By TERENCE CHEA (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court upheld the use of the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance and “In God We Trust” on U.S. currency, rejecting arguments Thursday that the phrases violate the separation of church and state.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel rejected two legal challenges by Sacramento atheist Michael Newdow, who said the references to God are unconstitutional and infringe on his religious beliefs.

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MEMORIAL FOR A GREAT AMERICAN PREACHER

By Rev. Rob Schenck

Rev. Dr. George Docherty (left) and President Eisenhower (second from left) on the morning of February 7, 1954 at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church; the morning that Eisenhower was persuaded by Docherty that the Pledge of Allegiance must be amended to include the words, "under God."

The Reverend Dr. George Docherty, who died this past Thanksgiving Day at 97, was anything but a simple preacher. He was, by all accounts, a great pulpiteer, but his life and legacy are far more complex. Dr. Docherty is credited with delivering a sermon that became the tipping point in a national movement to publicly acknowledge God as sovereign over the United States. It was the early 1950’s and America was in a stand-off with an increasingly belligerent Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, or, “USSR.” The “Soviet Union,” as it was in shorthand, was not only of a diametrically opposite political philosophy, but was also hostile to America’s religious sentiments. It was an officially atheistic state that had destroyed churches, murdered clergy and attempted to militantly spread its anti-deistic tyranny across the globe. At the time, it was also the world’s only nuclear super-power other than the United States.

So it was on February 7, 1954, when then President Dwight D. Eisenhower visited the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. George Docherty had been pastor there for four years, having succeeded a fellow Scot, the famous Peter Marshall, after his untimely death at the age of 46. The presidential visit came on “Lincoln Day,” when the congregation commemorated Abraham Lincoln’s association with the church during his White House years. There is a “Lincoln Room” in the building and a “Lincoln Pew” in the sanctuary. From the early twentieth Century until Richard Nixon, it was customary for presidents to attend services on Lincoln Day and sit in the 16th President’s seat.

Lincoln Day 1954 occurred as a national effort was underway advocating for the American people to distinguish themselves from their atheist counterparts in Soviet Russia. The Knights of Columbus had taken to reciting the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance and had launched an effective national petition drive aimed at persuading Congress to make it law. George Docherty had already preached a sermon on that theme two years earlier, but modified his material slightly for the revised version that he preached on the occasion of Eisenhower’s visit. “Under God” became one of the leading sermons in the history of the American pulpit after it deeply moved Eisenhower and several members of Congress who were also present that day. The White House mobilized its legislative team and the phrase “under God” was officially made part of the Pledge on Flag Day of that year. I’ve used Docherty’s sermon many times as an illustration of how powerful one preacher’s message can be in changing an entire nation. Since that sermon, every generation of Americans has been reminded of our fidelity to God as we salute our flag.

George Docherty’s story doesn’t end in 1954, however. As if the “Under God” victory wasn’t enough, Docherty went on to make more history. He was arrested twice in the 1960’s for his civil rights activism, and marched with Martin Luther King across the infamous Edmond Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. At the time, the leadership of Docherty’s congregation was opposed to his involvement with King and others. On one occasion, the church board denied Docherty’s request for King to preach at a Sunday morning service, instead relegating the “controversial minister” to an irregular afternoon slot. Docherty persisted, though, and became one of the leading white Protestant voices in the struggle for black equality.

Dr. Docherty would end his long pastoral career in 1976 as a vocal opponent of war. A pacifist since the 1940’s, he had loaned his eloquence and considerable skills to the anti-war movement during the days of the Vietnam conflict. He once took Richard Nixon to task about America’s war policies while greeting the President in the receiving line following a Sunday service.

Whether you agree with all his principles or not, we believe George Docherty exemplified the two cardinal tenets reflected in the Great Commandments of Matthew 22: 36-40, Love God and Love Neighbor. By doing so, Docherty in part embodied the mission of Faith and Action and its sister organization, the National Clergy Council. Inspired by his example, the two organizations will inaugurate a new, annual award for preachers. Honorees will be selected by a panel of their peers based on the impact of an original sermon on the life of the nation. I’ve proposed the award be named “The Docherty Prize for Preaching,” but that awaits approval by the Docherty family. For now, we will call it, “The National Prize for Preaching.” The first award will be conferred here in Washington sometime in the fall of 2009.

