Essay on Prayer in Public Schools

Religion is one of the most controversial issues in society today. The concern of allowing prayer in schools is an on-going debate and has resulted in numerous lawsuits. Religious school clubs, after school activities, curriculums, and moments of silence during school are just a few of the court cases that judges have administered. People in favor of prayer in schools believe that their children can only learn certain values through religious practice. On the other hand, an individual against religious practice in schools views this issue as an infringement on his or her children’s rights as Americans.

Another issue has been the banning of public prayer in schools. It was decided that public prayer should be outlawed in the Supreme Court case Engel v. Vitale. (Schlafly et al. 150) Some people could understand this as it is not right to make prayer mandatory in school, when there are people who don’t believe in any religion. What might get some people is what was decided in 1962 by the Supreme Court,”… even a voluntary, non-denominational school prayer led by a public school official violated the Establishment Clause of the First Ammendment.” (Merino 8) Many people might wonder why prayer in school, if held on a voluntary basis, is bad. Why shouldn’t the kids who want to participate in prayer at school not be allowed to? One reason could be that the school officials don’t want to put a target on kid’s backs. For example, if everyone but one kid did partake in prayer that kid may get bullied or questioned or at the very least feel left out. The same could be true if only one kid went to prayer, that child could feel targeted and awkward. Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe, which took place in 2000, decided that any individual could pray at

It is not coincidental that there has been an increase in births to single mothers, divorce rates tripling, and teenage suicide increasing. Allowing prayer in schools has set valuable standards and morals for graduates and current pupils. Currently ninety percent of the countries kids are enrolled in the public school system being influenced every single day they are present. Proven by previously mentioned statistics, the majority of morals clearly dropped after the removal of prayer in public schools in 1962. Without prayer, people have become more and more obliterate to God-based values, this causes people to neglect crucial things such as the sacredness of marriage. “After 1963 divorces increased by 300% each following year”(Prayer in America) Many argue and take to the opposition that marriage is just a piece of paper, when in all generality, it is a gift from God. Single mothers, sexually transmitted diseases, divorces, violent crimes, and teen suicide

“Our government has been based on religious principles since the very beginning. The Declaration says,” We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by certain unalienable rights…”.” This shows that our constitution, made for independence, wants the American people to keep God with them in everything they do. Even George Washington declared that U.S. citizens need to obey God and his will. George Washington was the first president of the United States. If he wanted the people to listen to God and obey his will, why change that now? Religion in school is not harmful in anyway. People can get talked about and bullied for their religion they practice. That is life and no one should be judged because of their religion they practice or live with. This is a free country and religion in school would not only help the students and teachers, who do not know much about religion but help people to have a better understanding and respect for other people's culture. Maybe, some people prefer not to pray at school, which is not a problem. Prayer would not be mandatory. Everyone's prayers are different; students would not be forced to say their prayer. Only if they want to. “...the supreme court did not “remove prayer from public schools.” The court removed only government sponsored worship (“Ten Reasons”

Prayer should allowed in the public school system because prayer is an important part of America’s rich spiritual heritage. All throughout the history of America there have been many important documents written of our country that have references to “Almighty God,” “Thy Blessings,” and “Our dependence upon Thee.” These include: the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, the national anthem, and the presidential oath (Haas, 1995, p. 39). In school students always say the pledge, which states, “One Nation Under God.” A prayer says that students just want to ask for a good day and guidance throughout the day. Not only do important documents of our country refer to God but also the words “In God We Trust” are engraved on all coins minted and bills pressed in the United States (1995, p. 39). There are two parts of the American tradition and they are prayer and religion (1995, p. 39). If society keeps prayer out of the public schools, they are teaching the students that traditions are not important and that what this country was founded upon does not matter. Does society want to raise a group of young people to disrespect what their forefathers wanted; religious freedom? If that is the case then why do people try to keep this country working at its prime when trouble occurs? People do not want to see this nation fall but in the end it

Prayer will have a profound effect on the children. Those that are of younger ages will develop an attitude of gratitude because someone taught them to pray. They can be introduced to other gods if they chose to. They will renew the founding fathers’ ideals of what the United States of America was built on as far as God goes. In God we trust. Morals and values have almost disappeared completely in the public schools. David Barton wrote “ The schools have declined since prayer was removed in 1962. Teenage pregnancy rates have gone up 500%. SAT scores have steadily declined each year for 18 straight years since 1962. The United States is rated 15th among the industrialized nations.

