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Message:: [QUOTE="Conder101, post: 1261353, member: 66"]The motto came about because of the Civil War.  Typically during times of war religious fervor tend to rise with increasing calls for prayer, requests for divine interventions and declarations along the lines of "God is on OUR side!".  One of the results of this was this letter of Nov 13, 1861 from the Rev M R Watkinson of Ridleyville PA to Secretary Salmon P Chase. "One fact touching our currency has hitherto been seriously overlooked.  I mean the recognition of the Almighty God in some form on our coins. You are probably a Christian.  What if our Republic were now shattered beyond reconstruction?  Would not the antiquaries of succeeding centuries rightly reason from our past that we were a heathen nation?  What I propose is that instead of the goddess of liberty we shall have next inside the 13 stars a ring inscribed with the words "perpetual union"; within this ring the all-seeing eye, crowned with a halo; beneath this eye the American flag, bearing in its field stars equal to the number of the states; in the folds of the bars the words God, liberty, law. This would make a beautiful coin, to which no possible citizen could object.  This would relieve us from the ignominy of heathenism.  this would place us openly under the Divine protection we have personally claimed.  From my heart I have felt our national shame in disowning God as not the least of our national disasters. To you I first address a subject that must be agitated." This letter appealed to Sec Chase and he followed it with one of his own to the Director of the Mint,  James Pollock on Nov 20, 1861. "Dear Sir, No nation can be strong except in the strenth of God, or safe except in His defense.  The trust of our people in God should be should be declared on our national coins. You will cause a device to be prepared without necessary delay with a motto expressing in the fewest and tersest words this national recognition." The Director was willing to prepare patterns showing possible mottos but it was pointed out that the inscriptions to appear on the coins were specified by law and that new legislation would be required for the inclusion of a new motto. Several possible mottos were proposed including "God, Liberty, Law", "Country Our God", and  "God our Trust". Secretary Chase approved the mottos but suggested some changes in a letter dated Dec 9, 1863. "I approve your mottos, only suggesting on the Washington obverse the motto should begin with the word 'Our' so as to read 'Our God and Our Country'.  And on that with the shield it should be changed so as to read 'In God We Trust'." The act of April 22, 1864 changed the composition of the one cent piece, and created a new two cent piece and required the motto "In God We Trust" to appear on it. The following year the Act of March 3, 1865 provided that the Director of the Mint may place the new motto, with the approval of the Sec of the Treasury, on all of the gold and silver coins of the United states that shall admit the inscription thereon.  This resulted in the motto being added to the quarter, half and dollar coins and the half eagle, eagle, and double eagle in 1866.  It was not placed on the half dime, dime, or quarter eagle because it was felt that they were too small to accommodate it.  Note that this did not require the motto, it allowed the director to add it at his discretion. When the coinage laws were re-codified  Feb 12, 1873 it provided that the Secretary may cause the motto to be inscribed on such coins as shall admit such a motto.  Once again the motto is permitted but not mandated. After the flap over Roosevelt's "Godless coins" in 1907 (The No Motto eagle and double eagles) Congress passed the Act of May 18, 1908 that made the motto manditory to appear on all coins upon which it had previously appeared.  The one and five cent coins were exempted from the requirement but the Secretary, or the Director (with the Secretary's approval) could place the motto on them at their option. Finally the Act of July 11, 1955 made the appearance of the motto mandatory upon all coins of the United States. That act of July 11th came about because of Matthew H Rothert of Camden Ark. (coincidentally the President of the ANA)  Supposedly the thought occurred to him during church that the coins in the collection plate expressed our faith in God, but that none of the paper money, which circulates much more widely outside the country, did not.  And that a message about the country's faith in God could be easily carried throughout the world if it was on our paper money.   He wrote to the Secretary of the Treasury, Senators, Representatives etc. The Act of July 11,1955  provided "At such time as new dies for the Printing of the currencyare adopted in connection with the current program of the Treasury Department to increase the capacity of the presses utilized by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the dies shall bear at such place or places as the Secretary may determine to be appropriate, the inscription 'In God We Trust', and thereafter this inscription shall appear on all United States currency and coins." The first US paper money to bear the motto was released in October 1957. Several times there have been some attempts to have the motto removed as a matter of the government endorsement of religion, and the courts have declared that the motto is secular and not religious.  But the history of it's creation and its expansion to other other coins, it's insistence of it's restoration, and its expansion to the paper currency are all clearly the result of religious involvement.  Even the recent misguided outcry against the "removal of God from our coins" on the President dollars all show the religious nature of the motto. That enough history for you?[/QUOTE]

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