...Abstract As controversial as it is, official practice of religion in state funded institutions is illegal. According to the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States, the Free Establishment Clause says, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” As citizens of this great nation, we have the liberty to practice whatever religion we may choose, just as long as the church and the state are separate. There is no greater organization to complicate this issue than the public school system. Children are young and naive and can become impressed by anything that sounds credible. Giving those kids a reason to think one religion is superior to another on the government’s watch is unacceptable, and while I do believe it is important for everyone to have their own religious background, the public school system is not the place for that purpose. A school is the best place for kids the same age to gather and meet new friends. Students with the same hobbies, likes, and beliefs will generally hang out together. The community cannot expect every single person to go to the same religious institution, so it is possible students lead their own practice at school. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, FCA, “have been on campuses around the world since 1966, and student-athletes lead the campus ministry” (fca.org). I think it is wonderful students take charge in their own practices and that will not cease anytime...
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...Joshua Blunt Mrs. James English Class 26 April 2012 Prayer in Public Schools The United States was founded primarily as a Christian nation, it's very philosophy built upon Christian ideals, such as the equality of all men. Like all things, these ideals were corrupted to suit the convenience of men, but it was founded upon them nonetheless. Because of this foundation, at it's inception the United States schooling system greatly supported Christian religion. Over the years, the abuses have built up, unfortunately on the side of Christians using their position against nonbelievers. This has caused an unfortunate backlash, which has seen every instance of Christian symbolism or teaching eagerly repressed by the so-called forces of order. But, in their zeal, these self-proclaimed crusaders have gone too far – they've taken Christianity off of it's pedestal only to replace it with an idol more suitable to their tastes: Secular Humanism. Secular Humanism has been classified by U.S. Courts as a religion, and is supported by public schools. In the case Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia, the Supreme Court officially stated that Secular Humanism “qualifies” as a religion under the first amendment. Yet many overlook this classification by the highest legal body in the country. Most public schools not only teach Secular Humanism openly, but they embody it in the entire school system. Atheism reigns supreme, evolution taught as fact, Christianity viewed as a relic of...
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...The government funds all public school across the country, meaning their ownership over these schools must follow what America stands for based on what's said in the Constitution. In the First Amendment, the clause on Freedom of Religion states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” (The 1st Amendment). This secures that all students in school have the right to their own beliefs and practices. This becomes very controversial when multiple ides start to cross paths. Influence or persuasion in any form...
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...Religion in the Public Schools: Public Prayer or Private Action? The differences between private and government sponsored religious speech can be difficult, but necessary to determine when dealing with religion in the public school system. In Kountze Texas, a group of cheerleaders are suing the school district because a ban was placed on their usage of religious banners before the local public school’s football games. The cheerleaders created banners, like many high school cheerleaders do, but the message painted on their signs were statements such as, “And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us” The messages on the banners are religious speech and a violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution. Yes, the United States Constitution does allow for the freedom of religion, but it also separates Church and State. The cheerleaders painted these signs for a school organized football game; the educational institution is a public one and must abide by the United States Constitution and the separation of church and state. If the school were private, religious connotations would be permissible, but being that the school is public, the signs created by the cheerleaders would be considered government sanctioned. The Establishment Clause in the First Amendment states, “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” Throughout our nations history there has been much debate of what the framers of the Constitution meant by establishment...
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...Prayer in Public Schools Derrick DuHart Race, Religion, Culture Arkansas Baptist College Dr. Johnson, Instructor November 4, 2014 Tables of Contents I. Introduction Background/Statement of Problems pg. 3-4 Purpose of the Study pg. 5-12 Research Questions pg. 13 Significance of the Study pg. 14-19 II. Literature Review Methodology and Sampling Design Strategy pg. 20 Data Collection Procedures pg. 20 Data Analyzed pg. 21 Ethical Issues pg. 21 III. Results Conclusion pg. 21-22 References pg. 23 Appendix: I. Annotated Bibliography pg. 24-26 II. Survey Questions pg. 27 III. Results (Charted/Tables) pg. 28-31 Notes: I. Introduction Background/Statement of Problem Prayer in Public Schools The courts have ruled against prayer in school. Many agree with the decision; yet many disagree. Prayer should be allowed in public schools because it is already practiced. It prevents...
