One Nation Under God - Part 2

And why it is a good thing for all Americans

Jul 20, 2026

As I wrote about in Part 1, I believe something truly significant happened in our nation’s capital on Sunday, May 17, 2026. For nearly eight hours, tens of thousands of Americans gathered on the National Mall for “Rededicate 250,” while many times that number watched online across our nation.

This rededication of America as “One Nation Under God” was organized at the direction of President Trump and carried out by a wide array of Christian leaders, including the Speaker of the House, Rep. Mike Johnson, who offered up an 11-minute prayer rededicating America as “one nation under God.”

Congress Calls the Nation to Prayer

Two hundred and fifty years ago to the day, on May 17, 1776, the Second Continental Congress called upon the 13 colonies to join in a day of “prayer, fasting, and humiliation” (humbling themselves) as they faced an “imminent battle and almost certain death”^[1] in their conflict with King George’s world-dominant military force that had oppressed the colonies for years.

Forty-eight days later, these same colonies, led by 56 courageous men, would declare their independence from their original homeland and the King of England. When the time came for each member of the Continental Congress to sign his name to the Declaration of Independence, they understood they were committing treason. History records the sacred silence and somberness that permeated the room as each member carefully signed their name, realizing the gravity of their choice and the likely price they would pay. And they did pay, as history records.

The Declaration of Independence, which laid the foundation for a nation that would become the freest, most prosperous, and powerful force for freedom in world history, references God four times. But that was just the beginning. Throughout the War for Independence (Revolutionary War), the Congress of the United States issued “sixteen spiritual proclamations calling for a combination of elements, such as humiliation, fasting, prayer, and thanksgiving to God.”^[2]

The Number One Source in 1787

The Christian Church’s influence on the formation of the “State” is also evident by the fact that the Bible was the most quoted source by our founders as they crafted the U.S. Constitution in the hot, humid summer of 1787.^[3] And, of course, how can we forget our nation’s motto, which hangs above the Speaker of the House’s platform, “In God We Trust” (as well as being printed on all currency).

Why are the national motto and the phrase “under God” in our pledge good for all Americans, whether Christian or not? Because of the kind of society the values within Christian teachings create for its citizens. Our founders were a generation influenced by the First Great Awakening, during which tens of thousands came to faith in Christ and trusted the Word of God for guidance in life. Their worldview had already been influenced by a biblical perspective.

Biblical Impact on our Founders’ Generation

And so, as these gathered to consider the future of their 13 different colonies, they were already well-versed in Jesus’ teachings about acceptable conduct in society — such as, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39); “forgive others as God has forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32); “do not show favoritism” (James 2:1 and 2:9); and many commands in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7), and in Deuteronomy about “justice” for all whether rich or poor, native or foreigner. And we cannot fail to mention the powerful pulpits that rightly divided the Word of Truth on all matters of truth, justice, and the duty of the Christian towards their nation.

Their trust in and familiarity with the Bible led them to turn to its pages for wisdom and insight regarding their current conflict with Britain and the King. One crucial point they came to understand was that all people, as well as all nations, will be held accountable to the Creator for how they lived and governed. Knowing that their actions on earth will be weighed in the balances of a righteous God, they must choose those ways that honor and please this divine being. The consequence is people who choose to walk in honesty, truth, living according to moral and spiritual purity. Crime and injustice become rare because people govern their actions and motives for the good. Who wouldn’t want to live in such a neighborhood? Living in “one neighborhood under God” would naturally benefit all.

Do Not Miss This Point!

Here is an important point that is not emphasized: Although our founders were overwhelmingly Christian in practice or principles, our Constitution does not grant Christians special favor. Atheists, humanists, leftists, Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, etc., are to receive the same protection of the law and promised freedoms under the law as Americans who follow the same Christian faith of our founding fathers. In fact, there is “no religious test” for running for political office. These freedoms and protections do not exist equally for Christians in nations founded upon non-Christian religions. (e.g., Iran and other Muslim majority nations).

What prevented our founders from making Christianity the official religion of America, thereby granting special favor to Christians over other religions and atheists? First of all, they were keenly aware of the dangers of a national church from the abuse, corruption, and oppression they received from the official Church of England. Secondly, the Pilgrims’ voyage to the New World was two-fold: to pursue religious freedom and to share the gospel with the native people of the land.

Then, for a final clarifying moment, they realized that Jesus never practiced, nor did the early Church teach, compelled conversions; therefore, they followed suit and did not create a “State-Approved Church” that compelled faith in Christ. Our Founders understood that in order to guarantee true religious freedom in their new nation, all people would need the freedom to worship God according to their faith.

One Faith Creates a Nation for All Faiths

I must repeat this important distinction in the form of a question: How different is our nation from many other non-Christian religion-founded nations? It seems that in many countries founded upon non-Christian religions grant their followers certain privileges or status that “unbelievers” are denied. This is especially clear in Muslim-majority countries. Similarly, countries founded on atheism (such as Marxist, Communist, Socialist, or Fascist states) deny equal rights to religious individuals, who face fewer freedoms and are more likely to be oppressed or even persecuted.

Yes, in America, we have our shameful moments in our past where we failed to equally protect all (e.g., slavery and broken treaties with native Americans), yet even then, our Constitution provided the tools to address those inequities. But despite our low points as a society, America, due to its biblical foundations, has created a system (The U.S. Constitution) that can actually correct itself.

The Pledge of Allegiance’s Missing Part

Would it surprise you to know that the person responsible for our initial Pledge of Allegiance was a Christian? In September of 1892, Baptist minister Francis Bellamy published the first version of the Pledge in a children’s magazine to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ voyage to America. It read: “I pledge allegiance to my flag and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”^[4]

Then, in 1954, another pastor, Rev. George M. Docherty of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., preached a message with then-President Dwight D. Eisenhauer sitting in the same pew that Abraham Lincoln had occupied almost a century before.

Rev. Docherty preached to President Eisenhauer that the pledge was “missing the characteristics and definitive factor in the American way of life.” His point was that “The Pledge of Allegiance” could be the pledge of any communist or secular country. The next day, a Joint Resolution (H. J. Res 371) was proposed by U. S. Rep. Charles Oakman from Michigan to add the words “Under God” into the pledge. He stated, “Mr. Speaker, I think Mr. Docherty hit the nail squarely on the head. One of the most fundamental differences between us and the Communists is our belief in God.”^[5] A similar bill was introduced in the Senate.

The President and Our Nation’s Schools

Then, on June 14, 1954 (Flag Day), President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill into law, officially adding the words “under God” into the Pledge of Allegiance, telling the nation:

“From this day forward, the millions of our school children will daily proclaim in every city and town, every village and rural schoolhouse, the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty. To anyone who truly loves America, nothing could be more inspiring than to contemplate this rededication of our youth, on each school morning, to our country’s true meaning. . . . In this way, we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future…”^[6] (Please read those words one more time)

President Trump Calls America Back as “One Nation Under God”

Just as President Eisenhauer led the way in reaffirming our national dedication “to the Almighty,” President Trump (this year, on our nation’s 250th anniversary) directed our leaders to rededicate our nation as “one nation under God.” Be they followers of Christ or not, all citizens uniquely benefit from the biblical principles that formed such an amazing nation we know as the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.”

For this rededication to carry weight in the coming years, we who are people of faith must likewise rededicate ourselves to the Lord and to pray and work for the “peace and prosperity of the land” in which we are living, because “if it prospers, you will too” (Jeremiah 29:7). And for those who push back on religious expression, maybe you can pause and appreciate what freedoms you have, thanks to America’s religious heritage of “one nation under God.”

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