“When
I
was a small boy in
Vincennes,
Indiana, I heard, I think, one of the most outstanding speeches I ever
heard in my life. I think it compares with the Sermon on the Mount,
Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, and Socrates’ Speech to the
Students.
We had
just finished
reciting the Pledge
of Allegiance, and he called us all together, and he says, “Uh, boys
and girls, I have been listening to you recite the Pledge of Allegiance
all semester, and it seems that it has become monotonous to you. Or,
could it be, you do not understand the meaning of each word? If I may,
I would like to recite the pledge, and give you a definition for each
word:
|
I
|
Me; an
individual; a
committee of
one.
|
Pledge
|
Dedicate
all of my worldly
goods to
give without self-pity.
|
Allegiance
|
My love
and my devotion.
|
To
the Flag
|
Our
standard. “Old Glory”;
a symbol of
courage. And wherever she waves, there is respect, because your loyalty
has given her a dignity that shouts “Freedom is everybody's job”.
|
of
the United
|
That
means that we have all
come
together.
|
States
|
Individual
communities that
have united
into forty-eight great states. Forty-eight individual communities with
pride and dignity and purpose. All divided by imaginary boundaries, yet
united to a common cause, and that’s love of country, of America.
|
And
to the Republic
|
A
Republic: a sovereign
state in which
power is invested into the representatives chosen by the people to
govern. And the government is the people; and it's from the people to
the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.
|
For
which it stands
|
|
One
Nation
|
Meaning
so blessed by God.
|
Indivisible
|
Incapable
of being divided.
|
With
Liberty
|
Which is
Freedom.The right
of power for
one to live his own life without fears, threats, or any sort of
retaliation.
|
And
Justice
|
The
principle and qualities
of dealing
fairly with others.
|
For
All
|
For All.
That means, boys
and girls,
it's as much your country as it is
mine.”
|
Now let me hear
you recite the
Pledge
of Allegiance:
I pledge
allegiance
to the Flag of the United States of America,
and to the Republic, for which it stands;
one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
The
following
words were spoken by the late Red Skelton on his television program as he related the story of his
teacher, Mr. Laswell,
who felt his students had come to think of the Pledge of Allegiance as
merely
something to recite in class each day.
|
