With God on their side

The UK Guardian ^ | 03-06-02 | Duncan Campbell

[vannrox]

Don't expect sweetness and light from the US government's latest religious phase, writes Duncan Campbell


Tuesday March 5, 2002


On his recent visit to China, President Bush informed his hosts that "95% of Americans", including the president, believed in God. While those figures may be accurate in the same way that the Florida presidential election results in 2000 were accurate, he is right in saying that a much larger percentage of Americans believe in God, heaven and hell than most other nationalities do.


The attorney general John Ashcroft, who comes from the extreme Pentecostal wing of the Christian church, informed a recent gathering of Ultra Christian broadcasters that "civilised people - Muslims, Christians and Jews - all understand that the source of freedom and human dignity is the creator." Since the current war is being fought on behalf of "civilisation", this would seem to indicate that those 5% who do not believe in God should now also be classified as the enemy.


Certainly, faith in God has often been linked to patriotism in the US through the pledge of allegiance, which contains the words "I pledge allegiance to the flag ... one nation under God."


But God is, in fact, a relative newcomer to the pledge and was only included in it because of a right-wing religious lobby's efforts during the McCarthyite era.


The original pledge was written in 1892 by a Baptist socialist minister, Francis Bellamy, and was first published in a magazine called the Youth's Companion. The magazine's editor had hired Bellamy after the latter had been sacked by his church for delivering controversial socialist statements from the pulpit. Bellamy had even considered including the word "equality" in the pledge but knew that the state superintendents of education would be unwilling to endorse something that hinted at equal rights for women and blacks.


It was more than 60 years later, in 1954, that Congress, at the height of the anticommunist McCarthy period, added the words "under God" following a campaign by a rightwing Catholic organisation, the Knights of Columbus. Bellamy's grand-daughter later said that Bellamy would have resented the words being added, not least because at the end of his life he had become disenchanted with organised religion and had stopped attending church in Florida because of racial bigtory.


I learned all this from a reader's letter in the Santa Ynez Valley News. The person who wrote the letter, Jim Farnum, turned out to be a local businessman and community activist in the small town of Los Olivos, in southern California. He explained that many Americans believed that the pledge had been written by the founding fathers.


What is disturbing about the way in which people's beliefs - or lack of them - are being drafted into the national debate is the level of assumptions that are taking place. The "civilised people" in John Ashcroft's phrase and the 95 per cent of the president's believers include many who are highly selective about the commandments they obey - thou shalt not kill being the most obvious example.


But perhaps an indication of the dangers inherent in marrying church to state came from a very unexpected source over the weekend: the late President Nixon, who himself had come to power in the wave of 50s McCarthyism.


Nixon received much succour during his time in office and his prosecution of the Vietnam war from evangelist Billy Graham, perhaps the one person seen as closest to God by Americans and a man who threw his weight behind the war in Vietnam.


The release of old tape-recorded conversations between the two men reveal Graham to have been an antisemite and a hypocrite.


Graham talked about what he saw as a Jewish domination of the media and complained about the way Jews "swarm" around him: "this stranglehold has got to be broken down or this country's going down the drain," he told the then president, who agreed with him and complained that he could not say so in public.


"But if you get elected a second time, then we might be able to do somthing," said Graham, who apologised last weekend for his remarks, which he did not recall making. Interesting what "civilised" people get up to when they think no one is listening.

[vannrox]

The unlimited bashing of America continues unabated...I guess that we are just uncivilized rabble who believe in such ancient and outdated beliefs such as GOD, TRUTH, and LIBERTY. Geeze!

[lockeliberty]

You think, perhaps, this author may be an atheist?

[VRWC_minion]

If the pledge did not have "under God" in it I would not be able to say it.

[DallasMike]

You think, perhaps, this author may be an atheist?

I dunno', but he certainly doesn't seem capable of original thought. I wonder what it would be like to go through life with nothing more than bumper stickers and wacko liberal slogans going through my head.

[RCW2001]

Stand alone with God...and be victorious!

[concerned about politics]

You see, those liberals worship "the other guy."
Why do you think they loved Clinton so much?
Of course they'd slam our creater.
They're guy will lose in the end, and they go nuts when they're out of power.

[lockeliberty]

The attorney general John Ashcroft, who comes from the extreme Pentecostal wing of the Christian church, informed a recent gathering of Ultra Christian broadcasters that "civilised people - Muslims, Christians and Jews - all understand that the source of freedom and human dignity is the creator." Since the current war is being fought on behalf of "civilisation", this would seem to indicate that those 5% who do not believe in God should now also be classified as the enemy.

The above quote is indicative of the authors complete misunderstanding of Christianity and his hatred of it. He completely lost Ashcrofts point that those who believe in a creator respect human life even those who do not believe in a creator. He turns it around to imply that those "extreme Christians" believe in annilihating the athiest.

[VRWC_minion]

The attorney general John Ashcroft, who comes from the extreme Pentecostal wing of the Christian church, informed a recent gathering of Ultra Christian broadcasters that "civilised people

Can someone give me the link to the Ultra Christian broadcasting station. They don't seem to be in my areas.

[VRWC_minion]

Your search: "Ultra Christian broadcasters"

Categories | Web Sites | Web Pages | News | Research Documents

---

Sorry no results were found matching: "Ultra Christian broadcasters".

