America’s
national motto, “In God We Trust,” printed on all currency and coins, expresses the bold and vocal faith of
America’s founding generation and affirms that they knew nothing of a so-called
“separation of church and state.”
The idea
for such a national motto was initiated in 1861 when Secretary of
the Treasury, Salmon P. Chase, sent the following instructions to James
Pollack, director of the mint at Philadelphia.
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 (Hyatt, 5 Pillars of the American Republic, 12).
Early America was Entirely Christian
Notice
that Chase says such a motto is appropriate because of “the trust of our people
in God” A few years before this, John Marshall (1755-1835), the second Chief
Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court had written,
The
American population is entirely Christian, and with us Christianity and
religion are identified. It would be strange, indeed, if with such a people,
our institutions did not presuppose Christianity, and did not refer to it, and
exhibit relations with it (Hyatt. 1726:The Year that Defined America,
169).
Some years earlier, America’s
Founders opened the Declaration of Independence by acknowledging the Creator
and recognizing that all human rights come from Him. This was the basis on which
John Dickinson, Founding Father and chairman of the committee that drafted the
Articles of Confederation, declared in 1776,
Our
liberties do not come from charters for these are only the declarations of
preexisting rights. They do not depend on parchment or seals; but come from the
King of Kings and the Lord of all the earth (Hyatt, 5 Pillars of theAmerican Republic, 10).
Indeed, there was a consensus among
the Founders that America had come forth by the Providential hand of God.
Reflecting on the completed work of the Constitutional Convention, James
Madison, the chief architect of the Constitution, saw God’s handiwork in it
all, and wrote,
It
is impossible for the man of pious reflection not to perceive in it a finger of
that Almighty hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to our
relief in critical stages of the Revolution (Hyatt, 5 Pillars of theAmerican Republic, 10).
When George Washington placed his
hand on the Bible to take the first presidential oath of office it was an
expression of his faith in the God of the Bible. When he gave his first
Inaugural Address shortly thereafter, he warned the new nation,
The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the external rules of order and right, which Heaven itself has ordained (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 2nd Edition (174).
Atheism
Rejected
Indeed, in early America, faith in
God was considered necessary for good citizenship and atheism was outright
rejected. James Madison said, “Before any man can be considered as a member of
civil society, he must be considered as a subject of the Governor of the
Universe.”
This rejection of atheism was borne
out in 1831 when a judge in the court of Chester County in the state of New
York, threw out the testimony of a witness when the witness admitted he did not
believe in the existence of God. The judge said that by his admission, the
witness had, “destroyed all the confidence of the court in what he was about to
say.”
The judge went on to say that it was
the first time he had met someone who did not acknowledge the existence of God.
He said that he knew of no case in a Christian country where a witness had been
permitted to testify without such belief in God (Hyatt, 5 Pillars of theAmerican Republic, 11).
In 1892 the U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged
that America is a Christian nation in the case of Church of the Holy Trinity vs
The United States. After examining thousands of historical documents, the
nation’s highest Court declared,
The churches and church
organizations which abound in every city, town, and hamlet; the multitude of
charitable organizations existing everywhere under Christian auspices; the
gigantic missionary associations, with general support, and aiming to establish
Christian missions in every quarter of the globe. These, and many other matters
which might be noticed, add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of
organic utterances that this is a Christian nation (Hyatt, 1726: The Year thatDefined America, 170).
“In God We Trust” Becomes the Law of the
Land
It is against this
background of a deep national historical faith that in a Flag Day Speech on June
14, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower talked about the need to reaffirm the religious
faith in America’s heritage and said that doing so would “constantly strengthen
those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful
resource, in peace or in war.”
Then, on July 30, 1956,
President Eisenhower signed into law two bills regarding the national motto. Public
Law 84–140 required “In God We Trust” to appear on all U.S. currency and coins.
Public Law 84–851 declared "In God We Trust" to be the official motto
of the United States.
We
Are Overdue for Another National Awakening
This all shows that the ACLU and similar
organizations that are opposing the state of Louisiana posting the Ten Commandments
in public schools and opposing Oklahoma public schools teaching the Bible as literature,
are completely out of step with America’s true heritage.
They base their opposition on the novel
idea of a “separation of church and state,” which is nowhere to be found in
America’s founding documents. It is of recent origin and is based on a misleading
interpretation of the First Amendment, wrenched out of its original context.
From George Washington to Dwight D.
Eisenhower America was considered a Christian nation, not because of Congressional
legislation or a Supreme Court decree, but because the Christianity of the
founding generation had been revived again and again by Spiritual Awakenings
that impacted all sectors of American life.
We are overdue for another such Great
Awakening to sweep across the land. Such an Awakening will cause the national
motto to be more than a catchy phrase printed on our currency but will return
us to the place where we can truly say as a nation, “In God We Trust!”
Dr. Eddie Hyatt is an author, historian, and revivalist. This article was derived from his books, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 5 Pillars of the American Republic, and Pilgrims and Patriots, 2nd Edition, all available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.
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