"...So Help Me God."

As well thought out and planned as George Washington s first inauguration appeared to be, no one thought to bring a Bible. It was Washington who felt a Bible should be used upon which to swear his oath, so one was quickly found in a nearby Masonic lodge. And like much of what Washington did during his lifetime, taking the oath of office on the Bible became American tradition at presidential inaugurations. And When he volunteered ...so help me God. at the oath s conclusion, a tradition was twice born, and an idiom added to the American lexicon. Michael Costanzo s forthcoming book So Help Me God, tells the stories of the Bibles that made it to the inauguration offering insight into a time in America not remembered so readily today, as it brings the reader into the mechanics of presidential inaugurations past and present. It also provides an in-depth view of inauguration ceremonies from George Washington to Barack Obama, as well as individual Bible histories. Provided too are scenarios of Bibles usage by other political bodies such as The Republic of Texas, The Republic of Hawaii and The Confederate States of America. Also reflected is a view of changing American cultural attitudes as inaugurations, once the simple affairs of a newly born country, are now the momentous productions of a powerful nation.