Should students be allowed to pray in school? Can students even pray in school? The answer is yes and yes. Though some people say public prayer would violate separation of church and state laws, the Constitution gives us the freedom of religion, and prayer in school has benefits like enhancing learning and enforcing morals. Students of all religions should be able to pray in public schools. Prayer is very important to all religions that practice it. They are after all talking to and/or worshipping their God, god, or gods by doing it. Many religions, like Christianity, will teach the importance of prayer. They also teach that you should pray as much as you can. Some religions have prayer being a very ceremonial, and frankly distracting thing, …show more content…
Some behaviorally, some academically. Allowing these students who have a religion to pray during school would help to solve these issues. It can focus students and increase morals, leading to better grades and behavior. It would also acknowledge America’s religious heritage. Almost all of the first Americans were religious, and came to America to escape religious persecution. Those people would want students to be able to pray in their schools. The opposing argument to prayer in schools is that it wouldn’t be separating church and state. They are worried that religion and government operations would be mixing, which is unConstitutional. This is a big issue, “Public school should be a place where a parent can send their student, no matter what religion or lack of religion they have.” (Americans United, 2017) The people who support this say that praying in school would break that. Actually, that isn’t even correct. The Constitution and Supreme Court ruling in 1962 have said that schools cannot preach about religion, but can teach it. It doesn’t say anywhere in it that students can’t pray in school. Former President Bill Clinton issued a memo to clear up some confusion, and he says that religious expression is a person’s right, no matter if they are in school or not. Nothing in the First Amendment says anything that people can’t pray in schools, in fact it is the opposite. It states that everyone has the freedom of
Allowing students to object to reciting the prayer did not make it constitutional. The court decided that the nondenominational aspect of the prayer did not make it Constitutional either. The law was in fact in violation of the 1st Amendment of the Constitution.
The issue of prayer in school cannot be dealt with in a manner that will please everyone. The main thing that needs to be stressed is that tolerance of other people and their beliefs is the only true way to ensure that everyone has freedom and equality in America. Until that day comes there will always be groups of people who cause disruption in our schools and take away from what the focus really should be: quality education and an understanding of others as well.
In 1962 the Supreme Court decided that public schools did not have the power to authorize school prayer. This decision made public school in the U.S. more atheistic than many European nations. For example, crosses still hang on the classroom walls in Poland, and the Ten Commandments are displayed in Hungary. There are prayers held at the beginning of legislative and judicial sessions and every President has mentioned a divine power in his inaugural speech. In keeping with a spirit of religious freedom as stated in the First Amendment, there is no reason why students should not be allowed to have a moment of silence during the school day when they can pray or do as they choose.
Praying in school was first addressed in the Supreme Court in 1962 in the Engle v. Vitale case. The Establishment Clause inserted and stated Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. The court ruled the Union Free School District in Hyde Park, NY had violated the First Amendment by directing the principals to cause the following prayer to be said aloud by each class in the presence of a teacher at the beginning of each school day: “Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our Country” (Longley, "Public"). I agree with the court ruling because not all students in a classroom share the same beliefs. To cause everyone to say this prayer surely violates their rights.
wrong to many, but when religion has a home in public schools, it singles out
Religion is one of the most controversial issues in society today. The concern of allowing prayer in schools is an on-going debate and has resulted in numerous lawsuits. Religious school clubs, after school activities, curriculums, and moments of silence during school are just a few of the court cases that judges have administered. People in favor of prayer in schools believe that their children can only learn certain values through religious practice. On the other hand, an individual against religious practice in schools views this issue as an infringement on his or her children’s rights as Americans.
Students are guaranteed the right to pray, as long as it is not disruptive, and it is not promoted during classroom hours. Not only are these permitted, they are actually protected forms of speech under the U.
"I do not believe that any type of religion should ever be introduced into the public schools of the United States." -Thomas Edison. Religion and prayer in public schools is a big controversy for schools in the United States. School officials cannot take sides on religion since it will violate the first amendment which states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Establishing a specific religion in public school violates the first amendment, therefore public schools have to remain neutral when it comes to the matter of religion. Some people believe that teaching about religion should not be allowed considering it violates the separation of church and state, but that is not true. There are many issues regarding religion in public schools, however exercising your personal religion independently is not one of them. (Leitch, 1)
Prohibiting School Prayer Threatens Religious Liberty. Civil Liberties. Ed. James D. Torr. -. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003.
The intercom comes on in a classroom first thing in morning and says “now kids, it is time for our prayer”. Every kid in the class joins hands and starts to respectfully pray. Once the prayer is finished, they all go back to work and are more unified together, right? That is usually not the case. More likely than not, only several kids in the class joins the prayer. Most kids then laugh at the others praying, breaking the bonds between the two. With religion being brought up in school, there are more possibilities for debate between children ending in violence. Three fourths of kids at my high school will not even recite the pledge of allegiance just because it says god in it. Public schools should not have any impact on religion. Christian Groups are sneaking religion into high schools.
On the other hand, Secular Humanists, have several arguments focusing on why prayer in schools is a bad idea. They state that public schools exist to educate, not to proselytize. Children in public schools are a captive audience. Making prayer an official part of the school day is coercive and invasive. What 5,8 or 10-year-old could view prayers recited as part of class routine as "voluntary,"? Religion is private, and schools are public, so the only appropriate situation is that these two do not mix.
The first and fourteenth amendments to the constitution establish the rules that apply to school prayer. The first amendment says: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. The 14th Amendment of the Constitution has several clauses; the clause that pertains to school prayer is the Equal Protection Clause requiring each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people within that state. What this means is, each student in the school is protected from being forced to pray in school in any certain way.
Annie Laurie Gaylor quoted Thomas Jefferson in her article The Case Against School Prayer, “No citizen shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever…” and that to “compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of [religious] opinions which he disbelieves is sinful and tyrannical” (Gaylor, 1995, p. 7). No man should have to be subject to anything that he does not believe in. Prayer should not be allowed in the public school system because of the idea of separation of church and state and the First Amendment.
We need to look at prayer with deeper thoughts. Prayer isn’t just closing your eyes, folding your hands and speaking. Prayer is a much more meaningful part of religion. We all need to pray, God himself demands us to pray. Prayer is defined as an act of God, a god or another object of worship, such as in devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving. When most people pray, they just say the same prayer, like the Lord’s prayer for example. Saying the same prayer isn’t really such a bad thing, its more about the meaning and the time that you spend praying. Prayer shouldn’t just be looked at as a routine or habit, but as more of a love poem to express ones self to God. Questions such as: why do we need to pray? What is this prayer?, and What does God command us to pray for? Are what we should be asking ourselves before we come to God in prayer.
Before starting the concept mad and breaking down the issue, I knew that school prayer was a social issue but never knew why. From my point of view, I would say that school prayer should be allowed, except limiting what they can do. For example, a class has the moment of silence, but the other students who have different beliefs can have their own time where they do their prayers and practices.