American Christians don’t have to abandon their religious heritage just because atheists are repulsed by it. That’s the gist of a federal appeals court ruling handed down Wednesday.
In April 2013, a group of New York atheists filed suit challenging the national motto inscribed on U.S. currency, saying they were offended by the phrase “In God We Trust” – and for that reason, they argued it violates the separation of church and state and their free exercise rights. On Wednesday the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower-court decision that the statutes at issue don’t violate the Establishment Clause or the Free Exercise Clause.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorney Rory Gray tells OneNewsNow those who filed the suit didn’t really have a case.

“We think that the emotional outrage has become a bit too much – and I think the court agreed,” he says. “This case was actually dismissed at a very early stage on the complaint basically. The district court threw it out and it went up to the Second Circuit and they issued an opinion that said that the national motto is a reflection of our religious heritage and it’s constitutional ….”

He notes that at one point in American history, atheists had some wins because there was no one to represent the people.

“We filed an amicus brief in this case to tell the court … that the national motto is an important reflection of our religious heritage and our free exercise right in this country and that there’s no constitutional concern,” says Gray. “And we’ll be there next time if this happens again.”

The ADF attorney adds that Americans “are not forced to abandon their religious heritage simply to appease someone’s animosity toward anything that references God.”

The case is Newdow v. United States of America.

– See more at: http://www.onenewsnow.com/legal-courts/2014/05/28/natl-motto-on-money-ok-says-court#.U4jvbfldVlx