For centuries, the debate has existed whether or not to allow prayer in public schools. Many Americans feel it is not right of the schools to teach religion. With all the diversity associated with the United States, public schools cannot select one standard religion to practice, due to the cultural and religious differences in the country. Not only are schools the storm center of controversy involving religious differences, they are the principal institution charged with transmitting the identity and mission of the United States from one generation to the next. If we fail in our school policies and classrooms to model and to teach how to live with differences, we endanger our experiment in religious liberty and our

Should prayer be allowed in public schools? This is a question with a highly controversial answer. There are many different angles to this question with varying ideas and opinions that never seem to agree with one another. The issue of prayer in public schools has, and will continue to be, at the center of many controversial debates. Just consider the fact that public educational system in United States is a secular or non-religious one that is quick to shut down any religious actions. This is the main reason why it is so difficult to bring forth any kind of change that will bridge the gap between school and religion. There have been several attempts over the years to use the power of the first amendment of the United States constitution which expresses the right to freedom of speech and religion to justify prayer in schools. Although the first amendment clearly sets out to protect religion from government intervention, the U.S Supreme court has ruled prayer in public school “unconstitutional” because it violates the separation of the church and the state.

Not so long ago, a typical school day would begin with the Pledge of Allegiance and a prayer. Today, a simple prayer is considered offensive and unconstitutional. A prayer is meant to be a conversation with God; a personal connection to a sovereign being of choice. I personally believe that prayer is beneficial. Prayer calms my mind and gives me the chance to thank God for all of his blessings. Granted, not everyone believes in the same God that I do. I believe most people would probably agree that there is some form of higher power that everyone has to answer to. One of the things that I love about being an American, are the freedoms that I have. I am free to worship the God I choose and to pray at anytime or any place that I choose.

Allowing prayer in public schools remains a divisive and extremely passionate issue for various individuals. Americans have voted against the guiding principles for prayer in school, but the question, "should prayer be allowed in school?" continues to arise. Prayer in public schools has become one of the most controversial issues in the United States today. What keeps this matter boiling is the fear that a child will be influenced, or even worse, “offended” by another’s spiritual beliefs. By removing school prayer, the U.S Supreme Court has misconstrued the Establishment Clause of the Constitution. In order to protect our neighbor’s feelings, we have replaced the ingredients of religion and prayer in our schools with teen pregnancy, increased alcohol and drug use, sex, suicide, school shootings, and last but not least, an excessive amount of entitlement. Our children need something bigger than themselves to turn to when they are faced with difficult times. A simple two minute moment of silence would allow believers and non-believers the opportunity to meditate each morning and set the mood for the remainder of the day.

One major reason why prayer is not allowed in public schools is because people may find it offensive to them if they do not belong to they religion that the prayer is being said in.

The question of the constitutionality of prayer in our public schools and public school system has been an ongoing controversy for the past three decades. There is only one way to end the controversy, and it is pertinent to the well being of our youth and our nation. We must keep church and state forever separate. Any form of prayer in the public school system is an explicit violation of the first amendment, is coercive, and harmful to not only our nations children, but to the nation itself. The question of prayer in school should never have even been a question, and the fact that it remains three decades later is nothing short of unfaithful to the constitution. One could even go so far as to call this issue unpatriotic, as we are

Most individuals on the liberal spectrum tend to agree with the courts when it declared government sponsored prayers are unconstitutional. The less conservative individuals show a tendency to believe that any amendment that allows for voluntary prayer would contradict the first amendment guarantee against government establishment of religion. Most on the liberal spectrum or those that feel the government does not have enough power feel that any sort of Government action to allow voluntary prayer in schools could be at the cost of the civil rights of students. It is believed that any amendment or law consenting for voluntary prayer would diminish the very heart of the Bill of Rights; which protects the rights of people from the oppression from the majority. Those that do not allow or want to allow prayer in school think that any amendment affirming that prayer should be allowed in school would actually introduce assembled prayer or force persons into prayer. Those that clash with prayer in school fear that judgement against those that do not participate in school prayer. Those in the small percentage that do not want to participate would be obligated to follow to a belief or ritual that which they do not believe. This could cause the individual to suffer the humiliation or burden of submitting a day-to-day spiritual exercise continuously in order to avoid being singled out by mainstream colleagues and educators.

The issue of school prayer is not one of religious freedom, as it is already legal for children to pray in school, either individually or in groups. Since the Engel decision in 1962, religious advocates have been assailing the Supreme Court for "taking God out of the classroom." In an effort to reverse this trend, conservative religious groups have been fighting for the passage of a school prayer amendment to gain greater leeway for religious activities in schools.

Around the year of 1962, a new law was passed in the constitution stating that prayer in school was no longer allowed to be taught in school. Now, as you can imagine, that angered many people all around the world, but it also relieved some at the same time. There are many reasons why people were angered by this decision. Religious people who supported the right to pray within the school system made accusations about this change because they thought it broke the freedom of religious practices, the separation of church and state, and their right to their own freedom. There were also many reasons why people were relieved. Many people do not believe in praying every day, and to those people, they might have had the fear of sending their kids off to school knowing that they may be forced to partake in public prayers.