A New Birth of Freedom - Under God

We live in a strange time.

On September 8th, President Bush proclaimed Friday, September 16, 2005, a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for the Victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Now the American Humanist Association (AHA) is calling the proclamation a violation of the U.S. Constitution.

AHA president and constitutional lawyer Mel Lipman said "The U.S. does not have a national religion - our president's role is not the director of faith - a national day of prayer is inherently exclusionary and a violation of the First Amendment principle of church-state separation."

It is true that the United States does not have a national religion. But a national day of prayer is a violation of the Constitution?

Then George Washington must have been in violation of the Constitution on April 30, 1789 when he said in his first inaugural address that

"...it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe... No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States."

Washington must also have been in violation October 3, 1789 when he began his National Thanksgiving Proclamation with the following words:

"Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor..."

John Adams must have violated the Constitution with his 1798 National Fasting and Prayer Proclamation when he wrote these words:

"AS the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and blessing of Almighty God; and the national acknowledgment of this truth is not only an indispensable duty which the people owe to Him, but a duty whose natural influence is favorable to the promotion of that morality and piety, without which social happiness cannot exist, nor the blessings of a free government be enjoyed... I HAVE therefore thought it fit to recommend, that Wednesday, the 9th day of May next be observed throughout the United States, as a day of Solemn Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer"

On March 4, 1805, President Thomas Jefferson must have violated the Constitution when he offered “A National Prayer for Peace,” as follows:

“Almighty God, Who has given us this good land for our heritage; We humbly beseech Thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Thy favor and glad to do Thy will. Bless our land with honorable ministry, sound learning, and pure manners.

Save us from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitude brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues.

Endow with Thy spirit of wisdom those to whom in Thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth.

In time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in Thee to fail; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.”

Abraham Lincoln must have been in violation when in 1863 he set aside the last Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day, declaring

"We often forget the Source from which the blessings of fruitful years and healthful skies come. . . . No human wisdom hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God. . . . I therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States . . . to observe the last Thursday of November as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens."

Lincoln must also have violated the Constitution when he said on a battlefield in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania "...that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom..."

Regardless of what the atheists or secular humanists claim, this nation was founded upon a deep belief in God. God has been in the center of American life throughout our history. It's only been recently that those who would push God aside have tried to convince us that He has no place in our country. I, for one, am tired of listening to that small minority of people trying to impose a God-free society upon the rest of us. A God-free society was not a part of any principle leading to the founding of this country, and it was not the intent of any part of the Constitution. As citizens of a free country, the atheists and secular humanists can express their opinions, but the rest of us do not need to listen. If fact, with one strong voice, we need to drown out their anti-God message. We need to once again bring about a new birth of freedom - under God.