Religion in Public School?

The other day someone asked me what my opinion about religion in school. Here was my answer:

Yes, it is true that religion has shaped the world as we know it. It is enmeshed in our history and recorded in our art throughout the ages. There is no escaping it :) And as you well know, one does not have to be a Christian to learn and comprehend the history that has lead up to our "modern" world (I am using the word modern loosely).

But when it comes to religion in school, I think I draw the line when prayer in school is publicly advocated. I believe that a student should not have to be subjected to any kind of prayer in public school, silent or otherwise. When we advocate prayer (or a moment of morning silence) in school, we alienate those children, and their families even though they are not present, who do not believe in prayer. Not to mention that there is often a strong Christian undertone, even if not spoken. This leaves out children who are from non-Christian families.

Because I come from an area that is very diverse, prayer in school is a real no-no. It is hard for me to fathom whole communities where people may have never met a Jew or a Muslim, and think that prayer in public school is quite alright. Then again, because social structure varies from community to community, my opinion of "no prayer in school" might be completely obsolete elsewhere.

In my husband's elementary school, they do not put up any religious decorations. This means no Christmas trees, no menorahs, no Kwaanza symbols, and certainly no Pagan Yule logs decorated with pentacles ;-) I think this is a wise decision in that there will always be someone that is left out otherwise, and furthermore, less fights will break out, and less people will complain. Perhaps if it was a special charter school with a very small population of kids where all would be represented. But it is almost impossible to represent everyone all the time.

And the parents can teach their kids all about religion at home, in sunday school, or wherever they wish. It's not the job of a public school to enforce any sort of religious belief. I know that the trend is now creation, or "intelligent design," as opposed to "the big bang theory," and evolution. For me to explain how I feel about that, it would take a whole other email. All I have to say about that is:

The Flying Spaghetti Monster.
http://www.venganza.org/
Shira