Government Business Shouldn’t Require a Public Display of Patriotism

As someone whose Quaker roots run many centuries deep in this part of Virginia, I have long been mindful of the denomination’s prohibition on the swearing (or pledging) of oaths. In Matthew 5:34, Jesus himself tells us, “do not swear an oath at all.” Even if that were not the case, I have always considered the pledging of unconditional allegiance to anyone or anything to be a fool’s game. Yet, as a society, we pressure our children and our peers to stand and recite just such an oath at school (before many can even fully grasp the meaning of the words), at sporting events, at civic events, and, ironically, even in some churches.

I was happily surprised to read “When Civic Rituals Fade, What Fills the Space?” (Feb. 19, 2026), reporting that the Winchester Planning Commission has ended the practice of reciting the Pledge before meetings. I would welcome the same change in Warren County, though I will not hold my breath. The author argues that the Pledge strengthens the community. I would argue that official public meetings are not the place for mandatory displays of civic unity. Save the Pledge for private clubs, organizations, or events, the military, or even the church if you choose, and spare the rest of us from having to conspicuously opt out of a rote performance of public patriotism. Or not. Sitting through the Pledge is far from the most uncomfortable or inconvenient thing I have had to do in my life in order to keep my actions and values in alignment.

Before the objections begin, consider the history of the Pledge of Allegiance. Written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a democratic socialist minister from New York, it was ostensibly in celebration of Columbus Day. But dig a little deeper, and what emerges is a cleverly concocted cure for what Northerners considered an annoying lack of post-war Southern enthusiasm for the Federal Union. Since adult minds were considered a lost cause (pun intended), Bellamy’s verse was aimed at schoolchildren, with particularly high hopes that it might influence regions where loyalty to the Union remained contested. After he went on to a career as an advertising copywriter, Bellamy was asked in 1923 what he considered his most successful piece of writing. He replied that it was his “little formula,” which “has been pounding away on the impressionable minds of children for a generation.”

Hasn’t it, though, and for quite a few more generations now! And yet this is still America, nominally “land of the free,” so whether Warren County follows Winchester’s example or not, I will continue to exercise my personal and religious right to decline to participate. I will leave it to others to stand, hands over hearts, unaware of or indifferent to Biblical admonition, reciting a verse specifically crafted to capture the minds and hearts of children.

Laura Kelly
Front Royal, VA

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