Christopher Cervantes
When I was a senior in high school, my advanced-placement government teacher, Roni Cline, assigned us a final project in which we had to redesign the American dollar bill. Of the minimal changes I made, one of the most prominent ones was removing “In God We Trust” and replacing it with a new slogan. I did it for a hypothetical situation, but I never once believed that it would become an actuality. Hindsight is weird that way.
Last week, a group of atheists joined to file a federal lawsuit in order to drop “In God We Trust” from the U.S. currency. The legal action is backed by 41 plaintiffs and Sacramento attorney Michael Newdow, known for his failed attempt to remove “one nation under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance in 2004. The group of atheists argues that the phrase printed on currency imposes stress on atheists on a regular basis.
Normally, using religion as a basis to defend a piece of legislation warrants an automatic loss on the judicial battlefield. However, that is usually the case when arguments are more straightforward. The arguments presented in the lawsuit are, for a lack of the better word, interesting.
One plaintiff contended that “her beliefs require that she trust in her own abilities and a general responsibility to lead an ethical life. In handling the money, therefore, she is repeatedly unwillingly confronted with the words ‘In G-d We Trust.’ Thus, she is forced against her will to accept and redistribute to others a message that goes wholly against her beliefs. Yet it is neither realistic nor reasonable for her to abandon the nation’s currency and use other forms of payment for all of her transactions.”
“G-d” is used because the plaintiffs refuse to write the word “God.”
Sorry, but it is difficult to take this claim seriously.
First of all, the phrase “In God We Trust” stems from a line found in “The Star-Spangled Banner,” in which the fourth stanza reads, “And this be our motto: In God is our Trust.” Given that the anthem was written during the War of 1812 and after the foundations were laid out for separation of church and state, it becomes apparent that the origin of the phrase is more out of patriotism than devotion to a theological power.
Furthermore, the interpretation of the motto can vary. Upon inspection of the physical text found on the dollar bill, it is apparent that the entirety of the saying is capitalized. Any English teacher will point out that this lacks specificity. Because of this, there is no set religion attached to the motto. In theory, the “GOD” mentioned could pertain to Allah, a Hindu god, an old pagan god, or even perhaps the spirit of American ideology in general.
Given how vague the reasons behind the lawsuit are, I do not think that there is any solid ground for the plaintiffs to stand on. If seeing a simple phrase (one that doesn’t vindictively insult or harm) on a piece of green paper offends people, then perhaps they should find other payment options. I recommend checks. That way, they can write “in god we trust,” and then cross it out. If it makes them feel better.