Discussion Whether Should Prayer Be Allowed in Schools

One of the biggest topics religion faces today is whether prayer should be allowed in school. Many cases made its way up to the Supreme Court regarding prayer in school. This issue is still divided among Christians today, and those for and against it all bring up valid points we should think about. This is should prayer be allowed in schools essay that has an attempt to answer if prayer should be allowed in schools or not should be based on supreme court hearings, what followers of Christianity think about the issue, and use Nostra Aetate to make an argument as to how Catholics should respond to the issue.

One of the most controversial issues today is organized school prayer. Many people see organized prayer in schools as a necessary part of the struggle to end all kinds of violence, drug abuse, and other social drama that students have to deal with today. These issues hurt our nation and schools in particular. The religious action center says that “Teaching about religion in public schools is a similarly complex issue. It would be difficult to comprehend the history of the Crusades, the art of the Renaissance, or the literary references made by Shakespeare without some understanding of the history, symbolism, or texts of Christianity. It would be difficult to appreciate the complex history of the Arab-Israeli Conflict without even the most basic knowledge of the histories of the Muslim and Jewish peoples”. What they are saying is that teaching about Christianity and praying in school could be too complex for some, and “danger of the entanglement of church and state is significant since public tax dollars collected from individuals of every religious faith and no religious faith finance our public schools”.

The most prominent case of prayer in school is Engel vs. Vitale. It is the groundbreaking case in which the U.S Supreme Court ruled that voluntary prayer in public schools violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment on June 25th, 1962. This case came about when the New York Board of Regents authorized a short, voluntary prayer that students would recite at the start of the school day. This was released to the press in New York, which caused local organizations in New York to challenge the prayer. They questioned whether or not it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The Establishment Clause prohibits the government from making any law “respecting an establishment of religion”. The New York Court of Appeals rejected their arguments as well as many of the parents. Steven Engel was the man, and parent of one of the students who sued William Vitale, the board president of the school. The case was brought up to the Supreme Court.

The outcome of this case was a 6-1 decision in favor of Engel in the Supreme Court. The court decided that the state cannot hold prayers in public schools, even if participation is not required and the prayer is not tied to a religion. Hugo L. Black wrote the opinion and decided that Vitale’s policy of reciting the prayer before school breached the constitutional wall between church and state. This case was a catalyst for many more to come.

A year later, the case of School District of Abington Township v. Schempp made it to the Supreme Court. The case arose in 1958, when Edward Lewis Schempp, his wife, and two of their children, who attended public schools in Pennsylvania filed suit in U.S District Court in Philadelphia, claimed that their rights under the First Amendment had been violated by a state law that required public schools to begin each school day with a reading of at least 10 passages from the Bible. The Schempps, who were Unitarians, claimed that the law was an unconstitutional establishment of religion and that it interfered with the free exercise of their religious faith. It was ruled 8-1 that legally or officially mandated Bible reading or prayer in public schools is unconstitutional. Whether required by state law or by rules adopted by local school boards, such practices violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment. The pledge of allegiance also came into question because the words say, “one nation under God.” The question brought up is whether this is also forcing religion in school. In the case, Elk Grove United School District v. Newdow, an atheist father of a student at Elk Grove named Michael Newdow thought that school should not incorporate the pledge of allegiance because of the words “under God” appear even though it is voluntary to recite it. He sued in the federal district court in California, and he argued that making students listen, even if they choose not to participate, violates the establishment clause of the First Amendment. The conclusion of the case was a unanimous decision that he couldn’t bring suit since he didn’t have custody of his daughter, however, five justices wrote that requiring teachers to lead the pledge of allegiance is unconstitutional, and four justices wrote it was constitutional. These are just some of the cases that prove how prominent this issue is today. These cases prove that there are many mixed decisions. The answer to if prayer should be allowed in school will be easier to comprehend if both sides are heard. Both sides, people in favor of prayer in school and those against, should be recognized.

The question if prayer should be taught in school is divided between two types of people. Those who are in favor of it, and those who are against it. Those in favor of being able to pray in public school go back to the Constitution and the First Amendment of Freedom of Religion. Those in favor also argued that the Establishment Clause is misinterpreted, and a single and voluntary school prayer does not amount to the government establishing a religion any more than other common practices in the U.S. Other examples of those in favor would include an increase in many societal benefits such as possibly decreasing school shootings, drug use, and alcoholism. Also, prayer would address the needs of the whole person, and it would allow religious students to have an opportunity to observe their religious beliefs during the school day.

