'In God' returning to $1 coin prominence

Baptist Press ^ | Dec 26, 2007

[Sopater]

The “In God We Trust” inscription, currently on the
edge of the presidential $1 coin, apparently will return
to the obverse (front) or reverse (back) of the coin,
thanks to a bill recently passed by Congress.
Photo Terms of Use
 

WASHINGTON (BP)--Presidential one dollar coins are the only U.S. coins currently being issued by the United States Mint that have the inscription "In God We Trust" along the edge, but public pressure soon may send the motto back to the front or back of the coins.

Legislation introduced by Sens. Sam Brownback, R.-Kan., and Robert Byrd, D.-W.Va., that would return "In God We Trust" to a more visible location is awaiting President Bush's signature.

The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 was meant to honor the nation's presidents by issuing $1 circulating coins featuring their images in the order that they served. The first four honoring Presidents Washington, Adams, Jefferson and Madison were issued this year.

The coins feature what the mint calls edge-incused inscriptions -- used in other countries -- of the year of minting or issuance, "E Pluribus Unum," "In God We Trust" and the mint mark. The size, weight and metal composition of the presidential coins is identical to that of the Sacagawea Golden Dollar. The 2005 congressional bill mandated the inscriptions be placed along the edge to allow "larger and more dramatic artwork" on the front and back. It was not a decision made by the mint.

But some coins made it through production without having the inscriptions stamped on the edge, and some experts say the wording on the coin's edge could rub off over time. Others expressed concern that moving the "In God We Trust" motto to the side of the coins was the first step in removing it altogether.

"Since the colonial beginnings of the United States, citizens of this nation have officially acknowledged their dependence on God," Brownback said in a news release Dec. 6. "It is important that our national motto, 'In God We Trust,' is prominently displayed on all of our currency. We should not relegate our heritage to the side."

Brownback's legislation is included in The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008, which is several hundred pages long. Section 623 specifies that the motto be moved from the edges of the presidential coins to the obverse (front) or reverse (back) of the coins. The move "shall be put into effect by the Secretary of the Treasury as soon as is practicable after the date of enactment of this Act."

According to the Treasury Department, the motto was first placed on United States coins largely because of increased religious sentiment during the Civil War.

"Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase received many appeals from devout persons throughout the country, urging that the United States recognize the Deity on United States coins," the department says on its website.

The first recorded appeal came in a letter to Secretary Chase dated Nov. 13, 1861 from M.R. Watkinson, a minister from Ridleyville, Pa., noting that recognition of "the Almighty God" had been "seriously overlooked" on the nation's coins.

"You are probably a Christian," Watkinson wrote. "What if our Republic were not shattered beyond reconstruction? Would not the antiquaries of succeeding centuries rightly reason from our past that we were a heathen nation?"

Watkinson suggested the words "God," "liberty" and "law" be inscribed on the coins.

"This would relieve us from the ignominy of heathenism," he wrote. "This would place us openly under the Divine protection we have personally claimed. From my hearth I have felt our national shame in disowning God as not the least of our present national disasters."

Chase then instructed the director of the Philadelphia mint to prepare a motto. In a letter dated Nov. 20, 1861, Chase wrote, "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."

In 1863, Chase approved the motto "In God We Trust," and the motto first appeared on the two-cent coin in 1864.

In 2005, Michael Newdow, an atheist and lawyer from Sacramento, Calif., sued Congress and several federal officials because he said the motto's presence on U.S. coins and currency violated his First Amendment rights. A federal judge in Sacramento ruled against him in 2006, the Associated Press reported, and Newdow appealed.

Newdow argued his case against the motto along with his case for removing the words "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance before a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Dec. 4, saying both references disrespect his religious beliefs.

[GovernmentShrinker]

She returned it to the bank?? Those coins are currently selling for over $60 on eBay and are bound to go even higher in the future.

[KarlInOhio]

Too bad the Alan Greenspan who was in charge of the Federal Reserve couldn't have read the article written by that Alan Greenspan before the Fed funded boom and crash in 2000 of the stock market and 2007 of the housing market. Maybe the one from 1966 could have smacked some sense into the 1990s and 2000s one.

[Theo]

This is just silly. I consider the phrase to be in a place of prominence on the edge.

We Christians really need to think about more important things.

[Oatka]

Use ‘em as tips in a restaurant that you frequent. I do that in a local Chinese restaurant and now the waitress brings me a pot of tea with THREE (instead of two) teabags.

I had some old BIG Eisenhower clad dollars and tipped the stewards the same way when we went on a couple of cruises. Service was a lot quicker, although the foreign help almost bit the first one as he didn’t recognize it. Probably few Americans would nowadays.

Do that anywhere you want to be remembered (from a tipping standpoint).

[zeugma]

Personally I would love it if a dollar coin could replace the dollar bill. The Fed has devalued the dollar to be only a coin denomination.

me too. I buy a roll every week ($25/roll) and spend them throughout the week. For vending machines that accept them, they are far superior to $1 bills. (Which I'd like to see us do away with)

I wish they'd acknowledge the fact of inflation and drop the penny and nickel too.  

[zeugma]

(It’s the FedGov’s way of spending what is stored in Fort Knox.)

Not true. The metal used in coinage is purchased each year. FedGov hasn't had a significant holding at Fort Knox since Carter was president.

