"The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear an atheist activist’s appeal challenging the national motto “In God We Trust.”
Michael Newdow has charged that government references to God are an unconstitutional violation of the separation of church and state and infringe on his religious beliefs. He has filed numerous lawsuits on the subject. His latest suit concerned the national motto’s place on U.S. coins and currency, contending it makes him an unwilling bearer of a religious message.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of appeals said in an earlier ruling that the phrase is ceremonial and patriotic and “has nothing whatsoever to do with the establishment of religion,” the Associated Press reports."
EWTN
Beyond the obvious relief that I feel in this decision not to take up this case I'm left with a sense of confusion. If Newdow thinks the phrase "In God We Trust" infringes on his religious beliefs and that it violates the First Amendment how does his use of government power to inflict his religious beliefs on the rest of us differ in intent or effect?
This is the problem, well at least one of the problems, with atheists. While they rail against religion of all forms they never quite seem to realize that atheism is as much a religion as Catholicism, Buddhism or Islam. It takes just as much faith, if not more, to believe in nothing as it does to believe in God! One can make a logical argument for the existence of God based on reason alone. Obviously, complete belief is a matter of faith but at least reason can get you close. Arguing for the existence of nothing is just a bit trickier. Even if one were to accept the material arguments for the material world put forth by science those arguments still don't supply an answer for the existence or non-existence of a prime mover.
To say that God doesn't exist is an act of faith and as such atheists, following their own logic, should not be allowed to use government to further their religious agenda by using it to replace the established religious symbolism that is part of America's heritage.
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