The Pledge did not contain the "under God" phrase until Congress added it to the "official" version in 1954. If the author (a Baptist minister) of the pledge wanted to mention God in it, he would have done so. The Pledge is not a prayer, and was not intended to be a prayer. If anybody wants to honor God, there are many prayers available for that purpose. As for public schools, there will always be prayer in schools as long as there are tests. This just shows how badly things get messed up when Congress starts fooling around with them. more information