Written by Don Byrd
2013 is the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Abingdon v. Schempp. There, the Court agreed with a high school student plaintiff, who courageously challenged the requirement that he participate in Bible readings to begin the school day (The remarkable story is beautifully told in Ellery’s Protest). Apparently oblivious to the half-century Supreme Court rule established by that case and others prohibiting school-sponsored prayer and Bible readings in public schools, a State Senator in Indiana has proposed a law that would introduce The Lord’s Prayer at the start of each day.
Fortunately, it’s not expected to go anywhere.
Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, has filed a bill that would allow school districts to require the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer, though individual students could opt out if they or their parents preferred.
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Senate President Pro Tempore David Long, R-Fort Wayne, has assigned it to the Senate’s rules and legislative procedure committee, often a burial ground for bills.“My initial instincts were that it was probably unconstitutional,” Long, an attorney, said.
The Senate legal staff agreed, he said.
Kruse previously tried to introduce creationism into the science curriculum, and still has his disturbing “truth in education” bill to push, which would require individual teachers to justify lessons in evolution if students object.
