@gnu2 Huh. Well, I'm not Christian, so I'm not going to tell them how to interpret their texts. For myself, though, this article's interpretation is way more literal and less nuanced than I could ever accept.
Personally I avoid the pledge because I find a lot of people in US culture use it to bully others--often in the name of nationalistic Christianity--and I find nonparticipation easier to navigate than arguing with them (and no less productive).