by Ken Bradford

Created on: October 10, 2008

To ban religion from all public places would be an impossible task, because everywhere we look we are reminded of how this nation was founded on Christian principles and our founding fathers wanted to always remind us of that fact by placing symbols and emblems all over Washington D.C. buildings, in official documents, and historical speeches.

In 1861, then Secretary of the Treasury, Salmon Chase wrote a letter to the Director of the Mint at Philadelphia and here is what the letter said:

"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. It was found that the Act of Congress dated January 18, 1837, prescribed the mottoes and devices that should be placed upon the coins of the United States."

So, you see, even Atheists carry change in their pockets and if they sincerely and truly believed as they speak, they wouldn't, because every time they buy a coke, "In God We Trust" stares them right in the face.

How about the "Pledge of Allegiance To The U. S. Flag"?

"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."

We have tried to take the words "under God" out of this pledge, but in most situations people still say those words.

Do you know what immediately preceeds all the signatures on our U. S. Constitution? Here's what they all signed:

"Done in convention by the unanimous consent of the states present the seventeenth day of September in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty seven and of the independence of the United States of America the twelfth."

So far, if religion was removed from all public places, we would have to destroy the U. S. Constitution, trash all of our currency and coins, and burn the "Pledge of Allegiance", but we're not finished yet.

Have you ever participated in singing the song "America The Beautiful" or have you ever listened to the song? Here are some of the words:

"O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America!America! God shed his grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!"

Here's how our Declaration of Independence begins:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Ok, now in addition to burning the Constitution, destroying all of our currency and coins, eliminating the "Pledge of Allegiance", tearing down most of the government buildings in Washington, D. C., destroying all of our historical documents, we must now destroy the Declaration of Independence and never sing "America The Beautiful" again.

There's one more thing. Senate Bill 1378, introduced by Senator Strom Thurmond, passed both houses and enacted a permanent national day of prayer. After this bill was passed, some 33 governors and 150 mayors issued proclamations to commemorate this national day of prayer.

Those of us who totally understand and realize what was going through the minds of our founding fathers must always fight for the right to practice our religion in public places, but we will never stop fighting.

The First Amendment of our U. S. Constitution is a constant, permanent reminder that we are a free nation and freedom of religion is still guaranteed. Religion will never be totally removed from the public eye.

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