Religion in Schools…Where do you pitch your tent?

By Ashley Bean Thornton

I have been thinking quite a bit about the different ways people approach the issue of religion in public schools.   Here are a few of those different ways that occur to me…

Camp 1: We are a Christian Nation. – The founders intended the United States to be a Christian Nation, and I believe our nation should be a Christian Nation.  Our elected leaders should be Christians.  Our laws should reflect a Christian interpretation of God’s Laws.  We intend to be kind to the “Strangers Among us” (i.e. Non-Christians).  Indeed, we hope that by our kindness we can help them find their way to a saving belief in Christianity. When it comes right down to it, though, we are a Christian nation, and we should govern ourselves as such. Public schools are a main way that we pass on the culture of our Christian Nation. I believe group prayer, the Bible, and learning Christian principles and stories all belong in public school, and we would be far better off by including them.

Camp 2: Why not?  It doesn’t hurt and it might help. –  Most people in the United States are Christian.  It is the predominant religion in our culture.  It doesn’t hurt for all the people who live here to know some of the ideas and stories of Christianity, in fact it might help to have those common cultural references.  Besides, the teachings of Christianity help us to be good people.  I don’t believe we should “force” religion on people, but I also don’t believe it hurts anything for people to know some of the “basics” of Christianity especially when it comes to being kind and having good morals. I am fine with posting the 10 commandments in schools, for example.  I am OK with children learning about Christianity at school, saying a prayer, learning some of the stories, or talking about the Golden Rule as a Christian concept.  I don’t think it hurts anyone to learn those things, even if it is not their specific religion.  Exposing children to a religion is not the same as forcing it on them.

Camp 3: Let communities and schools use their good sense, if they will. –  I believe in the separation of Church and State, but I know Christianity is a huge part of our American culture, and that some communities are almost exclusively Christian. I think that plays into the decision-making around these issues. I don’t have much problem with prayers at voluntary activities like football games, although I do not think a coach should ask his players to participate in a team prayer, because that puts too much pressure on those kids to say they believe what the coach believes.  I don’t have much problem with teachers displaying things in their classroom that indicate their faith, for example a desk plaque with a Bible verse, as long as they don’t actively proselytize.  I don’t have any problem with voluntary school clubs like “Fellowship of Christian Athletes” or church groups volunteering at schools. I’m fine with celebrating Christmas, as long as it doesn’t get too, too religious.  I would be fine with celebrating other religions too.  I think we could all stand to relax a little when it comes to how quickly we jump straight to being “offended.”    I draw the line, however, at requiring everyone to listen to a prayer together during school hours, or requiring the 10 commandments on every classroom wall, or having Bible stories as part of the required curriculum. To me that is “requiring” religion and that crosses the line from religious freedom and tolerance into establishing a religion.  I think in most cases communities and schools can figure out where to draw that line for themselves without the law having to intervene.  If, however, the community and school do not exercise kind and good judgement, and some students are being made to feel pressured, or outcast, or like the victims of prejudice, then the law should step in and protect the minority.

Camp 4: All Religions or None – I am OK with the children learning about different religions in school and celebrating religious holidays and holidays from a variety of cultures.  I think it’s great for us to learn about multiple cultures and to celebrate diversity! However, I don’t think it is right for Christianity to be the only or primary religion taught, accepted and celebrated.  I would rather not have any religion in school, than have it only be Christianity.

Camp 5: Keep Religion Out – Religion is a personal matter, and while for some it provides great benefit, for others it provides no benefit at all, or even causes harm. Even if we wanted to include religion in schools, what would we include? Christians, who are the majority, can’t even decide among themselves what they believe. How much more difficult, then, to try to include the wide variety of other religions represented in this country?   The first amendment of The Constitution explicitly states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” To me, religion in the public schools, paid for with our tax dollars, is “establishing a religion.”    There are plenty of ways to help kids learn to get along and be kind and to have good morals without using religion.  Schools have plenty of other work to do without diving into the tar pit of being in charge of a child’s religious instruction.  People have plenty of opportunity to learn about religion and exercise their freedom of religion outside of the public schools.  I think we should do our best to keep religion out of our public schools, it just leads to unnecessary – not to mention, unconstitutional — distraction.

Is it helpful to think about this question in this way?

I think I could be OK with Camps 3, 4 or 5 – with 3 being my default.  Camp 3 feels to me like an imperfect, but practical choice that, in the best of worlds, would ask of a community to think and re-think about how what they are doing may be affecting students.  Would that be all bad?  Ha!  Maybe it’s not so practical after all, now that I think about it!

I wonder about the rest of you.  Do you find yourself in one of these camps?  More than one?  Are you in some other camp I haven’t listed here?

Does delineating more than two choices just make things more confusing, or does it give us a better chance of finding ways to live together peacefully and productively in our big, beautiful, diverse country?

At some point, of course, we can’t just visit from camp to camp – we have to decide what to do.  Still, I can’t help but think wiser decisions come from considering more points of view.

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