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[VRWC_minion]

Your search: "extreme Pentecostal wing" Categories | Web Sites | Web Pages | News | Research Documents -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sorry no results were found matching: "extreme Pentecostal wing".

[Jen]

FReepathon Continues!

GREAT FREEPER QUOTE FROM THE FREEPATHON THREAD:

2366 posted on 3/3/02 6:57 PM Pacific by McGavin999

"A lot of people come to FreeRepublic on a daily basis for their news. Strangely, many of them never stop to think about how this site is paid for. Many have no idea that FreeRepublic is fully funded by the people who use the site.

If everyone who was registered donated $1 a month, we'd never have to have a fund raiser. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen. Some people think their $5 or $10 wouldn't make a difference, but it would."

Have a Heart!
Do Your Part!

[VRWC_minion]

Plagerism ?

You decide

By http://www.heresyhouse.com

The original pledge was written in August 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, and first cousin of Edward Bellamy, author of the American socialist utopian novels, Looking Backward and Equality. Francis was a Christian Socialist. He was also deeply affected by his literary cousin's philosophies The Pledge was published in the September 8th issue of "The Youth's Companion", the leading family magazine of its day

By the author

The original pledge was written in 1892 by a Baptist socialist minister, Francis Bellamy, and was first published in a magazine called the Youth's Companion

[wimpycat]

It's true, though, about the pledge. My mother was surprised, when she started nursing school in 1954, to hear the phrase "under God" the first time they recited the pledge.

[VRWC_minion]

Sent e-mail to editor for above post. The author obviously lifted it word for word.

[VRWC_minion]

8. In which year was the American Pledge of Allegiance rewritten to include the phrase "under God"?

1954       1923       1892       1969

The original pledge was written in August 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, and first cousin of Edward Bellamy, author of the American socialist utopian novels, Looking Backward and Equality. Francis was a Christian Socialist. He was also deeply affected by his literary cousin's philosophies.

The Pledge was published in the September 8th issue of "The Youth's Companion", the leading family magazine of its day. Its owner and editor, Daniel Ford, had hired Francis in 1891 as his assistant when Francis was pressured into leaving his baptist church in Boston because of his socialist sermons. In 1892, Francis Bellamy became a chairman of a committee of state superintendents of education in the National Education Association. As its chairman, he prepared the program for the public schools' quadricentennial celebration for Columbus Day of the same year. He structured this public school program around a flag raising ceremony and a flag salute - his "Pledge of Allegiance."

The original Pledge read as follows: 'I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.' He considered placing the word, "equality," in his Pledge, but knew that the state superintendents of education on his committee were against equality for women and African Americans.

In 1923 and 1924, the National Flag Conference, under the leadership of the American Legion and the Daughters of the American Revolution, changed the Pledge's words, "my Flag," to "the Flag of the United States of America." Bellamy disliked this change, but his protest was ignored.

Again during the height of the Cold War, when McCarthyism hysteria gripped the land, the National Reform Association and religious institutions saw that the time was ripe to make their move. In the typically hysterical language of the day, the Committee on the Judiciary published on May 10, 1954, that "...one of the greatest differences between the free world and the Communists, [is] a belief in God." It was urged that the Pledge of Allegiance be altered to recognize god. PS 623 (77th Cong., 56 Stat.) effectuated that end.

And so, in 1954, Congress added the words, "under God," to the Pledge. The Pledge was now both a patriotic oath and a public prayer. Bellamy's granddaughter said he also would have resented this second change. He had been pressured into leaving his church in 1891 because of his socialist sermons. In his retirement in Florida, he stopped attending church because he disliked the racial bigotry he found there.

A few liberals recite a slightly revised version of Bellamy's original Pledge: "I pledge allegiance to my Flag, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with equality, liberty and justice for all."

Thanks in part to: Historical Records of Tisbury, Mass. (http://www.vineyard.net/vineyard/history/pledge.htm)

[VRWC_minion]

More direct link to original work by John W. Baer lifted without proper attribution.

[VRWC_minion]

I don't doubt the words were added in 1954. The issue is that most Christians would have to refuse to say an oath to the nation if its not qualified.

The second issue is the plagarism.

[USNBandit]

"he is right in saying that a much larger percentage of Americans believe in God, heaven and hell than most other nationalities do."

Maybe that is why we are still a super power and the author is writing from a third world country with rationed medical care, bad teeth, warm beer, and a pathetic excuse for a military. When more people in England believed in God the sun never set on their empire.

[Jorge]

The "civilised people" in John Ashcroft's phrase and the 95 per cent of the president's believers include many who are highly selective about the commandments they obey - thou shalt not kill being the most obvious example.

If this guy thinks "Thou shalt not kill" means God wants Governments to sit back and do nothing.... while maniacs and terrorists slaughter their innocent citizens...he's got a warped concept of the commandment...of what it means to protect life ...and the righteous character of God.

[Jorge]

The release of old tape-recorded conversations between the two men reveal Graham to have been an antisemite and a hypocrite.

Does it really?
Right or wrong...since when does believing that Jews might dominate any profession..including the press...make one an "antisemite"???

And if he believed this was not for the good of the country...how exactly does that make Graham a hypocrite?

I believe that the Jews are God's people....but that doesn't mean I have to agree with every move they make. According to the Bible...God doesn't agree with all they do either.
So what?
This nit-picking to try bash Billy Graham by holding him to a higher standard of perfection than anybody else is hypocritical.