what is your opinion of religion in school?

Question

im a christian but i like to think of myself of having an open mind and i dont think we should force people do to do things they dont wnat to do such as listen about or talk about religion in a state run facility that being said i think that its bull that people try to get words such as under god or prayer or things like that out of school true i dont think tha tif you are athienst you shouldnt have to pray but if you are christina you shouldnt be repressed from praying or such. also while i bielve in creationishm i can see the other side on wanting ot not teachi it. but if you teach evolution you should keep the option of teaching creationism open to the students who want it. whats your take?

Answer 1

religion in school or anywhere else, is a good thing, but it must be taken in moderation and brought down to the level of the student.

for instance, i would not tell very young kids that they will go to hell and burn for all eternity if they dont follow the teachings of the church. you have to guide them into it, so that they will not be frightened sheep.

however, while i believe that you should allow prayer at school, i want it on an individual (minute of silence) basis. it is nobodies right to know how religious i, or my children are, or even what God, if any, we pray to.

religion is good, but humans screw everything up and judge others on every little thing. because my car is new, because i have a nice house, because my grass is green and weed free, God must love me better than "them". not a good argument when you take into account that some of the most evil persons in history were not Godly, even if they claimed to be.

Also, if i yell and scream and get prayer in school, then we have to decide if we are going to allow christain, islamic, jewish, hindu, wiccan or even satanic or whatever else religion be the guide.

even if we allow only christian prayer (as i limit my prayer to), there is the argument of whether it be baptist, lutheran, catholic or any number of protestant religions.

therefore, while i want the right of the student to be able to freely pray (and not just because there is a calculas test) i personally do not want my child to be influenced by the religious or non religious beliefs of others.

quite a quandry, eh?

eagle myrick

Answer 2

I think that in theory it would be best for all children everywhere to have a class that teaches the basics of all the major religions of the world so that people can make their own choices.

However, i understand that this would be incredibly difficult to do in an unbiased, safe environment, so I'll stick to reality.

The reality is, there should still be a moment of quiet reflection in the schools every morning to allow any student who wishes to pray or think over the tasks of the day time to do so. There should also be a "quiet reflection room" that students can use at any time of the day should they need to pray or calm down, etc.

On the subject of creation/evolution, frankly, evolution is scientifically based. It should be taught to all students as a theory. Creationism is religion based, and therefore it is the responsibility of the parents and religious organizations to teach it to those who are willing. There is no point in diverting time, money, and energy away from the public school system to teach something that is not their responsibility to teach. Parents should rest assured that learning evolution should not be enough to shake their children's faiths if the faiths are based on religious education in the home, as opposed to blindly following it just because their parents do.

In short, teaching creationism in school would not only be a waste of precious resources, but it would once again take a little more of a parent's responsibility and place it on the state, giving the parents just one more finger to point when their child goes cuckoo.

Peace!
--Ginny

P.S. I am a Christian woman, if you are wondering.

Answer 3

Forcing all the students to bow to one segment of our culture is not what our country is based on. If the school wants to have a moment of silence, that's different from making everyone worship aloud in a certain way. The "under God" you refer to was added in the 1960's as an insult to the USSR, not because any Christians really wanted it, and, for that matter, how much difference do those two words make, anyway?

As far as creationism is concerned, that is a smoke screen to get bible-based religious ideas taught to all the students. Evolution is a theory, but it is a theory based on many, many archaeological finds over many years.

Answer 4

In the U.S., it's against the law for the government to support one religion over another--and that includes putting religious activities in public schools.

I am not a Christian, and I don't want my kids being forced to put up with prayers not of my religion. I'm sure the Christian parents out there don't want their kids exposed to my religion either.

Kids are welcome to pray at school... on their breaks, at lunch, and so on. They can read religious books and carry religious icons of their choice (as long as they're not overly distracting... a small cross or pentacle is fine; a ten-pound bible or traditional Egyptian priest robes are not.)

Teachers & administrators are not allowed to push any religion on the kids--including by giving class time for prayers.

If you think creationism should be taught along with evolution, do you also support teaching the Hindu version of creationism, the Wiccan versions, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and the Buddhist versions? Most pro-creation-teaching people seem to think there's only one type of "creationism."

