Yesterday I suggested that Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, has the right to participate in and even promote a religious rally as long as state resources aren’t involved. Even though nobody has challenged me on this (yet), I do want to clarify how the National Day of Prayer, Motto, and Pledge of Allegiance are different.

**Update – Perry has used his elected office to issue official proclamations and press releases to promote this explicitly “Christian prayer meeting.” There is nothing different between this and the other cases.**

I think elected officials are worthy of the same freedoms that everybody else is entitled to. However, they need to keep it to speech and unofficial statements. Elected officials and governments, when it comes to official proclamations, statues, and the use of resources, are limited and restricted by the First Amendment prohibition on the establishment of religion and have a duty to be inclusive of all their citizens.

The National Day of Prayer is a statutory establishment of a religious practice and requires an official proclamation calling on all citizens to pray. This is something that excludes non-believers and crosses the establishment line.

The National Motto, “In God We Trust,” is a statutory establishment of a certain religious belief, namely the belief in a personal god. It also utilizes public resources in the printing and engraving of a theological statement on our money. This is also exclusionary of non-believers.

The Pledge of Allegiance with it’s “one nation under God,” excludes non-believers as part of that “one nation.” It’s also a statutory endorsement of a religious doctrine and forced on children throughout most of our nations schools. Sure kids can pass on it, but peer pressure is a strong force on a young child.

Statutory establishments of religion are unconstitutional, unofficial invitations, as stupid as they may be are protected by free speech and free exercise.