Those against prayer in public schools argue that it violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment which states that the government shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion. People also argue that it violates the policy of the Church being separate from the state. Other reasons people are against prayer in school are that public schools are for education and not religion, voluntary prayer in school is legal, school prayer could lead to intolerance by highlighting religious differences, those who abstain from prayer could be ostracized, and that the public school system is created for all students and supported by all taxpayers. Therefore, it should remain neutral on religious issues over which students and taxpayers will differ.

What makes this issue so difficult is that students of all faiths are free to pray alone or in groups during the school day, as long as they don’t disrupt the school or interfere with the rights of others. The difficult part is what is defined as “disrupting the school.” Students are not allowed to “preach to captivate an audience”. Students can also not compel or encourage other students to participate. Similar to Engel v. Vitale, nobody can force students to participate in religion. That is what the board of education did in New York by authorizing a short prayer to be recited before school every morning.

This issue of prayer in school matters to me because I have always gone to a religious school throughout my life. Ever since I started school I was praying before school, and I prayed before every class once I got to Loyola. Not everyone is like me, however. Some people aren’t religious, and some people are but aren’t allowed to pray as a group or a class if they belong to a public school. Maybe some people don’t care about this issue at all, however, I care about the well-being of everyone else in our world. Since prayer was eliminated from public schools, the quality of education has shown a steady decline. I believe that there is a link between prayer being eliminated from public schools and the decline of education. “Allowing prayer in school sets an important standard”. No matter what people believe about the issue in prayer in school, it is important to acknowledge that prayer does set a standard. Today, the lack of religion being taught in school has led many students, especially teenagers to have problems with alcohol, drugs, sex-related diseases, etc. Prayer sets a standard that can help combat these issues, and it can instill a sense of morality. We see issues all over the world today in schools. School shootings have seen a massive increase over the last decade. We have also seen countless students take their lives from issues they have to deal with at school. It is important to at least think about how the idea of having prayer in school could help with some of these issues slightly. The fact of the matter is that not everyone is going to agree with these issues. That is why there have been countless cases brought up to the Supreme Court like Engel v. Vitale and United School District v. Newdow. This issue affects all of us and all our world. It affects Catholics because Catholics have a duty of spreading God’s message of love and grace. Catholics want people to learn about Jesus and spread the good news of Christ. Students make up a huge demographic of religious people. Christians want to change the lives of anyone who wants change or needs it in their lives. This is the reason why most Christians are against the ruling in Engel vs. Vitale. Prayer in school has shaped me into a better person. Learning about God has led me to a path I want to follow for the rest of my life. Prayer has so many more effects than people understand. It has brought me with a tight group of friends who encourage me and don’t discourage me. Prayer has shaped me to always see the positive instead of the negative, which is a trait I never want to lose.

Nostra Aetate was part of the Second Vatican council in 1965 which called for Catholics to engage in friendly dialogue and theological discussions to better understand each other’s faith. Using Nostra Aetate, Christians should respond to the issue of prayer in school by calling and advocating for prayer to be implemented in school. “One is the community of all peoples. One for their origin, for God, made the whole human race to live over the face of the earth”. Nostra Aetate is trying to tell all people that we should widen our point of view and allow for more change and acceptance of other religions and beliefs. Catholics should want prayer in school because even though some might think that Nostra Aetate says that Christians should accept all beliefs which should allow them to respect no prayer in school, Nostra Aetate still wants all of us to be drawn together threw God. “In our time, when day by day mankind is being drawn closer together, and the ties between different people are becoming stronger, the Church examines her relationship to non-Christian religions”. The Church believes that having prayer in school would bring all peoples of all kinds of religion even closer together.

