Prayer in school? How about the National Anthem, Pledge of?

Question

Allegiance?
When we were children each morning there was a prayer in school followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
It seems to me that it gave a child something to believe in, an inspiration.
Now a days, there are so many people apposed to this that schools have stopped.
Do you think it is making a difference in our youths?

Answer 1

When I was a kid, we recited the Pledge every day, before class started. What this did for me and my friends was instill a hope and desire that this nation we lived in would be ours forever as long as we remembered how it began, for whom it began and on which principles it was originally founded. Today, you have Politicians, from the President on down who constantly lie to us or cover up the truth. We have preachers and ministers who are more interested in money than the preservation of whatever religion they are supposed to teach us. We have no discipline in schools. We used to make jokes about how kids are graduating from College who couldn't spell their names or even tell you where the United States was on a map of the world. Today it is worse. Kids can't read, can't spell, resent any kind of authority, want more toys and electronic devices, but they don't want to do anything other than whine and beg or in a lot of cases steal those items. If every child was treated as an adult for whatever 'crime' they committed and were arrested for, there would be a lot less crime. If they were raised by caring parents instead of teenagers who shouldn't have gotten pregnant in the first place, this would be a better world. If everyone really cared, we could rid ourselves of those that say talking does more than whipping. Funny, think where we would be today if our founding Fathers had those thought back in 1776?

Answer 2

I have only problem with prayer in school. That's determining who writes the prayer. If people are that devout in their lives, then they need to say a prayer of grace and thanksgiving over breakfast with their children and not leave the job to the school district.
The Pledge of Allegiance was written for the Boy Scouts magazine over a century ago. In the 1950s, as a reaction to the number of American POWs who had collaborated with their captors during the Korean War and with two brothers in the cabinet who were fundamentalist Chirstians (John Foster and Clarence Dulles) the Congress added the words "under God" to the pledge.
I'm a retired Naval officer. I don't believe in forced patriotism or in layering religion on a secular school system in a secular republic. You can say the Pledge in your home. You can pray in your home. That's where the child is formed.

Answer 3

I see nothing wrong with it myself. I don't understand why it is not allowed in so many places. It doesn't make any difference what religion you are, the man up stairs IS your creator. I remember very well doing all that in school. We did the Pledge of Allegiance before classes started and then the National Anthem at all the games. What are they going to take away from us next?

Another thing that would make a difference in our youths today is if we could still punish them the way we used to. I didn't say beat them either, I said punish them.

Answer 4

We used to have Morning Exercises which included the Pledge of Allegiance, the singing of either The Star Spangled Banner, America, or America the Beautiful, a Bible reading and a prayer. And that was public school in the fifties. I feel it gave structure and a good start to the day. Yes, I think the lack of morals and ethics has made a difference in our youth. No one in the fifties came in and massacred their class mates with a machine gun! For sure!

Answer 5

I remember when under god was adopted into The Pledge of Allegiance in 1954. The phrase under god was first used by the Knight of Columbus, The Pledge of Allegiance was written by a Baptist minister Francis Bellany in 1892 for a kids magazine{ youths companion} I have made sure that all my grand kids can recite it and I make sure they stand with their hand over their heart any time they see old glory being raised or lowered and passing in review It"s up to us to teach respect for this country not the schools

Answer 6

I went to school in the northwest and we only said the pledge of allegiance at the start of class. The national anthem is played mostly before sporting events here such as NBA games.

Answer 7

I remember when prayer was allowed in school, especially at lunch time when we were actually encouraged to pray. I was also taught respect for the flag and our country by saying the pledge of allegience and having to sing "My Country tis' of thee" or The National Anthem.

Kids just don't have any respect for anything anymore. Everything that was once used to mold and shape the behavior and attitudes of children back in the day is now frowned upon and forbidden (ex; corporal punishment).
As a result, look at the troubles we have in our schools today. Drug addiction, Teen Pregnancy, Communicable diseases, Gangs, Rapes, Assaults on Teachers, Teen Suicide, and tragic incidents like Columbine and Va. Tech.

What's the LIBERALS answer to this? Keep God OUT, keep patriotism OUT, but let Psychologists/Psychiatrists IN to drug up our children with anti depresants and anti anxiety meds! Install cameras and metal detectors, and have dogs and armed guards and police roam the hallways. Yeah, that approach is really working.

We need to go back to the old days, and teach the children about morals and values, dignity, civic duty, and pride. We need to discipline and correct children when they are wrong and misbehave, instead of worrying about hurting poor Timmy's Wittle feelings and lowering his SELF ESTEEM.

What happened to strong, encouraging, positive role models for the children. No today, the kids would rather emulate Michael Vick, Shug Knight, Or some pimp, gangster, psycho.
Until people stand up to the liberals, and take back control of our schools, I feel that the children are heading in a downward spiral and it's only getting worse.

Answer 8

Not at all. Prayer in school is exclusionary. If the student is not a member of the group that espouses the prayer, that student is excluded. Children find inspiration at home....whatever their parents imbue in them. School is a place for education..period.

As for the Pledge of Allegiance; the original pledge was a wonderful affirmation of love of country. When the knuckleheads in Congress added the phrase "under god" back in 1955, it changed from a patriotic anthem which applied to everyone to a form of prayer and affirmation of religious belief.... Again, exclusionary.

I was 14 that year. That's when I stopped reciting the Pledge.

That doesn't mean I love my country any less...it simply means that I don't believe that it is one country "under god".....

It was a stupid thing to do - and they should remove the offending phrase. It adds nothing to the Pledge and means nothing to many who recite it....in other words, meaningless.

Answer 9

In a way yes. Even though a lot of kids in the 50s or early 60s may not have ever gone to church, they still learned the principles from the 10 commandments and what was expected of everyone at school and it was accepted. Now we are so political correct that we don't really stand for anything anymore. There is no right or wrong. The rule of society now is do whatever you want to do as long as it does not harm. There are no borders anymore. I am glad I grew up when I did.

Answer 10

Each morning we say the Pledge of Allegiance, but I think that is just not enough.

And I wholeheartedly agree with the person who posted a rather long comment up above. They seem to have captured my feelings exactly.