America - In God We Trust

             How easy is it to put trust in people? I'm sure most people can put their trust in friends, relatives, or people that they fluently know. But what about trusting someone they know nothing about? Could trust be put into something when a person doesn't believe in it or believe it exists? That feeling is what many atheists have symbolically been doing for years now. Many people believe the motto "In God We Trust" is a representation of our nation, while others fight viciously against it. The issue of having the slogan "In God We Trust'' on our coin and currency has been a notorious debate within our nation. There are many different opinions on this topic. There are also many beliefs of the different kinds of people that the motto may offend. I have found many different opinions on this subject and I have finally come to the conclusion that the motto on the coins simply cannot be a secular function of our nation.
             According to the United States Department of Treasury, the first appearance of the slogan on money in the U.S. wasn't until February 2, 1873. At this point, it was only used on the coins because paper money wasn't very large or popular in those days. However, the motto wasn't used regularly on money until 1908. It was first used on paper money on October 1, 1957. On that same date, Congress passed a law that said the motto would appear on all coin and currency minted in the U.S. from there on, while also making it the national motto (Fact Sheet). Making the slogan a national motto brought on many unforeseen problems. After it became a national motto, there were a few people that took their cases to court, contesting that the slogan was unconstitutional. Ralph C. Reynolds, the president of the Rochester Chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, reported in 1970 that in the case of Aranow vs. United States, the court ruled that the motto would remain o...

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