April 22 marks the 158th Anniversary of the “In God We Trust” motto found on American coins, but that date will go unnoticed by most citizens.

The phrase has gone through a number of challenges since 1864, when congress first authorized its use, but the nation has not exactly experienced a surge when it comes to matters of faith in recent years.

There have been hopeful signs. After challenges from the left, a federal appeals court ruled in 2018 that “In God We Trust” on U.S. currency is constitutional, “citing its long-standing use and saying it was not coercive.” In a subsequent action, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected hearing an appeal of that ruling sought by the atheists who originated the case.

But in a poll conducted several years ago by The College Fix, an online survey and analytics company focused on college students, found that two-thirds of left-leaning college students say the “In God We Trust” motto should be removed from all U.S. currency.

“We live in a secular nation, not a theocracy. Best to remove,” stated one Clemson University student in the comments section of the survey.

Only 6 percent of students surveyed favored keeping the phrase on money.

“I don’t think it needs to be removed, but it should be a lowercase g - ‘god.’ I think that’s a much more open saying that fits with a freedom of religion, said one student from UMass Amherst.

Country music artist Lee Greenwood is familiar with challenges to his faith from those on the left. Last September, President Biden removed the singer/songwriter from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Greenwood was first appointed to the arts council by President George W. Bush in 2008, and was reappointed to six-year terms by both Presidents Barack Obama and Donald J. Trump. The singer said he was shocked at being dismissed from the council and the administration didn’t even have the courtesy to contact him by a phone call or letter … it was just an email.

“So much for uniting the country,” wrote one Twitter responder.

Greenwood is best known for his patriotic single, “God Bless the USA” which was released in 1984. That same year, the song was played at the Republican National Convention with then-President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy Reagan in attendance.

Since the song has become an anthem for Republicans and has been regularly played at Trump campaign rallies, the Biden action smacks of politics.

Greenwood defended his motive, however, explaining that the song is meant for all people, not just for a particular political party. He wrote it while riding in the back of his tour bus after the shooting down of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 over Russian territory in 1983.

Over the years, Greenwood’s anthem has been a rallying cry during various times of crisis in America. Norman Schwarzkopf is said to have played it to his staff the night before Operation Desert Storm which launched the Gulf War in 1991. The song was also used following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 and, most recently, in honoring the 13 soldiers who gave their lives during the chaotic evacuation of the Kabul airport in Afghanistan in 2021.

Perry O. Hooper Jr., a former state representative and Alabama Music Hall of Fame Board member, said it appears there is no room for a true American Patriot in Joe Biden’s world.

“From woke generals running the military to the National Endowment of the Arts, he wants to tear down the America we love,” Hooper said. “This is disgusting. Lee’s masterpiece ‘God Bless the USA’ has become a patriotic hymn behind only the national anthem and ‘God Bless America’ in importance to the soul of our great country.”

Greenwood once stated that when our forefathers put down roots in desolate places, the thing that allowed them to survive was that they had a faith to see them through the tough times. But, he cautioned, “if we get to a point where more people do not believe in God, we will have a hollow legal system - we will have something without heart.”

Forty-six years before Greenwood wrote his anthem to America, Irving Berlin was also inspired to write a peace song. It was the fall of 1938, and with Nazi fascism and war threatening Europe, the American composer recalled an unpublished version of a song that he had set aside in a trunk.

He took it out and shaped it into what was considered our second national anthem: “God Bless America.”

By Jim Zbick | tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.