The Pledge was originally written to initiate allegiance in America as a response to the Civil War (Jones). During the time of being written, America had been sectioned into different groups based on ethnicity, such as African-Americans. America continues to fracture, but when reciting the Pledge, division is overlooked and Americans unite and share pride in their great country together. As defined in the article “Why is the Pledge of Allegiance Important?,” “[The Pledge of Allegiance] is a proclamation stating that all Americans are unified, standing together as one nation and working together for the benefit of the country as a whole” (Buzzle.com). The Pledge of Allegiance informs the world that as Americans, we are unified and cooperative for the greater good of the nation, and by being so, America will continue to strive to be the best in all that the country commits to do. The recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance is also believed to give students the chance to reflect on their individual roles as Americans (“Why is the Pledge of Allegiance Important?”). By reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, students may begin to think of their responsibilities as citizens. The thought of their role as Americans may be implanted in the students’ minds, resulting in more patriotic and devoted generations of citizens in the nation’s …show more content…
In Jeffrey Jones’ article, “The Man Who Wrote the Pledge of Allegiance,” he explains that upon deciding to add “one nation under God” to the Pledge in the 1954 bill, advocates did not view this addition as religious. Owen adds that there is a difference between “the existence of a religion as an institution and a belief in the sovereignty of God” (2003). To clarify, the phrase “under God” was embedded in the Pledge to acknowledge God’s guidance in national affairs. In addition, this phrase supports the idea that our founding fathers believed that religion was vital for building America. According to Mark Edwards, author of the article “Was America Founded as a Christian Nation,” the founding fathers felt that religion was necessary to conserve America’s virtues (2015). During the time of writing the Constitution, christianity existed and was very influential on the republic America is today. Therefore, the phrase “under God” may suggest a certain religion, but its sole purpose is to recognize God’s initial involvement in the making of