Separation of Church & State: School Prayer

[Nyan_Derek]

I'm currently writing a paper in my Communications Class. It's over religious prayer in schools, and if it should be allowed or not. Kind of a broad topic, but what's your opinion?

[Camera Stellata]

I went to a state comprehensive school and we had an assembly every morning, the teacher would lead a recital of the lords prayer, that kind of thing. Sometimes one of the Deputy Heads would read parables and discuss them / sermonise for a bit. I think its might actually be a legal requirement in England and Wales that state schools perform some sort of Christian ceremony for the pupils every day. I can't remember much of it to be honest, I used to to take naps in assembly.

Before that we used to sing hymns in primary school and do a nativity scene at Christmas.

Anglicanism isn't the most "in your face" form of Chistianity and I didnt leave school feeling particularly religious. I remember the muslim students seeming to be fairly non plussed about it either, they just sat there silently.

If necessary, I think I would be inclined to vote to keep Christian teaching in schools; even if just for its cultural value as a tradition. Much the same reason I would keep Christmas decorations in public buildings and town centres.

[Raxa]

Camera Stellata

I went to a state comprehensive school and we had an assembly every morning, the teacher would lead a recital of the lords prayer, that kind of thing. Sometimes one of the Deputy Heads would read parables and discuss them / sermonise for a bit. I think its might actually be a legal requirement in England and Wales that state schools perform some sort of Christian ceremony for the pupils every day. I can't remember much of it to be honest, I used to to take naps in assembly.

Before that we used to sing hymns in primary school and do a nativity scene at Christmas.

Anglicanism isn't the most "in your face" form of Chistianity and I didnt leave school feeling particularly religious. I remember the muslim students seeming to be fairly non plussed about it either, they just sat there silently.

If necessary, I think I would be inclined to vote to keep Christian teaching in schools; even if just for its cultural value as a tradition. Much the same reason I would keep Christmas decorations in public buildings and town centres.

That's the UK though, you have a state religion, and a long history of it. If you want the breakdown, England has their Church of England, and Scotland has their Presbyterian Church, both state sponsored religions.

In the United States, we were established as a secular state for a reason. The founders of our nation had the foresight to realize that their religion might not be the dominant religion in the long run, and by separating church from state they were in effect preventing their beliefs from being repressed by other religions in the future.

Separation of Church and State protects all religion's religious freedoms. If you start letting religion in, who is to say yours will be the one in control? The protestant Americans would be really pleased if they had a Catholic Federal Government I'm sure /sarcasm . I'm sure the Jewish in the US would love to have to hear about Jesus in school.

Point is, keep religion out to protect them. Secular states are able to maintain diverse religious ecosystems because government doesn't have a state imposed religion.

School Prayer should be illegal here in the US. Schools should strive to accommodate all religious practices by allowing for designated areas to go and do daily religious tasks in private. However, Teachers, Administrators, Medical Staff, and other state/federal workers should not be encouraging specific religions, prohibiting others, nor using their classroom or school as a pulpit. They need to remain secular, and their contracts probably even state this. If they violate it, we should be throwing them out of the system.

[eternal carnage]

You could site articles on where I'm from.
All you have to do is search "Lenoir City Prayer at School" and you'll have quite a long list of articles to read.
The majority of my city is made up of Christians, or at least people raised that way.
A girl at Lenoir City High School wrote an article about how the school breaks the first amendment by holding prayer at school board meetings, teachers wearing religious t-shirts, and prayer at school sports games and graduation. She also talks about how these make her uncomfortable since she is an atheist.
Her article was denied by the school board, and was not published.
Then a newspaper interviewed her, did an article on her, and published her original article.
The school board announced that they will have no more prayer at school board meetings, games, and graduation. The teacher that was mainly wearing the t-shirts and coaxing students to go to FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) meetings was quietly dismissed.
The Freedom from Religion Foundation sued because of the word "religion" on Lenoir City Police badges on their uniforms.
An elementary or middle school in another county took down the 10 Commandments that were hanging in the school.
A huge prayer rally was held on the lawn of the Loudon County courthouse in "peaceful protest" of (I'm assuming) all the changes.
All these Bible belt southerners want "their grandbabies to be able to pray in school", and don't understand that it's not the peoples' rights that the government is squashing.
The government can't have any religious affiliation because then everyone's rights (except for the religion that the government favors) would be squashed.
People came to the United States because they couldn't practice their religions freely.
No matter what anyone says, our government was most definitely built on the idea of the government staying out of religion. So they should.
Even down to the little public schools in a little Tennessee town.

