One nation, now under God

By: The Editorial Board | GoDanRiver
Published: February 18, 2012

To the editor:

There is a lot of talk recently about the separation of church and state. Some folks want to break that barrier, which has held for a long time. It seems that the First Amendment is being questioned.

The First Amendment did not use the expression “a wall of separation” in its wording. So where did it come from? While the termwas in the air at the time, the main impetus comes from a letter that Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Baptists of Danbury, Conn., in which he cited his reverence for the First Amendment for “building a wall of separation between Church and State.”

We have not always held the wall in place. The most flagrant violations have been the granting to religious organizations of property tax exemptions and allowing deductions in the federal tax code for donations to religious organizations. It is hard to estimate or imagine howmuch support this has given religious institutions.

DuringWorldWar II, more than 16 million Americans fought for a country that was not under God. Later, service personnel fought for a nation under God. I doubt that the more recent force had it any easier or were more dedicated or brave. I am, of course, referring to the change in the Pledge of Allegiance that was inserted during the ColdWar.

LEONARD BERNSTEIN

Danville

One nation, now under God

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