George MacPherson Docherty
Encyclopedia
Early life
Docherty was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1911. After graduation from Glasgow UniversityUniversity of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
and a three-year pastorate at Aberdeen's North Kirk, he set sail from Southampton to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1950.
Ministry
Docherty succeeded Peter MarshallPeter Marshall (preacher)
Dr. Peter Marshall was a Scottish-American preacher, former pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, and twice served as Chaplain of the United States Senate...
as the pastor of the historic New York Avenue Presbyterian Church
New York Avenue Presbyterian Church
The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church . The church was formed in 1859-60, but traces its roots to 1803 as the F Street Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church and another congregation founded in 1820 on its current site, the Second...
in Washington D.C., just a few blocks from the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
routinely attended church there while president. It was customary for later presidents to attend New York Avenue Presbyterian Church
New York Avenue Presbyterian Church
The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church . The church was formed in 1859-60, but traces its roots to 1803 as the F Street Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church and another congregation founded in 1820 on its current site, the Second...
on "Lincoln Sunday," the Sunday nearest Lincoln’s birthday, and sit in the pew that had been rented by Lincoln.
When President Dwight Eisenhower attended on Lincoln Sunday, February 7, 1954, Docherty preached a sermon calling for the addition of "under God" to the Pledge. As a result of his sermon, the next day President Eisenhower and his friends in Congress began to set the wheels in motion to amend the Pledge of Allegiance to include the phrase. On February 8, 1954, Representative Charles Oakman (R-Mich), introduced a bill to that effect.
Senator Homer Ferguson, in his report to the Congress, March 10, 1954, said that "the introduction of this joint resolution was suggested to me by a sermon given recently by the Rev. George M. Docherty, of Washington, D.C., who is pastor of the church at which Lincoln worshipped." This time Congress concurred with the Oakman-Ferguson resolution, and Eisenhower opted to sign the bill into law appropriately on Flag Day (June 14, 1954). The fact that Eisenhower clearly had Docherty’s rationale in mind as he initiated and consummated this measure is apparent in a letter he wrote in August, 1954. Docherty’s sermon was published by Harper & Bros. in New York in 1958 and President Eisenhower took the opportunity to write to Dr. Docherty with gratitude for the opportunity to once again read the fateful sermon.
Docherty continued at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church for 26 years. During that time he became active with Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
in the civil rights movement. He developed relationships with later Presidents, as well as noted theologians such as Karl Barth
Karl Barth
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...
and Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
. For 22 years, Docherty had a television program in Washington, D.C. A book of his sermons entitled, One Way of Living, was published by Harper in 1958, and his biography, I’ve Seen the Day, was published by Eerdmans in 1984. His sermon collection is now in the stewardship of the Robert E. Speer Library at Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
. A collection of original recordings of his early sermons are now in the care of the Harvard Divinity Library in Cambridge.
Retirement and death
After retiring from New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in 1976, Docherty and his family moved back to Scotland. In 1979, he was asked to join the faculty of Juniata CollegeJuniata College
Juniata College is a private liberal arts college located in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. It is named after the Juniata River — one of the principal tributaries of the Susquehanna River. In 1876 it became the first college founded by the Church of the Brethren and has been co-educational since...
in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania for a year. Several years later he would return again to Alexandria, Pennsylvania
Alexandria, Pennsylvania
Alexandria is a borough in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 401 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
, near Huntingdon
Huntingdon, Pennsylvania
Huntingdon is a borough in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Huntingdon County. It is located along the Juniata River, west of Harrisburg, about halfway between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, in an agricultural and fruit-growing region, with valuable forests and deposits of...
. Docherty died at his home in Alexandria on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 2008.
External links
- "How 'Under God' Got in There," WASHINGTON POST
- Associated Press: "50 Years Ago, Sermon Spurred Putting 'Under God' in Pledge"
- "How the Pledge Got God," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
- How a Scotsman Rewrote America's Pledge
- Docherty's Sermon Manuscript, February 7, 1954
- Minister Reprises "Under God" Sermon
- Docherty a candidate for Medal of Freedom
- Centre Daily Obituary in the Centre Daily TimesCentre Daily TimesThe Centre Daily Times is a daily newspaper located in State College, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is the hometown newspaper for the Pennsylvania State University, one of the most well-known and largest universities in the country with more than 40,000 students attending the main...