was exactly divorced from Christian influence, does it? If you'd like, we can go back even further, to Mosaic or Hammurabic law to root out the Judaic contribution. But you already know that, don't you?
All of which is only slightly germane, since a culture is far more than just its laws. Your Saxon diversion notwithstanding, we are a Christian nation. Period.
You're not French, are you?
No. I'm American by the grace of God, German by heritage. You're not an idiot, are you?
That would be the *Roman* empire, with a lot of help from the Greeks, Scandihoovians and Germans. Buncha pagans.
Well, it can probably be said that everyone was a "pagan" at one time or another. Most civilized cultures overcame that shortcoming a few millennia ago. Shame not all of them did ...