Another year, another prayer in school uproar. The article that got me going today was about a high school graduation in Kentucky (http://dailycaller.com/2013/05/27/graduation-prayer-at-rural-kentucky-high-school-irks-atheists-delights-christians/) that opened with a short, 1-minute prayer by the graduating class president.
And now the Atheists are talking to the ACLU.
Wonderful.
People, the arguments being used in these cases are that students praying at a function like this make “non-Christian” students feel uncomfortable. They are not required to pray, mind you, but the mere presence of prayer or “religious groups” is an affront to their First Amendment rights.
I love logic. Logic (and thumbs) is what sets us apart from the lesser animals. So let’s try to follow it through this, shall we?
Atheists argue that they should not be subjected to the mere presence of religion in their lives. If it shows up, it should be removed.
Using that twisted un-logic, if a church or other religious building is visible on the street, then it should be torn down so that atheists can walk down that street without being offended by it.
Stupid, right? I know.
The First Amendment protects (not gives) Americans’ right to freely express their religion, and it protects Americans from being forced to practice a specific religion. Atheists and ACLU lawyers would have you believe that being in the same vicinity as a religious practice is tantamount to forcing them to participate in it.
What? I have yet to see a report of a high school forcing a student to pray. EVER. The most that is ever asked is that people stand quietly if they choose (there’s that word some people hate so much) not to participate. They aren’t asked to leave, but they may if they wish.
We ask students to stand quietly if they choose not to recite the pledge of allegiance in school.
We ask that debaters stand quietly while their opponents present their arguments.
We do not force people to say the pledge or to accept an argument as their opinion….wait; that’s what the ACLU is trying to do in these types of lawsuits.
By presenting the ONLY resolution to a conflict as the denial of the rights of one group of citizens to the wishes of another, the Constitutional PROTECTIONS of rights is circumvented, placing one group above the other.
You cannot protect a right by denying a right.
It’s just that simple.
Not the America I grew up in and being taught about. But then, we don’t teach that stuff anymore, do we?
Prayer happens in school every single day. Get over it.
**Please: repost and share this. This garbage is getting out of hand**
My Own Little Shadow 
Well said.
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Said the religious person. Why should a public school (funded by everyone) endorse one thing over another? Why does it have to happen at the event where people from all walks of life attend? Was your daughter’s graduation diminished because there was no prayer?
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I’m the least religious “religious person” I know.
No, her graduation wasn’t diminished because there was no prayer. If they had had one, which I’m surprised they didn’t actually, I wouldn’t have cared, and I’m sure she would have sat quietly for it to be over.
I was not trying to advocate one way or the other on this one, just trying to point out the lunacy of the argument that “my rights are the only ones that need protecting.” Religious freedom is just the most visible expression of that phenomenon , that’s all.
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Your example makes no sense though. Of course people can see a church while walking down the street. But a school is a public institution and religion should not be there. What bothers me about prayer in school is that it compounds the idea that religion is the natural or correct way to live your life. You don’t have to join in, but it definitely implies that it is what you should do and if you don’t, there is something wrong with you. If you want to pray, then pray, but don’t make it part of a program thrust upon others.
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