Prayer is Schools

Since the Pledge of Allegiance and The Lord's Prayer are not allowed in most public schools anymore because the word "God" is mentioned....
a kid in Arizona wrote the NEW School prayer.

I liked it....


Now I sit me down in school

Where praying is against the rule

For this great nation under God

Finds mention of Him very odd.




If Scripture now the class recites,

It violates the Bill of Rights.

And anytime my head I bow

Becomes a Federal matter now.



Our hair can be purple, orange or green,

That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.

The law is specific, the law is precise.

Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.



For praying in a public hall

Might offend someone with no faith at all.

In silence alone we must meditate,

God's name is prohibited by the state.




We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,

And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks.

They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.

To quote the Good Book makes me liable.



We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,

And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.

It's "inappropriate" to teach right from wrong,

We're taught that such "judgments" do not belong.




We can get our condoms and birth controls,

Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.

But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,

No word of God must reach this crowd.




It's scary here I must confess,

When chaos reigns the school's a mess.

So, Lord, this silent plea I make:

Should I be shot; My soul please take!

Amen



Jesus said,
" If you are ashamed of me,"
I will be ashamed of you before my Father."





><><><><><><><
May you have the strength Of eagles' wings,
The faith and courage to Fly to new heights,
And the wisdom Of the universe To carry you there
>Indian Blessing<

Very thought provoking Ady.... I liked it too....

...is the Pledge of Allegience not allowed in schools anymore??? We pledge to the flag everyday. One of my kids even told me that a teacher yelled at a kid for not pledging, a couple of months after 9/11~ which is something you're not supposed to do. You can't force any kid to say the Pledge. Some religious groups, like Jehovah's Witnesses, do not.

Sorry - Canadians don't have the Pledge - I took the e-mail at face value.

Fortunately, much of my teaching career has been in Christian and private state certified schools. It's been about 10 years since I taught in public school; I was a substitute, but we did say the Pledge of Allegiance, of course. We have to remember, however, that Adrienne and the rest of the free world knows a whole lot more about us than we know about them. As for the rest of the poem, I would say, "amen." I don't think the lack of moral standards in the U.S. can be directly blamed on the prohibition of public prayer. But M.M. O'Hare convinced us that the preference of the isolated individual was more important that the desires of the many. No one was ever forced to pray, only behave respectfully. I was there; the reading always came from selected books of the Old Testament, those accepted by Jews, Christians, and Moslims. Thank God for the Bill of Rights, but it should not destroy the democratic aspect of our democratic republic.
By the way, the words "under God" did not appear in the Pledge of Allegiance when I was a child. About the time prayer left the schools, those words were added. I learned: "one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

When I was in elementary school we recited the Pledge every day. Somewhere along the lines that faded from school, probably because of the rabid parents who objected to the "Under God" part. Hey, it doesn't specify which God they are talking about! Anyway, after 9/11 they brought it back, which I think they should.

One of my really good friends works at an elementary school. At Christmas, they talk about all the different religions and celebrations going on at that time. All of them except Christianity. They talk about the secular Christmas, with Santa Clause and all that, but not the Christian beliefs of Christmas. How messed up is that?!? Equal opportunity means teaching all of the religions, no matter if that is the majority or not.

I agree that if the holiday practices of one religion are being discussed, all should be discussed. What bothers me, though, is the idea that there is one religion that can be called "Christianity". I consider myself a liberal Catholic, and I know I have a lot of differences with a good friend who is a Southern Baptist. What about the Amish, or Greek Orthodox, or Anglicans? All Christians do not think alike.

I also agree that morality should be taught in our schools, but it should not be based on one group's faith. I'm sure that moral dilemmas, such as stealing or being disrespectful to your parents can be taught without having to say "This is what the Bible (or the Koran or the Torah or Budda and so on) says we must do".

Throughout my grade school and high school years I went to Catholic school so prayer was something we did everyday. One thing we could not do, however was sing the national anthem - it caused offence to some people of different national backgrounds. I find this ridiculas! I you choose to live in a specific country you should be singing there anthem. We used to sing the anthem every morning up to 4th grade and then it was banned.

What I think I mean is just teaching the basic concept of Christian Christmas, with the Christ Child's birth, why presents are exchanged (Epiphany) without necessarily getting into any theological debates, and not pushing one denomination over another. In school they don't give each religion a whole lot of time and just cover the basics of how they celebrate Christmas, Kwaanza, Hannakah (sp), etc.

Christy, A Christian is one who believes that Christ is the Son of God Who came to earth to teach, die for our sins, and conquer death through the Resurrection. So, all the denominations you mentioned are Christian. The differences lie in emphasis. Also, the Roman Catholic Church accepts some books as revealed scriptures that the protestant churches do not accept. I know you have studied the Reformation. Because the Reformation was not a single unified act, but a number of actions in different countries, much depended upon the customs of the nation and the religious leaders. The basic concept of Christianity is the same. Some churches are more formal, some are charismatic, some call their pastors father, some pray to saints and others only to God, but if they accept Christ as the Risen Saviour, they are Christians, by definition.

Ady....great poem!!! I have alot of thoughts on this subject...it burns my butt that they are trying to take the mere mention of God out of the schools....but then people turn around when things like the Littleton school shootings happen and say "Oh how could God allow something like this to happen?" Well....he isn't allowed in school anymore, so there you go.

It is okay for homosexuals to teach our children, and be very open about their sexual preference, but don't dare mention God anywhere. (and I am not bashing homosexuals, that is their choice, just making a point, or trying to anyway)

My friend has a daughter who is 11, and she said they won't let them celebrate Christmas or Easter..etc...in class now at her school, because these are christian holidays and some of the children are not christian, so it might offend them....what is next....don't make mothers day gifts in school because some children may not have a mother, and may be offended?

Guess I'm a little touchy on this subject...sorry.

I don't even have kids, but I do pay taxes that support schools, and I don't complain about that. I would complain, however, if the public schools were forcing a religion, any religion on students. Even if it was my religion.

The way I always figured it when I was a kid was no, there's no organized prayer in school. But nobody there could stop me from saying silent, private prayers whenever I wanted, even if I was in school when I was praying.

There was a thing on TV recently in the news...the school was I believe somewhere in Iowa, but I'm not sure....anyway....this school had always had a certain song they sang at graduation....but this year they were told they could not sing it, because it mentioned God in it....so as a protest....and just to mention God anyway....a few of the kids graduating set it up so that in the middle of the ceremony someone in the graduating party would sneeze loudly...and then they all said..."God bless you" really loud!!!

I kinda thought it was funny!