Don't get me wrong. There is plenty of gold in Fort Knox. It's just that the vast majority isn't ours. I believe the largest holder is Saudi Arabia now. FedGov charges for storage of hard assets. 

[Jack Black]

Got any links for the Ft. Knox stuff. I find that kind of thing fascinating.

As far as dollar coins go I hate all the ones that are the size of quarters. Used to be they were big enough not to mistake for a quarter. The gold helps, but I still think they should go back to the Eisenhower size, or perhaps something roughly like the Kennedy half.

[Jack Black]

While they are at it they should go back to Ike on the dollar. Ike was a Republican President. I have nothing against Indian ladies, but they don't belong on our currency. Ditto for Susan B. Anthony. Dead Presidents are a good tradition.

Reverse from the Bicentenial edition:

"

[Caesar Soze]

Strange. Half ounce gold American Eagles bear a $25 denomination. These look like AEs under a different name, but have a $10 denomination. I guess the mint can stamp whatever value they want on planchets, but coins with such a high content of rare metals usually follow their bullion scheme. (Technically, these have a slightly higher gold content than the AEs, which I guess makes them just ridiculously expensive commemoratives.)

[zeugma]

Got any links for the Ft. Knox stuff. I find that kind of thing fascinating.

There is information to be had, but there are also a lot of weird perspectives on it, as well as propaganda designed to make you think FedGov is a significant holder of gold. A few years before the Internet became generally popular I had actual physical treasury documents showing how gold holdings were reduced anually from the beginning of Nixon's term  and was actually zero'ed out during the Carter administration.  Posted the data on Fidonet BBSs, but haven't been able to locate the origional or copies since, much to my dismay.
 

[Jim Noble]

Dead Presidents are a good tradition

Dead politicians have no place as symbols of a Republic.

The Indian motif is old, and venerable.

[Atlas Sneezed]

Thanks for the info!

[Atlas Sneezed]

It’s time once again to trot out my currency and coinage reform proposal.

Given that there has been ample inflation on the order of 10 since the last change, and we have an excessive array of confusing coins and low-value currency, it is time for a practical simplification.

First, denominations need to proceed in a proportional way without large value ratios or crowded ratios. The classic 1-5-10-50-100... progression with ratios of 2.0-5.0 is ideal as a minimum, with denominations of 2, 20, etc. being optional for important valuations.

Second, we want to avoid coins of such low value that they are more trouble than they are worth. Economic waste occurs with the extra time wasted dealing with needlessly small coins. A penny is worth less than a minute of labor at minimum wages, and no currency transaction requires this small of denomination. The penny and the half-cent served well as the smallest denomination when their value was that of today’s dime. Note that electronic transaction are often conducted in smaller units that our smallest coin, and that cash registers have been “rounding” (without bias up or down) to the nearest small coin for sales tax purposes for generations.

Third, we want to set the coin/currency transition at a practical level that avoids our wallets being overstuffed with small bills, or our pockets with too many coins. Coins should be suitable for purchases like a magazine, a coffee, a lunch, or a brief cab ride.

Fourth, the ratio between the largest and smallest coin should be limited to a practical factor. Consider that the economy functions effectively with coins at 0.05, 0.10, and 0.25, with pennies treated as trash, and larger coins not used. That is a factor of 5 between the largest and smallest coin. A factor of 10-50 may be ideal, and a factor of 100 (as in actual coinage) is excessive.

Fifth, we need bills of adequately high value for large cash purchases (consider the largest Euro note has a value 7.5 times that of the largest US note.)

Sixth, coins should be sized approximately proportional to their value for ease of recognition and use.

The proposal:

Coins:
$0.10 (the approximate size of the current dime)
$0.50 (the size of a current nickel)
$1.00 (the size of the current quarter dollar)
$5.00 (the size of a current half-dollar) Could be set at $2 to avoid overlap with $5 note.

Currency Notes:
$5 (optional)
$10
$20 (optional)
$50
$100
$500

Our current 6 coins are replaced with 4.
Our current 7 notes are replaced with 4-6.

[Shelayne]

Wow and OOPS.

I don’t have the heart to tell her that. Oh well...

[Shelayne]

Wow and OOPS.

I don’t have the heart to tell her that. Oh well...

[M-cubed]

LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

did u not read a single post before u posted????

You my friend...should have been in charge of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic!....You’d have enjoyed the authority and been a hero to some...but watch out for the last wave....That may make u realize, your job was not as important as the actual outcome of your efforts...

[M-cubed]

Im shocked!..truly shocked!

(see tagline)

[Atlas Sneezed]

WTF?

Your topic may be returning to the gold standard. Mine is not. I am proposing to eliminate one problem in our monetary system. You are proposing to eliminate another.

We are not at odds, and your post is needlessly insulting.

[zeugma]

For lots of reasons, you'll never get the coins resized to something that makes more "sense" unless we radically change our currency, like europeans did when changing from their national currencies to euros. There is just too much social inertia with the current coinage sizes that are based on a time when our government was more honest than today, and currency had actual intrinsic value.

I'd go right along with your suggestions for currency, but the proposal for adding the $500 back into the mix is a non-starter given today's opressive government climate. They'd eliminate cash transactions completely so your every purchased could be tracked at will if they thought they could get away with it. They certainly are not going to make larger cash transactions easier.

Good ideas, but we don't have the government we used to.