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...Freedom of Religion and Public Education The United States came to be because people fled their homes in search of one thing, religious freedom. It was the search for religious freedom that motivated people to leave their homes and cross thousands of miles on boats to come to America. This search for the right to practice religion freely is the reason that religious freedom is considered so important in the United States. And it is secured for its citizens through the first amendment, which reads “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...” (as cited by Killian, 1994). This part of the article calls for the separation of church and state as well as the protection of religious...
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...and State ... and School” Should religion be restricted from public schools? Even in 2014, religion in public schools continues to be an intense elusive issue. The right to freedom of religion is so central to democracy that it was embedded in the First Amendment of our U.S. Constitution. Our Founding Fathers wisely endorsed strict separation of church and state to ensure religious freedom for all faiths and individuals. The First Amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...” (U.S. Constitution – December 15, 1791). These two clauses promote free practice of religion by Americans without state interference. Compliance and adherence with the separation of church and state must be enforced in the nation's public schools, yet religion should not be completely restricted from the public school system. Not supporting religion is extremely important in the public school setting because of the specific vulnerability and sensitivity of students. Most children hold teachers and administration at a high level of expectation, viewing them as significant authority figures. Furthermore, children are highly gullible to coercion. Introducing religion in the public schools create these significant risk. In addition, American public schools are growing increasingly diverse. Schools must institute special consideration to the fact that many schoolchildren belong to minority religions or are raised in...
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...Freedom of Religion and Public Education The United States came about by people who fled their homes in search of one thing, religious freedom. It was the search for religious freedom that brought people from their homes to cross thousands of miles on boats. This search for the right to practice religion freely is the reason that religious freedom is considered so important in the United States, and is secured for its citizens through the first amendment which reads “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...” (as cited in Killian, 1994). This article calls for the separation of church and state as well as the protection of religious liberty. The importance of separation through the government not promoting or endorsing any form of religion, is often felt in the public school system. The reason that the separation is felt in the public education system is because public school is a government program so, it is not allowed to endorse any religion, however, the students who attend there must be allowed to retain their religious liberty. This conflict has brought about valid opinions and concerns for the different aspects of religion found in a school setting. These aspects include prayer in school being allowed in the school; the teaching of religion in...
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...Prayer in Public Schools Raymond Ballou PHI 200 Instructor: Michelle Loudermilk 3/31/12 America’s Decline: Banning Prayer in Public Schools A very controversial widespread issue today is the right to have volunteer prayer in public schools. This issue has been constantly debated for years whether prayer in public schools should be permitted. For more than 200 years, public schools were allowed voluntary prayer. Our forefathers built our nation on Christian values. The first English settlers came to America for the right to freedom and to worship God in their own way. In Colonial America, most schools were run by the churches. The first settlers in America felt that it was important that children learned to read so that they could read their Bibles. Prayer has been a part of our culture as long as there have been public schools; this helped the students develop morals and learn right from wrong. School prayer was a natural part of the settler’s school life. There is a casual relationship between taking prayer out of our schools and the downfall of our society today. The basic dispute over this issue is that it violates The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States and the separation of church and state. The First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States gives every individual the same rights. One right is the constitutional protection for the free exercise of religion. The second right is prohibition of the establishment of religion by the state...
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...Constitution. Whether they use their freedom of speech to protest abortion, freedom of press to attack gay rights, or freedom of religion to form a church, they all enjoy it without being threatened by their government. These rights are the basis of the American government. No one can take them away, and the American people are quick to support one who has these rights violated. While they are alright with after-school clubs meeting in public school buildings, when clubs with religious beliefs try to access one of these buildings they often want to deny them the right to use the building because of...
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...our schools today has almost died out completely. Prayer is a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to god or an object of worship. As it states in the First Amendment that it protects the right to freedom of expression from government interference. Although prayer in school may focus on religion, violate the first amendment, and separation of church and state, there are some good things and bad that come out of prayer in schools. Being that we are an unequal society and everyone has his or her own personal opinion on prayer in our schools; it still remains one of the most controversial issues today. Just like the different types of religion. The decision to take prayer out of public schools has become one of the most controversial issues throughout our society. The argument of whether prayer should or should not be allowed is so misunderstood. When determining whether or not prayer should be allowed in public schools, it is important to consider both the advantages and disadvantages. In our society, 90% of America’s children attend public schools. The children that attend public schools come from homes that use a fluctuation of religion or don’t practice religion at all. The good and bad of prayer in public schools are not a cut and dry issue. There are many outlets to this matter. The arguments of the people that want to banish prayer in the school system are not giving the children and possible their own children no chance at religion making...
