First, let me ask you to remove all biases. If you are a Christian, don't look at this from a Christian perspective but rather look at this from a [b][i][u]legal[/u][/i][/b] perspective.
[i]NOTE: Remember that Christianity is not special, and there are roughly 3,000 religions just like it. Also remember that Christianity is not the oldest religion, there are about 8 religious texts older than the Hebrew Bible from which it stems.[/i] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_religion
"[i][b]Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion[/i][/b], or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." - First Amendment
The Pledge of Allegiance is technically a piece of legislation that was passed by Congress. You can read the U.S. Flag Code and its provisions here: http://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RL30243.pdf
Now, here are the two most recent versions of the Pledge of Allegiance.
[u][b]1924 - 1954 Version[/b][/u]
"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands; one Nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all."
[u][b]1954 - Present Version[/b][/u]
"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation [u]under God[/u], indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Let's not kid ourselves here, the "God" with a capital [b]G[/b] is referring to the Abrahamic God which exists in Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Mormonism. It is definitely violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment and should not remain in the Pledge. How would you feel if it was [u]under Brahma[/u] or [u]under Zeus[/u] or [u]under Allah[/u] or [u]under Ra[/u] or [u]under Satan[/u]? Chances are, you would feel much different. Religion and government work best when they are [b]separate[/b].
[b]Edit #1:[/b] I understand the Pledge is voluntary, but that isn't the point. The point is that religion has intruded where it doesn't belong. You can't cherrypick the Constitution. And also, I have heard from multiple people that some teachers will make you say it.
[b]Edit #2:[/b] No, I am not offended. No, it really doesn't bother me. No, I really don't care that much. I just felt like bringing awareness to this topic, and see what bungie.net thought about it. This has nothing to do with Atheism vs. Christianity. This is not about my personal feelings or anybody else's. This is simply a matter of the Constitution.
[b]Edit #3:[/b] You either support the First Amendment or you don't. You don't get to pick and choose which parts of the First Amendment suit your own personal feelings.
[b]Final Edit:[/b] I can't believe how many people are whining and crying. Relax, this is just a bungie.net post. You can agree or disagree with it; that's why I made two options (three for the people who don't really care). Why so much butthurt?
[b]Super Final Edit:[/b] This post has made me realize that 70% of bungie.net is made up of whiny butthurt kids. I guess this doesn't really surprise me. Thank you to the other 30% of you who [b]respectfully[/b] agreed or disagreed with me.
[b]My Compromise:[/b] So, I've been thinking, and why don't we just edit the Flag Code to allow 30 seconds for anybody to silently say a prayer, after the pledge is recited? This way, everybody wins. The pledge doesn't endorse any specific religions, and religious people are still allowed to freely express their religion.
English
#Offtopic
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2 답변The reason why the "under God" part was added is because of the cold war. The Soviet Union was an Atheist state and the US mostly Christian. The US just wanted to look different from the commies. It wasn't for ANY religious reason.
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I think it should stay and here's why: [b]cuz I said so.[/b] need I say more? If so, here's more: [b]i already told you I said so.[/b] Served in the marines. My bud stepped in an IED while I had bent over to tuck my shoelace back in my boot. I'd say I was saved by the grace of something. My word for that would be God since he didn't leave his name as he was passing through.
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11 답변I thought it said Congress can't make a law respecting religion? The pledge is not a law just pledge. Am I missing something?
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10 답변The United States of America was founded on Biblical principles because the founding fathers knew they couldn't run a nation all on their own. They needed the help of God. Because, we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength .
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2 답변sounds like you are the butthurt whiny kid for not liking that "under God" is in the pledge of allegiance because "God was the reason your hamster died or your dad left"
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66 답변Under god should stay. We shouldn't let arabic -blam!-ers come in are country an say "oh but you see, we don't like that so get rid of it." it's like plz bitch. We made this country not you. If you don't like it you can leave any time.
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It's meant as what ever is "God" in your life. Just like the "Pursuit of happiness" doesn't mean you can do what ever the [i]f[/i]uck you want, but you have the right to pursue through legal means what makes you happy (See, legalized homosexual marriage) Don't be a dumb-ass. Just try.
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19 답변Our nations father's were Christian, historical science...Christians came up with the ideas back In the bc before christ
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4 답변Allah is the Arabic word for God. He isn't a seperate god. Also, no one can be forced to say the pledge. America is mainly Christian so if you don't like it leave.
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30 답변We should really just get rid of the pledge of allegiance in general. It's a silly concept.
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13 답변But "under God" doesn't definitively say Christian God, its only implies a monotheistic God... of which isn't exclusively Christian.
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1 답변Its because when they made our country, they really meant freedom to practice their religion
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1 답변It's blatantly obvious, but people will defend it for piss-poor reasons such as "just ignore it!" and "it's tradition!"