"With God, all things are possible" is the state motto of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

. It is derived from the Gospel of Matthew

Gospel of Matthew

The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...

, Chapter 19, Verse 26.

The following brief history of this motto is taken from conservative author Robert Struble

Robert Struble, Jr.

Robert Clayton Struble, Jr. is an author, retired schoolteacher, and historian.-Teaching:Struble is a retired history/social studies teacher. During 17 years over the period 1981-2007, Struble taught in the public and private schools of Washington State...

's Treatise on Twelve Lights:

About the same time America was entering the space age, a nine year old Cincinnati boy, Jimmy Mastronardo, traveled to his State capitol at Columbus

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...

, registered as a lobbyist, and campaigned over the next three years for a new State motto. The boy's dream became political reality. It was enacted by both houses of the Ohio legislature, and in July 1959 was signed into law by then Governor Michael Vincent DiSalle

Michael DiSalle

Michael Vincent DiSalle was a Democratic politician from Ohio. He served as the Mayor of Toledo, Ohio and the 60th Governor of Ohio.-Early life and career:...

.

Previously, in 1866, a Republican

Ohio Republican Party

The Ohio Republican Party is the Ohio state affiliate of the United States Republican Party. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio on February 13, 1854. Kevin DeWine has been chairman of the Ohio GOP since 2009...

 General Assembly

Ohio General Assembly

The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate...

 adopted the motto Imperium in Imperio (Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

: "An Empire Within an Empire" or "Sovereignty Within Sovereignty"); only a year later, a Democratic

Ohio Democratic Party

The Ohio Democratic Party is the Ohio affiliate to the United States Democratic Party. Former Ohio House Minority Leader Chris Redfern is the Ohio Democratic Party chairman. Redfern was elected to office in December 2005...

 Assembly repealed it. Until the current motto was adopted in 1959, Ohio remained without a state motto.

See also

• 1876 lithograph depicting, among others, the 1866 Ohio seal, bearing Imperium in Imperio (third column from left, third seal from top)