Thanks to Knights (of Columbus), nation is 'under God' (The Knights' Role in Adding 'under God')

When Francis Bellamy drafted the Pledge of Allegiance in 1892, he wrote: "I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands: one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Bellamy soon inserted the word "to" in front of "the Republic." In 1923 and 1924, the American Legion and the Daughters of the American Revolution succeeded in changing "my flag" to "the flag of the United States of America."

The wording of the pledge remained unchanged from 1924 to 1954, when it was changed to "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Why were the words "under God" added to the pledge in 1954, and who brought about that change?

To answer these questions as we prepare to celebrate our country's 226th birthday, we have to understand the political climate of the 1950s, and the patriotism of American Catholics, especially the Knights of Columbus (see "Patriotism and Fraternalism in the Knights of Columbus," Christopher Kauffman, 2001)

In the 1950s, the United States was engaged in a "cold war" with the Soviet Union, which - in the words of one U.S. congressman - espoused "the pagan doctrine of communism." Catholics also were trying to overcome decades of anti-Catholicism by demonstrating their complete support of the United States in its fight against communism.

In April 1951, the Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus adopted a resolution adding "under God" to the pledge when it was recited at K of C meetings. In April and May 1952, K of C councils in Florida, Michigan, New York, and South Dakota voted to petition Congress to add "under God" to the pledge.

In August 1952, the Knights' Supreme Council agreed to send letters urging the same thing to President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, and the Speaker of the House. In September 1952, the National Fraternal Congress (whose president was K of C leader Luke Hart) agreed to do the same.

On April 20, 1953, Democratic Congressman Louis Rabaut of Michigan introduced House Joint Resolution 243 to change the pledge to read "one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." In August 1953, the Knights extended the letter-writing campaign to include all members of the Senate and the House.

On February 7, 1954, Rev. George M. Docherty, pastor of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC, preached on the topic. With President Eisenhower in attendance, Docherty said that something was missing from the pledge. In his words: "that which was missing was the characteristic and definitive factor in the American way of life. Indeed, apart from mention of the phrase, 'the United States of America,' it could be the pledge of any republic. In fact, I could hear little Muscovites repeat a similar pledge to their hammer-and-sickle flag in Moscow with equal solemnity. Russia is also a republic that claims to have overthrown the tyranny of kingship. Russia also claims to be indivisible."

On May 5, 1954, Rabaut echoed Docherty's words in the House of Representatives when he explained the history of the pledge and the reasons why he had introduced his resolution a year earlier. So did other congressmen as they rose to support it on June 7, 1954. Congressman Wolverton also noted that "the Members of Congress have received innumerable petitions, letters, and telegrams from individuals from all over this land of ours endorsing (Rabaut's) amendment, and likewise resolutions of approval from religious, fraternal, and patriotic organizations."

Rabaut's resolution was passed on June 7 and signed into law by Eisenhower on Flag Day, June 14, 1954.

In August, Eisenhower wrote to the K of C, saying: "We are particularly thankful to you for your part in the movement to have the words 'under God' added to our Pledge of Allegiance. These words will reminded 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. For the contributions which your organization has made to this cause, we must be genuinely grateful."

James D. Davidson is professor of sociology at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Who do you think that protestant Eisenhower was more influenced by? The Knights of Columbus or this Minister.- Tom

'If it says "God," ' so be it By Larry Witham THE WASHINGTON TIMES

The minister whose 1954 sermon at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church put "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance said yesterday its elimination would amount to "the god of big money defeating" monotheistic faith. Top Stories

The Rev. George Docherty, 91, who now lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, said in an interview that society has become "so secular and materialistic" he is not surprised judges would be offended by an allusion to a deity.

"But to say that the word 'God' is unconstitutional is heretical," said the native of Scotland. "This was a nation built under God. Unfortunately, the god we worship today is money."

In April 1953, the Korean War prompted suggestions to put Abraham Lincoln's "under God" from the Gettysburg Address into the Pledge, which Congress had codified in 1942.

A reported 15 such resolutions got nowhere in Congress until Mr. Docherty preached a sermon attended by President Eisenhower and the national press corps Feb. 7, 1954.

Yesterday, Mr. Docherty said he did not write the sermon because of the resolutions — of which he was unaware — but because his son told him one Wednesday of a pledge he had recited in his second-grade class. "I had never heard of it, so I asked, 'What is that?'" said Mr. Docherty, who had arrived in Washington from Scotland in 1950. He served the Presbyterian church until his 1976 retirement.

"So I wrote a sermon to amend the Pledge of Allegiance," he said, recalling that he had drawn inspiration from references to a deity in Scotland's ceremonial hymns. "And I preached that." The sermon said: "Apart from the mention of the phrase 'the United States of America,' it could be the pledge of any republic." Then he added, "In fact, I could hear little Muscovites repeat a similar pledge to their hammer-and-sickle flag in Moscow."

Afterward, he asked Mr. Eisenhower, who was in the front pew, what he thought. "And he said, 'I agree.'" The news story flashed across the nation, and in the next weeks Mr. Docherty received hundreds of letters. "The whole nation was taken up by it," he said. "There was no obvious division."

Three days after the sermon, Sen. Homer Ferguson, Michigan Republican, sponsored a bill, and it was approved as a joint resolution June 8, 1954.

Mr. Eisenhower signed it into law on Flag Day, June 14, saying in a statement, "From this day forward, the millions of our schoolchildren will daily proclaim in every city and town, every village and rural schoolhouse, the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty." <

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.