Written by Don Byrd
I posted earlier this week about the 50th anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases Abington v. Schempp. There the Court invalidated the practice of compelled Bible reading at public school as a violation of religious liberty. As a follow up, author Stephen Solomon’s has an op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal. He makes an important point about that decision: it didn’t take God out of schools as so many claim.
The reality is very different. One of the most important legacies of Schempp is that there is much more religion in the public schools today than there was the day the decision was handed down… In public schools across the country, countless students meet in religious groups and learn about religion in their classes.
How is that possible? Although it is too frequently forgotten now, Justice Clark was careful to distinguish the practices that violated the First Amendment from those that did not. The court’s ruling effectively prohibited public schools and their personnel from sponsoring or promoting religious activities and beliefs such as prayer and Scripture reading. The court thus protected students like Ellery Schempp, whose Unitarian beliefs differed greatly from the theology of the majority in his community….
Far from being hostile to religion, the court provided the foundation for including religion in the curriculum of public schools.
Read the whole thing (subscription may be required to access the article).