If you know of a sermon delivered by a living preacher that has had a major impact on our nation for the good, please forward that information to me at info@faithandaction.org. I can’t guarantee your nominee will make the cut, but we’ll all be better off for knowing about it.

I’ll keep you posted. God bless all the great preachers in this country and around the world. May the Lord use them as mightily as He did George Docherty.

Faith and Action president Rob Schenck will attend the December 2 funeral for the Reverend Dr. George M. Docherty, the minister famous for having preached the sermon that gave our Pledge of Allegiance the phrase “Under God.” Dr. Docherty, who died on Thanksgiving Day, delivered his “Under God” message at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC, on February 7, 1954. In the congregation that day was President Dwight Eisenhower and several members of Congress. At that time a petition drive to include a reference to God in the Pledge was already being aggressively promoted by the Catholic fraternal organization Knights of Columbus. After hearing Docherty’s stirring sermon delivered in the Scot’s native brogue, Eisenhower collaborated with the congressional members to get the legislation passed. He signed it into law just four months later on Flag Day, June 14, 1954.

Rob Schenck researched the story behind the insertion of the “under God” phrase because of a lawsuit making its way for a second time through the federal courts. Faith and Action submitted a brief in that case supporting the current wording of the Pledge. Well-known atheist activist Michael Newdow originally sued to have the phrase declared unconstitutional in 2005. The Supreme Court eventually dismissed the case on technicalities, but Newdow was successful in reinstating it. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco heard a reprise of the arguments in December 2007. Court watchers speculated the judges withheld their decision until after this year’s election to avoid affecting its outcome. The liberal court has yet to announce its finding. In any case, the outcome is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

“George Docherty was a brave man who demonstrated that one preacher can have an enormously positive effect on our country,” said Rev. Rob Schenck, who visited the 97-year old Dr. Docherty at his home in Alexandria, PA, last March.  “Even though 1954 was a very different time in our country, his proposal to add ‘under God’ to the Pledge was nonetheless controversial, but Dr. Docherty remained unintimidated and his preaching was obviously persuasive. He was a role model for all of who stand at the pulpit to declare the truth.”

Rev. Schenck is leading an effort in Washington to honor Dr. Docherty’s great contribution to American public life. He will unveil details on the plan following a memorial service for Docherty to be held at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in December.

Click here for more on the life and death of Dr. George M. Docherty.

ROB SCHENCK TO ATTEND “UNDER GOD” PREACHER’S FUNERAL

Faith and Action president Rob Schenck will attend the December 2 funeral for the Reverend Dr. George M. Docherty, the minister famous for having preached the sermon that gave our Pledge of Allegiance the phrase “Under God.” Dr. Docherty, who died on Thanksgiving Day, delivered his “Under God” message at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC, on February 7, 1954. In the congregation that day was President Dwight Eisenhower and several members of Congress. At that time a petition drive to include a reference to God in the Pledge was already being aggressively promoted by the Catholic fraternal organization Knights of Columbus. After hearing Docherty’s stirring sermon delivered in the Scot’s native brogue, Eisenhower collaborated with the congressional members to get the legislation passed. He signed it into law just four months later on Flag Day, June 14, 1954.

Rob Schenck researched the story behind the insertion of the “under God” phrase because of a lawsuit making its way for a second time through the federal courts. Faith and Action submitted a brief in that case supporting the current wording of the Pledge. Well-known atheist activist Michael Newdow originally sued to have the phrase declared unconstitutional in 2005. The Supreme Court eventually dismissed the case on technicalities, but Newdow was successful in reinstating it. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco heard a reprise of the arguments in December 2007. Court watchers speculated the judges withheld their decision until after this year’s election to avoid affecting its outcome. The liberal court has yet to announce its finding. In any case, the outcome is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

“George Docherty was a brave man who demonstrated that one preacher can have an enormously positive effect on our country,” said Rev. Rob Schenck, who visited the 97-year old Dr. Docherty at his home in Alexandria, PA, last March. “Even though 1954 was a very different time in our country, his proposal to add ‘under God’ to the Pledge was nonetheless controversial, but Dr. Docherty remained unintimidated and his preaching was obviously persuasive. He was a role model for all of who stand at the pulpit to declare the truth.”

Rev. Schenck is leading an effort in Washington to honor Dr. Docherty’s great contribution to American public life. He will unveil details on the plan following a memorial service for Docherty to be held at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in December.

More on the life and death of George Docherty can be found at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/29/AR2008112900912.html?nav=rss_metro/obituari