The Pledge of Allegiance

 I did this one the other day…. I do believe in the pledge of allegiance, not so much to the flag, But for ideas and ideals embodied in the rest of the pledge. I don’t think that being progressive is not being patriotic… to the contrary I believe it’s the highest form of patriotism to love our country, not with blind obedience but rather in bearing witness to our faults with dedication to making us better and helping us live up to our highest ideals… be they naive or pollyannaish, they are our highest ideals. Words, no doubt written by poets, but something we can always strive to live up to.

The original Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Christian socialist and Baptist minister.

He wrote it as part of a campaign to promote patriotism among schoolchildren, tied to the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas. The original version was:

"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Over time, the pledge was modified:

• In 1923, "my Flag" was changed to "the Flag of the United States of America" to avoid confusion among immigrants.

• In 1954, during the Cold War, the words "under God" were added by Congress under President Eisenhower.

So, while Francis Bellamy wrote the original version, the modern version has evolved significantly since then.

Ministry & Christian Socialism

• A committed Christian socialist, Bellamy preached fiery sermons calling Jesus “a socialist” and advocated for equality, worker rights, public education, and Church–State separation Wikipedia+5Britannica Kids+5Britannica+5.

• His progressive views eventually clashed with conservative Baptist orthodoxy, prompting him to leave the ministry in 1891 rbscp.lib.rochester.edu+1Wikipedia+1.