A firestorm of controversy developed when Michael Newdow challenged the constitutionality of the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. In order to understand the legal issues and the public reaction, One Nation Under God? explores the history of the government’s references to God in our national motto, on coins, and in other governmental announcements, along with a history of the Pledge of Allegiance. The book discusses the setting of American “civil religion” and other aspects of American culture and then delves into the background of the Constitution and the Supreme Court’s Establishment Clause rulings needed to understand the courts’ rulings on such governmental uses of “God.” State and federal cases on “In God We Trust” and “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance and other references to God are also explored. Finally, a new rationale for accepting these pronouncements as constitutional is presented.
