Why we dont want religion in schools. Florida school now allows satanic material.

Then I'm sure you would agree that organized crime in the guise of unions should be kept out of schools.

I'm an atheist and it's my opinion that proselytizing by fundamentalist Christians is responsible for most atheists. I got my start in a school where saying the Lord's Prayer was mandatory, Wednesday night was for prayer meetings only, and anyone who wasn't a Southern Baptist was ostracized. That all came together to help me find my way in the world.

 

Public schools are federally funded institutions. Therefore they are not permitted to "establish" a religion. AKA they cannot foster one religion over another.

So by only allowing christian materials they violated the first amendment.

But now by allowing all they have opened themselves up to whatever people want to peddle. So now satanism gets to hand out pamphlets to kids, so does Islam, and Judaism, and even the flying spaghetti monster if they want.

Maybe teaching religion should be left, I don't know, to the parents. At home. Where it belongs. Not trying to force it into public schools in an attempt to indoctrinate kids.

 

God botherers of every stripe need to keep their kooky cults out of the schools and away from our kids. If someone wants to indoctrinate their own child that's up to them but no one should be allowed to push any kind of religious materials, not even a pamphlet regardless of whether its christian or satanic or what have you on anyone else's kids.

 

How can I force my religion on you? Only government can do that. And that’s why the 1st was written. Not to prevent me from forcing my religion on you (which is impossible), but to prevent government from forcing you to abide by a religion or religion.

 

Just as you would propose to indoctrinate our kids that all religions are "kooky cults"; that religion is somehow wrong in this country? Again, the constitution does not limit THE PEOPLE from their free practice of religion; it limits government from preventing that and establishing religion. You can call it whatever you want. I happen to believe your thoughts on religion are 'kookie'. Should you be prevented from going into our schools and telling kids "stay away from those kookie cults"?

 

It should not be brought into public schools that is a government entity. Tax payer funded.

 

Teaching about religion is not establishing it. Allowing kids to pray or exercise other manners of their religion is not establishing. The establishment clause was specifically limited to government enacting laws that would make any religion an official religion that everyone must follow. I am willing to admit that, by extension, a teacher telling kids they must believe a certain way or their grades would be negatively impacted, violates the establishment clause, even though no religion has legally been established.

I’m not suggesting ‘fostering one religion over another’. I have advocated the opposite. But you’re peddling your own belief regarding religion. As long as it’s taught in the vein of information and not from a standpoint of adherence, why would you have a problem with that? Why are you trying to omit a part of our history – essentially rewriting history? Trying to pretend religion took no part in the establishment of this country?

I agree religion, as a practice, should be left to the – I don’t know – parents. But our schools have an obligation to include everything in this country’s history; not omit the things you’re uncomfortable with.

 

So, in our schools, we get to pretend religion never existed; was never a part of this country's history. We're not going to agree. Teaching religion in our schools in no way establishes religion. No one is forced to adhere to a religion when a teacher teaches "this is what this religion is and what they believe". It's information; just like any other facet of our history.

 

I agree. I will also add that religion is not the threat. DOE and Union is the threat. You want to talk about who has influence?

 

How about a response to my original question to you?

 

Not much to be said other then I'm glad you found your way in the world. More people in this world need to do that.

 

I can see the validity of that statement, but I think teaching religion as it's own class, rather than through civics, is a complete waste of time and money. Of course children should learn about the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, Salem Witch Trials, etc.

 

You can in fact force your religion onto me, or attempt to do that.

Also, school sponsored religion is indeed forcing religion onto students. It's why teaching "intelligent design" I.E. Creationism, has been time and time again ruled unconstitutional.

Blue laws preventing the sale of alcohol on certain days and certain times are another way religion is slipped into the law.

How about the hob lobby ruling? Employers forcing their religious ideals onto employees.

 

I have no problems with teaching about a multitude or religions in a history class or a world culture class,

I have a major problems with the pushing of Christian creationism in science classes. It's an unacceptable attempt at indoctrination.

