5. The Pledge of Allegiance Did Not Originally Contain the Phrase “Under God”
Fact: This religious tidbit was not officially adopted until 1942.
The Pledge of Allegiance was written by Baptist minister Francis Bellamy in 1892, in part because he was not happy with a contemporary pledge written by George Balch which read: “We give our heads and hearts to God and our country; one country, one language, one flag”. Bellamy’s pledge, as originally written read, “I pledge allegiance to my flag and the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”. Gradually “my flag” was changed to “the flag of the United States of America” in response to increased immigration and its impact in classrooms, a change which Bellamy found distasteful.
Thus when Congress officially adopted the Pledge of Allegiance in 1942, the words “under God” were not part of the recitation. Gradually various religious groups added the two words when reciting the pledge at their functions, including the Knights of Columbus beginning in 1951. In 1954 Congress debated adding the words “under God”, a suggestion enthusiastically endorsed by President Eisenhower, and the recently converted Presbyterian signed the amendment of the Pledge of Allegiance to include the words “under God” on Flag Day, June 14, 1954. The addition of the two words have been the source of controversy ever since.