Written by Don ByrdThere is a big difference between praying with students and educating students about religions of the world. It is the difference between promoting religion and studying about religion. To be sure, walking that line can be tricky and should be only done thoughtfully. It sure sounds like officials of the Minneha Core Knowledge Elementary School in Wichita, Kansas were trying to do just that in exposing children to elements of religions. But outcry over a bulletin board describing the Five Pillars of Islam convinced them to remove it.
As Charles Haynes notes in his column today, if we are going to allow teaching *about* religion – as the Constitution allows – then we have to be willing to include in that discussion Islam and other culturally influential faiths.
Written by Don ByrdIn today’s NYTimes, religion reporter Samuel Freedman profiles a unique partnership in Portland, Oregon between a suburban evangelical church and a public school in a low-income neighborhood. I love this story because it demonstrates what appears to be the successful navigation of tricky church-state concerns. When a church congregation wants to provide service in the community as part of its religious mission, and sees great need within public institutions like school systems, how should they be Christian servants without crossing important church-state safeguards?
Written by Don ByrdA school district near Detroit has ended the practice of coach involvement in pre-game prayers before high school football games. Following an ACLU complaint, the coach apologized and the Bloomfield Hills school officials sought to clarify the policy does not mean prayer has been banned at the school.
Written by Don ByrdJudge John Meyer has ruled that yoga is not necessarily a religious exercise. Teaching yoga as it is done in California’s Encinitas School District schools, therefore, does not create a church-state problem.
Written by Don ByrdI 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.
