PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE - NEW INFORMATION

Associated Press direct feed | June 28, 2002

[NYer]

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) _ A 1954 letter from President Dwight D. Eisenhower to the Knights of Columbus may have a legal bearing on the national controversy over an appeals court's declaration that the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that the phrase ``under God'' amounts to a government endorsement of religion in violation of the U.S. Constitution's Establishment Clause, which requires a separation of church and state. Congress added the phrase to the pledge in 1954 after a campaign by the Knights of Columbus, a Roman Catholic men's service organization. Americans deluged Congress with mail supporting the change, which came at the height of the Cold War, and religious leaders said the United States' pledge should be different from that of communist countries.

On display at the Knights of Columbus museum in New Haven is a letter from Eisenhower thanking the organization for its campaign. ``These words will remind Americans that despite our great physical strength we must remain humble. They will help us to keep constantly in our minds and hearts the spiritual and moral principles which alone give dignity to man, and upon which our way of life is founded,'' the letter says.

Paul Devin, the Knights' executive vice president for legal affairs and general counsel, says the letter implies a secular purpose for inserting the words ``under God,'' and not a religious one. ``The way he sees the words 'under God' are going to affect us is that they will remind us not to worship the state, but to remain humble in the eyes of God, and as a way of remember that we didn't create our own greatness,'' Devin said.

But a legal expert says that won't mean anything in a legal battle. ``It's historically interesting, but not legally significant,'' said Joseph H. Cooper, a professor at Quinnipiac University School of Law.

Cooper said the court's decision won't be reversed solely on the letter. ``There are lots of pieces of legislation that have one intent and because of the way they're interpreted, the impact or consequences of that perhaps is different than what was intended,'' he said. ``It's those consequences that the courts have to deal with.''

Devin said the Knights have been inundated with calls asking them to fight the court's ruling. ``We're considering all the various choices,'' he said. ``Legal steps are only one of those choices.''

Judge Alfred T. Goodwin, who wrote the 2-1 opinion, prevented it from taking effect until the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decides whether it wants to alter course. He gave no reason. Attorney General John Ashcroft has said the Justice Department will request a hearing by an 11-judge panel. Gov. Gray Davis and school officials in the town of Elk Grove, where the plaintiff lives, both promised to appeal.

The appeals court can rehear the case with the same three judges, or an 11-judge panel. Goodwin's action has no immediate result, since the ruling already was on hold by court rules for 45 days to allow for any challenges.

AP-ES-06-28-02 1604EDT

[maeng]

Thank you Texas Mom! Another good example of our forefathers recognizing that there is a God and including him in our country's beginnings.