Monday, November 11, 2013

I pledge Allegiance


I pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.

Every time I say this pledge, which is twice a month at our Toastmasters’ meeting, I get emotional.  There is something in this short sentence which moves me deeply.  I have been thinking of the word INDIVISIBLE which means inseparable, undividable or united. 

On this Veterans Day 2013, I want to call out to all patriots who love this country, let’s unite together to save this nation.  Let us forget our differences and come together to not just pledge allegiance to the flag but to the God who has blessed this nation and bestowed upon her a great responsibility. 

I like to share with you an excerpt from a talk I listened to, 40 year ago -- God’s Hope For America:
 
“America has been known as the "melting pot" where people of all colors, creeds, and nationalities are melted into one new breed. In order to melt anything, heat is required. Do you know who provided the heat for America? God was that heat. Without God, you could never have melted your people together.
America could only achieve true brotherhood through the Christian spirit, but when you begin to lose this foundation, America's moral fiber will deteriorate. Today there are many signs of the decline of America. What about the American young people? What about your drug problems and your juvenile crime problems? What about the breakdown of your families? I hear that three out of every four marriages in America end in divorce. The California state government is issuing more divorce certificates than marriages licenses. What about racial problems and the threat of communism? -- And what about the economic crises? Why are all these problems occurring? These are signs that God is leaving America. I can read the sign which says, "God is leaving America now!" If this trend continues, in a very short time God will be with you no longer. God is leaving America's homes. God is leaving your society. God is leaving your schools. God is leaving your churches. God is leaving America. There are many signs of atheism in this once God-centered nation. There have been many laws enacted that only a godless society could accept. There was a time when prayer was America's daily diet. Today you hear prayers in American schools no longer.”
~ Sun Myung Moon, Lisner Auditorium, Washington, DC, October 21, 1973

I am grateful to President Dwight Eisenhower who in 1954, followed the suggestion of his pastor George MacPherson Docherty, to add the words UNDER GOD to the pledge and got the full support of Congress.

"From this day forward, the millions of our school children will daily proclaim in every city and town, every village and rural school house, the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty.... In this way we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America's heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country's most powerful resource, in peace or in war."
~ President Dwight Eisenhower, 34th President, 1890-1969, a veteran who served his country proudly.

 

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