Linfield University DigitalCommons@Linfield Senior Theses Student Scholarship & Creative Works 5-23-2016 "The Family" & Faith: The Theology of Power Erika Phillipo Linfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/relsstud_theses Part of the American Politics Commons, Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, Christianity Commons, and the New Religious Movements Commons Recommended Citation Phillipo, Erika, ""The Family" & Faith: The Theology of Power" (2016). Senior Theses. 3. https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/relsstud_theses/3 This Thesis (Open Access) is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield, with permission from the rights-holder(s). Your use of this Thesis (Open Access) must comply with the Terms of Use for material posted in DigitalCommons@Linfield, or with other stated terms (such as a Creative Commons license) indicated in the record and/or on the work itself. For more information, or if you have questions about permitted uses, please contact
[email protected]. “THE FAMILY” & FAITH: THE THEOLOGY OF POWER Erika Phillipo Linfield College: Religious Studies May 23, 2016 Signature redacted Signature redacted 2 “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all”1; one nation, under God. This is not the original version of the Pledge of Allegiance. However, it is now the version in which elementary schools across America recite and teach. Why would a country, which holds freedom as its greatest priority, limit citizens from all religious backgrounds into saying they pledge their allegiance under God; under one God? How did we, as a nation, begin identifying a God to “be under”? Often in the media we see, hear, and read about other countries, which do not claim separation of church and state, struggling between politics and religious groups.