Exegeting Ohio’s motto: A scriptural ruling
It looks like Ohio will have to celebrate its bicentennial in 2003 without its longtime motto “With God All Things Are Possible.” A federal court ruled in April that the motto is tantamount to a state endorsement of Christianity and so violates the First Amendment. The court noted that the motto “repeats, word-for-word, Jesus’ answer to his disciples’ questions about the ability to enter heaven and thereby achieve salvation,” and therefore offers a “uniquely Christian thought not shared by Jews and Muslims.”