Nostra Aetate’s main focus is on the ties between Christians and other religions to be stronger. So, if this is the case, Christians should advocate for all kinds of prayer of different religions to be allowed in school. This would include Muslims and Jews. “The Church regards with esteem also the Moslems. They adore the one, God, living and subsisting in Himself; merciful and all-powerful, the Creator of heaven and earth”. Muslims adore the same one, God, just as Christians do. If Christians advocate for prayer and school and support and advocate Nostra Aetate, Christians should be fine and support allowing all types of prayer including Muslim prayer. The same goes for the Jewish religion. “Since the spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews is thus so great, this sacred synod wants to foster and recommend that mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues”. In the end, Christians just want to spread their message of love and praise to Jesus Christ. “Besides, as the Church has always held and holds now, Christ underwent His passion and death freely, because of the sins of men and out of infinite love, so that all may reach salvation. It is, therefore, the burden of the Church's preaching to proclaim the cross of Christ as the sign of God's all-embracing love and as the fountain from which every grace flows”. Christians should advocate for all kinds of prayer in school to embrace all monotheistic religious beliefs to be one community in Christ.

This is a very interesting topic for me, because like I said before I have always gone to a religious school and prayed every day. I find it curious about what school is like or how different I would be if we didn’t pray. I thoroughly believe that prayer in school would help with so many of today’s issues in society. The biggest problem facing teenagers today, in my opinion, is drug use. Prayer could change kids' lives and help them with their issues. There have been countless instances where kids with drug issues acknowledge their problems and seek God for help. The best example I can give is to my mom. She had a troubled life as a teenager in high school. She got caught up in some stuff she shouldn’t have, and she, unfortunately, tried to end her life in high school. She recovered though, and she found God after it. She was never a big believer in Christianity. She called herself a Catholic, but she didn’t practice it. After this happened though, she started going to church after. She began to pray every night. She was finally happy in her life and soon after she met my dad. I am grateful my mom had the strength to find God in her life; she is the strongest woman I know. I might not be here if it wasn’t for God reaching out to her and helping her. I do not want other kids to go through this. Especially kids my age. The Center on Addiction says kids who go to public schools are “5 times likelier to use marijuana, 3 times likelier to drink, 12 times likelier to smoke, 3 times likelier to be able to get marijuana within an hour or less and 5 times likelier to get it within a day or less, and nearly 5 times likelier to have a friend or classmate who uses illegal drugs like acid, ecstasy, methamphetamine, cocaine, or heroin”. If there were to be prayer in public school, it could open up so many possibilities. Many non-religious students go to public schools. I believe we should let kids form their own beliefs without their parent’s intervention. Meaning even if a student comes from a non-religious family, he can learn about all the great things God does through a simple act of prayer. Everyone is entitled to their own beliefs, and it should not be based on the beliefs of one’s parents.

Going to a religious school my whole life has certainly shaped me into the person I am today. Going to a Jesuit school here at Loyola for the last seven years has taught me to be a “man for others”, which is something very few people have learned how to do for seven years of their lives. If I were to advise anyone wondering if going to a religious school is worth it, it is. Going to a religious school allows you to learn about Jesus, religion, and all the great things God can do for someone. It also allows for students to find friends who are like them, and it can create friendships that last forever. I have had many friends that come and go over my life, but here at Loyola, I feel like I have made my group of friends that will stick by my side forever. With what is going on today, I believe prayer will never be allowed in public schools. It seems there is such an attack on religion nowadays. People think that the Bible sends the wrong message and is filled with hate. That could not be further from the truth. However, I don’t think religion any religion will lose its followers, because people who believe in what they do will always feel they are practicing what is right. Even if prayer is never allowed in school, people should never stop praying because it can change lives.

Works Cited

• “2010 National Teen Survey Finds: More Than a Quarter of Public School Students Attend Gang- and Drug-Infected Schools.” Center on Addiction, 16 Feb. 2016, www.centeronaddiction.org/newsroom/press-releases/2010-national-teen-survey-finds. Accessed 9. January 2020.
• Paul VI. “Nostra Aetate.” In Our Time, 28 October 1965,
• http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat- ii_decl_19651028_nostra-aetate_en.html. Accessed 9. Jan 2020.
• “Pros and Cons of Prayer in School.” AllAboutHistory.org, All About History, 13 July 2005, www.allabouthistory.org/pros-and-cons-of-prayer-in-school-faq.htm. Accessed 9. January 2020.
• Hovind, Eric. “Prayer in School Affects All of Society.” Creation Today, 30 Oct. 2019, creationtoday.org/school-prayer/. Accessed 9. Jan 2020.
• “Background on School Prayer.” Religious Action Center, 3 Dec. 2015, rac.org/background-school-prayer. Accessed 9. January 2020.
• “Engel v. Vitale.” Oyez, www.oyez.org/cases/1961/468. Accessed 9. Jan 2020.