 

Personally I do not think Muslims, Christians, ect... should be using our government to fund their religion, faith based initiatives is doing just that....

http://rationalrevolution.net/articles/history_of_the_separation_of_chu.htm

"When a religion is good, I conceive it will support itself; and when it does not support itself, and God does not take care to support it so that its professors are obliged to call for help of the civil power, 'tis a sign, I apprehend, of its being a bad one.
- Benjamin Franklin: in letter to Richard Price, October 9, 1780"

 

It would be pretty tough to beat the Bible at being sexual and violent. The Old Testament is full of people being raped and slaughtered.

 

I am a tax payer. I fund my schools just as equally as everyone else. The constitution - in which the government (that I pay taxes to) is sworn protect and defend - protects the right to freely exercise my religion. Your belief that you have some right to omit religion from school (which is not enumerated in the constitution) does not trump my right to freely practice my religion. It's just that simple. You can slant this in any way you want; it doesn't change that.

 

Just as equally I have a problem with evolution being the only explanation allowed on our schools as to why our species exists. It's an unacceptable attempt at indoctrination.

 

you do have a right to your religion in school,. what you do not have a right to do is force your religion on other peoples children in a public school

 

sure, lets have a "God did it" day in Science class where everyone dresses up as pirates and eats Spaghetti for a day, the kids would love it....

best to save that for Sunday School.... or do Sunday Schools suck so bad nowadays they need the public schools to bail them out?

.

 

Religion is man's downfall. It comes from a very ignorant and idiotic part of humanity's history. No one alive today who takes any of the Middle Eastern faiths literally should be allowed to influence politics and policy. It's 2014 and we need to grow up. I have found nothing of intellectual value or substance in the Middle Eastern faiths. They are pure, blind, worship of a desert sky god. Please explain how they are anything different if taken literally.

Keep it out of there, because otherwise we’ll be having people saying, “Well, children, chemistry period is over, but we’ll be doing alchemy in the next half. And put away your astronomy books and get out your astrology charts, because we are ‘open-minded’ in this school,” and other stultifying nonsense that you wouldn’t even get at a madrassah, I shouldn’t think." - Christopher Hitchens

 

Explain to me, an ordinary citizen, with no legal authority or power, how I can force my religion on you. How do I force you to practice that religion? I mean short of kidnapping you and torturing you into submission, my free practice of my religion in no way forces you to even recognize my religion. And even there, it isn’t in your heart, therefore you’re not being forced.

And I don’t know where you come up with ‘school sponsored religion’. Who is advocating this? I have been consistent with saying religion should be taught from the standpoint of how it affected the founding and growing of this country. It’s an integral part of our history and should not be omitted. To omit it is a rewrite of our history.

Blue laws do not force anyone to adhere to any religion. It does not force anyone to worship any god, go to any church, or hold anyone accountable to any religious tenets. These things are of a representative society. THE PEOPLE elect people in under the premise of passing these laws. If you don’t like the laws, elect people that would repeal them.

The Hobby Lobby was just the opposite of what you’re claiming; it was government FORCING a private business to go against what their religious beliefs dictate to them. There was nothing forced on any employee. Everything is still available to those employees. 4 out of 20 birth control methods were ruled as not required to be covered. Employees still have access to those birth control methods. No employee is forced to work with Hobby Lobby. No one’s rights were violated in this decision. It’s just you appear to be comfortable with government FORCING private citizens to buy or provide things to people; even if it goes against their values or beliefs.

 

You can be snarky and insulting all you want. There are billions that believe in some sort of god and insulting them only shows your intolerance and bigotry.

This country was founded on religious rights. The settlers came here to escape religious tyranny to establish religious freedom. It was so important that it was enumerated as a protected right. Your insults cannot strip that away.

I will ask this again, are you proposing laws be passed that limits peoples’ practice of their religion to just home and church?

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And exactly does one student FORCE another student to adhere to their religion?

 

It's interesting to me that some of the same people that say Americans are ignorant of other religions and cultures don't want religious studies in public schools. It's my view that all of the major religions that have shaped the world, and are now shaping the world, should be studied. Keeping all religion out of education results in nothing but ignorance. The more we know...

 

" if it is not sexual, is not violent, and overly provocative / disturbing for the maturity level,"


Have you read the Bible?