Something to bash on

[Occhidiangela]

While in use for a century beforehand, In God We Trust didn't become the official motto of the USA until 1956.

The display of the ten commandments in courthouses seems to be a recent phenomenon (BTW, I used that link strictly because it has a fair summary of the time-line and not for any opinions expressed there).
--Pete

In God We Trust on the coin of the realm is, for my money, explicitly non-scriptural and non-doctrinal under Christian tenets. Digression: I don't know Talmudic doctrine well enough to know how it addresses the shekel, but it appears that the Muslims endorse it. ) The banknotes I have from Qatar don't seem to include the standard reference to Allah found all over the Islamic world, but the Saudi banknotes do. Mixed bag.

There are a variety of passages in Christian foundational doctrine referring to rejection of the worship of Mammon, caution against too close a tie to "the World" or those things material, and of course "Render unto Caesar that which belongs to Caesar" line Luke 20, 24 & 25:.

Summation: "No true Christian" ;) of any denomination should be a proponent of God's name on the coinage.

The only context in which I find "In God We Trust" appropriate is among merchants, the old saw "In God we trust, all others pay cash":lol:providing a metaphor for how little credit customers will be extended.

Your remark on the Mormon's being singled out for unequal treatment, vis a vis polygamy, is indeed interesting. As it stands now, it is lawful under the Constitution, since that restriction was approved by Constitutional referendum and Congressional action under the conditions set for Utah's statehood. Given the talents and financial assets of the Mormon Church, it is not unthinkable to see that decades old precedent soon challenged under the Establishment Clause, or a basis like "equal protection under the law" (Fourteenth Amendment) similar to the line that homosexual marriage proponents have used. 'Twould be an interesting argument to follow, at the least. If it passes, my options for polygamy would only be curtailed by Mrs Occhi, and the dreaded Spousal Frying Pan of Bashing. :lol:

Me, I'll settle for a few more Mormon neighbors. They are good family people, generally friendly, tend not to drink and drive, and also tend to keep their homes/yards tidy. Absent a few doorway visits inquiring into my "having heard the word of God lately" (my current pre-loaded reply is "Yes, and He told me to beware of Mormon's bearing books"), the local adherents are generally willing to live and let live.

EDIT: I have to nit the CSM, since this

The First Amendment's establishment clause bars the government from taking actions that promote or endorse religion or a particular religious faith .

is false by their adding language not in the Constitution.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof is all the Constitution "says." The rest has been a matter of court fights and precedent, (which the CSM duly covered) which Prohibition shows us is most certainly NOT written in stone (or hardened clay?), unlike the 15 Commandments of Mosaic Law. (Reference: Mel Brooks' documentary film, History of the World Part I and Moses' slight fumble as he descended from the Mount.:))

*starts tapdancing and singing "The Inquisition, the Inquisition . . ." *

Occhi