I didn't know!

[Felonious Monk]

How well known is "The American's Creed"?

I was at the home of some friends last night, who also happen to home-school their kids. Their oldest is 8, and was proud to show us that she was able to say the Pledge of Allegiance from memory, but then promptly launched into what I later found out was "The American's Creed".
Text is below, and I must admit total ignorance of its existence until last night.

"I believe in the United States of America as a Government of the People, by the People, for the People; whose just powers are derived from the consent of the governed; A democracy in a republic, a sovereign Nation of many Sovereign States; a perfect Union, one and inseparable; established upon those principles of Freedom, Equality, Justice, and Humanity for which American Patriots sacrificed their Lives and Fortunes.

I therefore believe it is my duty to my country to Love it; to Support its Constitution; to obey its laws; to Respect its Flag; and to defend it against all enemies."

Wow!
Am I living like an ostrich, or has that not been very well-known among the rest of you, as well?

 

[3 gun]

You're not the only one. I've never heard or have seen that before.

 

[Airwolf]

http://www.usflag.org/american.creed.html

Historical Notes: The American's Creed was a result of a nationwide contest for writing a National Creed, which would be a brief summary of the American political faith founded upon things fundamental in American history and tradition. The contest was the idea of Henry Sterling Chapin, Commissioner of Education of New York State. Over three thousand entries were received, and William Tyler Page was declared to be the winner. James H. Preston, the mayor of Baltimore, presented an award to Page in the House of Representatives Office Building on April 3, 1918. The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the commissioner of education of the state of New York accepted the Creed for the United States, and the proceedings relating to the award were printed in the Congressional Record of April 13, 1918. It was a time when patriotic sentiments were very much in vogue. The United States had been a participant in World War I only a little over a year at the time the Creed was adopted.

The author of the American's Creed, William Tyler Page, was a descendant of John Page, who had come to America in1650 and had settled in Williamsburg, Virginia. Another ancestor, Carter Braxton , had signed the Declaration of Independence. Still another ancestor, John Tyler, was the tenth president of the United States. William Tyler Page had come to Washington at the age of thirteen to serve as a Capitol Page. Later he became an employee of the Capitol building and served in that capacity for almost sixty-one years. In 1919 he was elected clerk of the House. Thirteen years later, when the Democrats again became a majority party, they created for Page the office of minority clerk of the House of Representatives. He held this position for the remainder of his life.

Referring to the Creed, Page said: "It is the summary of the fundamental principles of the American political faith as set forth in its greatest documents, its worthiest traditions, and its greatest leaders." His wording of the Creed used passages and phrases from the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, and Daniel Webster's reply to Robert Y. Hayne in the Senate in 1830.

 

[ahenry]

I find these two phrases to be somewhat conflicting:

a sovereign Nation of many Sovereign States

and

a perfect Union, one and inseparable

Still, I like this creed. I’ll admit it I didn’t know about it though.

 

[Standing Wolf]

I'd never encountered it.

 

[AZTOY]

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

 

[ahenry]

I never attended public school, and I consider my education to be quite exemplary. I didn’t know about this, did you?

 

[AZTOY]

Ahenry

I went to public schools . I thought that was the reason i did not know about this.
I guess alot of school teachers must not find this important.

 

[ahenry]

Gotcha.

I didn’t know whether you went to public schools or not, nor whether or not you knew about this creed. I was trying to say though, that even people that didn’t go to public schools and people that got what I consider to be an above average education (especially in the realm of gov’t) didn’t know about it. I used myself as an example, but I wager very few people on this board actually know about this. And that would include public, private, and other, educations. I wonder why that is?