To the editor:

On March 25, in this paper, Mr. Turner drew attention to the affirmation printed on our sheriff’s vehicles.

“In God we trust,” is a reiteration of a phrase found in the Declaration of Independence. The signers supported the Declaration by pledging to each other: “Our lives, our fortunes, and our honor.” That pledge was made “With a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence: “In other words: “In God we trust.”

The Declaration of Independence is the reason we recognize July 4, 1776, as the date of our nation’s founding. It remains as a statement of America’s natural law ideals.. The Constitution was instituted 13 years later to move us closer to those ideals.

The phrase “In God we trust,” affirms the words of our nation’s founding document. To ban the language of it is to deny our roots. The United States’ 243 years of existence proves that our Founding Fathers gave us Incredible roots: a foundation worth preserving.

Jill Finkenbine

Maplewood