Answer 5

Okay, first of all: Creationism does have a place where it can be taught. Sunday School. It is religion masquerading as science. I believe that a child should be equipped to be a productive member of society. You can not do this by hiding facts from him.

Religion can be _studied_ but not _instructed_. There's an important difference there. My teacher taught me about the holocaust, but he didn't endorse it. Students, after a certain age, should be shown different religious streams. But it shouldn't be a major focus, because there are more important things for students to learn. I do not believe in prayer in school. Students have plenty of time outside of school to do that. I do believe that a Christian who wants to pray during school time should be stopped. School time is school time; prayer time is prayer time. What if I jumped into a church and started teaching mathematics?

Answer 6

There's nothing wrong with presenting ideas, the problem is that everyone wants their own ideas presented and no one else's. If you discuss one religion in school, you'd have to discuss them all. This is something that really should be reserved for a higher realm of thinking, such as college level, and those courses are already offered.

Children do not yet have the mental capacity for rational thinking and if you want them to have a spiritual education, that is a personal thing that should be taught at home or in your place of worship and not in a public school environment.

Best wishes.

Answer 7

There already is religion in the public schools, it is called atheistic evolution. Evolution is a religion, a belief system. They don't dare allow creationism to be taught side by side, then the thinking children will see how ludicrous evolution really is. Evolutionary thinking teaches our children that they came from nothing, are here for no reason, there is no one whom they are accountable to and go nowhere when they die. Is it any wonder why they take drugs, seek escapism, kill other kids and themselves? They teach them they are animals and we are surprised when they act like it.
Oh, by the way, the Bible does not prohibit public praying, only when someone prays publicly in order to gain recognition for themselves, wrong motives. Perhaps you should actually read the book before commenting, and not pick and choose passages that you think you can use to support your faulty philosophy.

Christianity - the only logical, rational choice.

Answer 8

Interesting. On the question of prayer in public schools, I think that it's perfectly acceptable (and welcome) for students to pray. I just don't think the government should be leading it or telling folks how to pray. We live in a diverse society, so any time the school starts leading prayer, it will inevitably leave someone out. (Many Muslims consider the Christian concept of the Trinity to be blasphemy, for instance.) Even something as simple as the Lord's Prayer has different versions in Christianity. There are multiple versions of the 10 Commandments even. (One version has "I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt" as #1. Some divide the "Thou shalt not covet" commandments into two, some leave them as one.) And this doesn't even count Atheists, who might well disapprove of any state endorsement of God at all. God has survived long enough in this country without any state intervention.

Having said that, I believe that it is important to allow students to pray and exercise their faith even while at school. (Within reason, of course. If a teacher asks you to answer a question in class, it wouldn't be cool if you dropped to your knees and started praying just to get out of answering the question.) But God is very important in the lives of many Americans, children included. Prayer in school is perfectly fine, just as long as school officials don't get involved.

As for the creationism/evolution thing, I personally believe that evolution should be taught in science class, and perhaps creationism could be taught in a philosophy or religion class in the context of "What do some people believe about the origins of man?" Both evolutionism and creationism claim to answer the same thing. But evolution is the scientific answer. Creationism is a philosophical answer. (For instance, if I were to ask God why the sky is blue, God might answer "light diffusion through Rayleigh scattering" or "because I thought it contrasted well with the green grass." Both answers may very well be true, but only one of them is scientific.)

Science really cannot say anything about the existence of God, or about God's nature. That's what philosophy and religion are for.

Answer 9

I think they should keep the words in the American things, including school. I think that those who wish to pray have a right to do so silently. And I think it is rediculous to take God out of things like it is some kind of protest. I think that is a bad sign in itself and could cause destruction. ~ I do not think that the teachers should teach religions by any means, because there are way to many beliefs out there. ~ But, I wish they would stop trying to eliminate what is good and the true. What is that teaching?

Answer 10

The bible specifically prohibits public prayer, so why is it an issue?

Don't thumpers read their bibles? Or, do they just pick & choose which parts to follow?

Creationists claim complexity is proof the universe was created by a creator that was not created.

With all due respect, that is not a "theory," that is moronic nonsense and has no place in any school other than as an example of illogical arguments.

Atheism, the only logical choice.