For now, America remains one nation under God

On Monday, 14 June 2004, the USA missed a historic chance to bring the Pledge of Allegiance in tune with the Constitution.

Exactly half a century back - on Flag Day, 14 June 1954 - the Congress under President Eisenhower, pressed by religious lobbies, decided on the height of the Cold War to distinguish the USA from the "godless communists" by inserting God into the Pledge of Allegiance. There had been no God in the original, written in 1892.

Fifty years later, on Monday 14 June 2004, the Supreme Court was expected to undo this decision and to bring the daily recitation of the pledge by thousands of American school kids in tune with the First Amendment, which bans public schools and other government institutions from "establishing" religion. But the Supreme Court chose an easy way out and rejected the case Elk Grove Unified School District vs. Newdow on technical grounds. The constitutional question remains yet to be decided.

In June 2002, the 9^th US Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled that the phrase under God was "an endorsement of God" and its recitation in public schools against the First Amendment. The atheist Michael A Newdow won the lawsuit filed on behalf of his then five-year-old daughter against the school authorities for subjecting her unconstitutionally to religious exercises. The ruling, welcomed by secularists, unleashed a storm of condemnation and religious fervor - particularly in the higher echleons of the government. With President Bush personally flying into a passion and the Congress pulling out all legal stops to get the judgement scrapped, it turned into a national drama. The pledge was no religious exercise, was the official position, but a ceremonial acknowledgement of the nation's Christian heritage etc. The government tried to move the full Appeals Court to reconsider the controversial decision of its panel, but the Court refused. The case went to the Supreme Court.

Caught in an uncomfortable situation, the eight judges under Chief Justice William H Rehnquist looked for an open back door and found it: The plaintiff had "no legal standing". A California court's custody order surfaced right in time to certify that Dr. Newdow did not have the final right to take decisions about his daughter's education. This right was with the child's unmarried mother. A note, obtained from the lady, claimed that she had no objections against her daughter reciting the pledge including the God phrase. This unexpected turn of events ended all embarrassment that the case could otherwise have created in the election year.

Nigeria: Broadcasting Commission bans "miracles" from TV

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) of Nigeria has banned the presentation of "miracles" and faith healing from all television programs. The TV stations have been warned to strictly respect the edict - or face fines, temporary suspension and even loss of license. NBC director general Dr. Silas Yisa initiated the sweeping drive in order to put a stop on the practices of Christian miracle pastors and tele-evangelists, who used to flood the channels with dramatic claims about the sensational success of their healing services. NBC has a mandate to protect the interests of Nigerians against such fraud, said Dr. Yisa.

The TV stations are suffering substantial financial losses after the miracle programs have vanished. They had reaped millions from churches and tele-evangelists. The broadcasting of a one-hour-program via satellite cost 10,000 US Dollar; some of the churches used to sponsor 20 hours per week. Now the gaps in the program are filled with non-commercial music and documentaries.

Many Nigerians feel relieved and happy about the change to "pollution free" TV programs. There is great resentment against the churches, which are widely seen as scrupulous business ventures. Some demand that they should be taxed.

The Christian churches are up in arms against the miracle ban. They have tried to move the Senate against it, which has started an official investigation of the matter, but did so far not take a position. The "Christ Embassy", one of the largest churches in Nigeria, is challenging the ban in court.

USA: Prayers instaed of antibiotics

Rhianna Rose Schmidt died on 19 August 2003. She was less than two days old. Infected with puerperal sepsis at birth, she could have been helped with antibiotics. But her parents DeWayne and Maleta Schmidt did not allow any medical treatment. They called instead the elders of the Church of the Firstborn from Morgantown, of which they are members, and asked them to pray for the baby. The 150 members of the church "trust in God to cure illnesses" and refuse any medical treatment.

Now a grand jury in Johnson County, Indiana, investigates the case to decide, whether the Schmidts will be charged for the baby's death. In similar cases, several parents have been convicted for child neglect, involuntary manslaughter or reckless homicide back in the 1980s. Events of child death caused by religious fanatism of the parents have not stopped since then. But they go often unreported or are taken lightly by police and judiciary. There are at least two more recent cases known involving the small community of the Church of the Firstborn in Morgantown.