[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 551 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 551

          Supporting the national motto of the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 13, 2000

  Mr. Shows (for himself, Mr. Coburn, Mr. McIntyre, Mr. Largent, Mr. 
Stenholm, Mr. Ryun of Kansas, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. DeMint, Mr. Hostettler, 
  Mr. Taylor of Mississippi, Mr. Pitts, Mr. Souder, and Mr. Lipinski) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                            on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
          Supporting the national motto of the United States.

Whereas the national motto of the United States is ``In God we trust'';
Whereas the national motto was adopted in 1956 and is codified in the laws of 
        the United States at section 302 of title 36, United States Code;
Whereas the national motto reflects the traditional sentiment that we are a 
        religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being;
Whereas the sentiment ``In God we trust'' is deeply interwoven into the fabric 
        of our civil polity;
Whereas the content of the motto is as old as the Republic itself and has always 
        been as integral a part of the first amendment as the very words of that 
        charter of religious liberty;
Whereas the Founding Fathers believed devotedly that there was a God and that 
        the unalienable rights of man were rooted in Him, a belief clearly 
        evidenced in their writings, from the Mayflower Compact to the 
        Constitution itself;
Whereas our national life reflects a religious people who earnestly pray that 
        the Supreme Lawgiver guide them in every measure which may be worthy of 
        His blessing;
Whereas the national motto serves the secular purpose of expressing confidence 
        in the future and encouraging the recognition of what is worthy of 
        appreciation in society;
Whereas the national motto appears on all coins and currency issued by the 
        United States Government; and
Whereas the words ``In God We Trust'' appear over the entrance to the Chamber of 
        the Senate and are prominently engraved in the wall above the Speaker's 
        dais in the Chamber of the House of Representatives: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) finds repugnant all misinterpretations and 
        misapplications of the Constitution that disregard those 
        references to God that are well within the American tradition 
        and outside constitutional proscription;
            (2) finds that acknowledgment of our need for the 
        superintending care of the Supreme Being does not intrude upon 
        the freedom of conscience;
            (3) rejects the notion that the laws and Constitution of 
        this Nation require the exclusion of God from matters of 
        government and public life;
            (4) supports and encourages the public display of the 
        national motto in all public buildings, public schools, and 
        other government institutions established or maintained at 
        taxpayer expense; and
            (5) affirms its support for the national motto.
                                 <all>