[Heimdalr]

No, I don't think prayer is appropriate in schools. I didn't really notice when I was a kid but from what I have heard from my nieces, it is quite elaborate. They did not know Jesus was the same as the Isa they were familiar with from their heritage. They were taught humanity started with Adam and Eve, not the Ardipithecus and its derivatives. It's a genuine problem and I suppose it is just as much the fault of simplification as it is of conscious propaganda.

[Chibi Halo]

I've been to both private Catholic schools and public tax payer funded schools so I've seen both sides of it. Only if the school is privately funded by paid tuition and connected to a church or some order of nuns, brothers, monks, or rabbis should prayer be a part of the daily makeup of the school because a parent is specifically sending their child to that school in part for the religious side of it. They do not send their children to a public school or a private secular school for a daily religious education.

The people crying out that we need to become a nation of only Christian people who follow nothing but Jesus and that there's no room for the Jewish people, the Muslims, or any other non Evangelical Christian group in America so all the little children can pray every day without the fear of being looked down upon and be able to say Merry Christmas without being seen as some kind of leper need to have their heads examined and read their colonial history again. They honestly deny the fact that our nation was founded without a religion because they don't want to admit that Muslims, Hindus, Atheists, Agnostics, and Jewish people have the same rights in this country they do. They think America should be only for people who eat, breath, and live Christian fundamentalism and love Jesus more than their own lives.

[Nyan_Derek]

Chibi Halo

I've been to both private Catholic schools and public tax payer funded schools so I've seen both sides of it. Only if the school is privately funded by paid tuition and connected to a church or some order of nuns, brothers, monks, or rabbis should prayer be a part of the daily makeup of the school because a parent is specifically sending their child to that school in part for the religious side of it. They do not send their children to a public school or a private secular school for a daily religious education.

The people crying out that we need to become a nation of only Christian people who follow nothing but Jesus and that there's no room for the Jewish people, the Muslims, or any other non Evangelical Christian group in America so all the little children can pray every day without the fear of being looked down upon and be able to say Merry Christmas without being seen as some kind of leper need to have their heads examined and read their colonial history again. They honestly deny the fact that our nation was founded without a religion because they don't want to admit that Muslims, Hindus, Atheists, Agnostics, and Jewish people have the same rights in this country they do. They think America should be only for people who eat, breath, and live Christian fundamentalism and love Jesus more than their own lives.

I agree completely. <3

[Majnooni]

Prayer should not be required in schools, and as a part of the government, public schools should not enforce a particular religion (obviously none of this applies to private schools).

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

[azulmagia]

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

[Majnooni]

azulmagia

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

Ahhh... don't get me started on the "war on religion" issue. But yes, I realize that kind of prayer is already allowed, as it should be.

[azulmagia]

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

Ahhh... don't get me started on the "war on religion" issue. But yes, I realize that kind of prayer is already allowed, as it should be.

The real question is why prayer should be held in school, given that learning is not supposed to happen in church.

[Amongst_many]

I think they should rotate the school's religion each month so everyone can see why it should be kept out

[Majnooni]

azulmagia

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

Ahhh... don't get me started on the "war on religion" issue. But yes, I realize that kind of prayer is already allowed, as it should be.

The real question is why prayer should be held in school, given that learning is not supposed to happen in church.

Is learning not supposed to happen in church? Anyway, ideally prayer is just a normal part of a Christian or other religious person's lifestyle, right? So, it's natural that they would do it in school, in church, at home, in the grocery store, in the car, etc. It just doesn't make sense to make other people do it with them, unless those people are in agreement and choose to participate.

[azulmagia]

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

Ahhh... don't get me started on the "war on religion" issue. But yes, I realize that kind of prayer is already allowed, as it should be.

The real question is why prayer should be held in school, given that learning is not supposed to happen in church.

Is learning not supposed to happen in church?

Well, yeah, because if it did happen, how many people would stay in church?

[Majnooni]

azulmagia

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

azulmagia

Majnooni

However, prayer should certainly be allowed in schools as the choice of individuals expressing their freedom to practice their religion, so long as it does not disrupt the educational process (e.g. one shouldn't be allowed to randomly pray out loud in the middle of class).

That sort of prayer is allowed, but you'll never hear the right-wing admit it, since it kind of undermines the idea that there is a "war on religion" going on.

Ahhh... don't get me started on the "war on religion" issue. But yes, I realize that kind of prayer is already allowed, as it should be.

The real question is why prayer should be held in school, given that learning is not supposed to happen in church.

Is learning not supposed to happen in church?

Well, yeah, because if it did happen, how many people would stay in church?

Meaning that informed people would lose interest in church, or that people just don't like learning?