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...Prayer In School Kevin Magilligan Grand Canyon Univ Prayer In Schools The United States was founded on freedom. One of those freedoms is the Freedom of Religion. Our forefathers knew that there had to be a separation of church and state. This allowed citizens of the US to practice any religion they may chose and the government would not interfere. A plethora of court cases have ruled that having prayer in school is unconstitutional. While having prayer in school that is not sponsored by the administration is constitutional. Groups such as Moms in Prayer are for having prayer in schools. While the American Civil Liberties Union are against having prayers in schools. "To secure the people's right to acknowledge God according to the dictates of conscience: Neither the United States nor any State shall establish any official religion, but the people's right to pray and to recognize their religious beliefs, heritage, and traditions on public property, including schools, shall not be infringed. The United States and the States shall not compose school prayers, not require any person to join in prayer or other religious activity." Congressman Ernest Istook (R-OK). Prayer in school is a debate that has been going on since the 1960’s with the landmark case of Engle V Vitale. The case found that a school wide solicited prayer recited by the students was unconstitutional. This ruling led to other litigation where school sponsored prayer was not allowed, such as during sporting...
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...Issues Module 2: Religious Issues Matt Landahl Grand Canyon University: EDA-555: Legal Issues In Education 08-15-2012 Module 2: Religious Issues The topic of religion has been a stagnant and emotional debate within the educational system since the beginning of public education as well as the first steps of the constitution. The Constitutional First Amendment states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech.” With this saying citizens feel it is their constitutional right to practice religion or prayer in any setting including public schools. Several issues that arise in the public schools are; saying God in the Pledge of Allegiance, vaccinations of students, and student led religious activities in the public school setting. These issues have led to many debates and court cases. Religion will be an ongoing controversy in public schools since there are different interpretations of the Constitutional Amendments. It is imperative for an administrator of the school to know and understand the laws, to stay neutral, and to seek legal advice when dealing with separation of church and state One of the most controversial issues in the United States and public schools is the use of the word God in the Pledge of Allegiance. This debate dates as far back at 1892 when Francis Bellamy wrote the pledge without the words “under god” (Russo, 2004). However...
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...instilling "traditional values" in our children. One of the reforms that they called for was the legalization of a daily prayer in our public school system. They claimed that this would be a key first step in reinstituting the essential family values in our children. They called for a change in our laws which have forbidden prayer in schools. These laws have been upheld because courts have asserted that they violate the separation of church and state that is assured in our Constitution. Following this call for a new religious crusade many articles and editorials appeared calling for new legislation which would allow prayer in public schools. Polls were released which indicated that a large percentage of Americans favored new legislation on this subject, and more than one half of those surveyed claimed that they would be more likely to vote for a candidate in a national election who supported prayer in public schools. One has to question the intensity of this support because Bill Clinton (not a supporter of bringing religion into public schools) defeated George Bush (a supporter of school prayer) in the 1992 presidential election. Those who voiced their support for school prayer felt that it would strengthen the moral values of young children as they went through school. Those who want a change in the system claim that prayer in schools will instill family values that have...
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...Intelligent Design is religion disguised as science, and as such, should not be taught in our public schools. Introduction The town of Dover, PA looks like any other small towns in central Pennsylvania, but in October 2004 when the local school board proposed a slight alteration to the high school biology curriculum a fault line erupted between those who think of intelligent design as science and something that should be taught alongside evolution, and those who think of it as religion disguised as science. As a science teacher myself, I was very interested in this subject, and how school districts nationwide are pushing initiatives recently to put intelligent design in their biology classes. These school districts are struggling with the dilemma of whether or not to teach creationism as an alternative view to evolution theory. If, as many scientific creationists believe, God's message is important in defining the content, aims, and conditions of educational practice, then creationism does belong in the classroom. However, those who propose that creationism is not science, and that "creation science" is a misnomer, are opposed to the intervention of religion into the public educational program; after all, public educational programs should be separate from concerns of the church. The Scientific...
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