Imagine a country where the criminals are freed and the church-goers are threatened and fined.
This is happening in the USA right now.
Louisiana pastor arrested for holding services.Central Police Chief Roger Corcoran called Spell’s decision to hold service despite the social distancing orders “reckless and irresponsible.”
BUT ALL THOSE CHURCH-GOERS CAN "MEET" AT WALMART AND SHOP, SQUEEZING DOWN AISLES, INCHES FROM ONE ANOTHER.
THEY COULD ALL RIDE THE SUBWAY IN NEW YORK CITY.
BUT NO CHURCH MEETINGS.
IT'S BEEN ONGOING FOR DECADES.
"...the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1962 and 1963 decision that school-sponsored Bible reading was unconstitutional.
“One can argue, and some have, that the decision by the Supreme Court – in a series of three decisions back in 1962 and 1963, to remove Bible and prayer from our public schools, may be the most spiritually significant event in our nation’s history over the course of the last 55 years."
EXPELLED FOR CHRISTIAN BELIEFS
JULY 8, 2010
OUTCOME? U.S. District Judge George Caram Steeh dismissed [Julea] Ward’s lawsuit against Eastern Michigan University. She was removed from the school’s counseling program last year because she refused to counsel homosexual clients.
The university contended she violated school policy and the American Counseling Association code of ethics.
The case is similar to a lawsuit the [Alliance Defense Fund] filed against Augusta State University in Georgia.
Counseling student Jennifer Keeton was allegedly told to stop sharing her Christian beliefs in order to graduate.
Keeton’s lawsuit alleged that she was told to undergo a reeducation program and attend “diversity sensitivity training.”
REEDUCATION PROGRAM?
LIKE THEY HAD IN CHINA WHEN MAO WAS IN POWER?
Second Grader Banned From Reading Bible During “Read to Myself” Time
“More than forty years ago, the Supreme Court famously stated that students do NOT ‘shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.’ That means that second graders have the right to read the Bible during ‘read to myself’ time.”
STUDENTS FACE INCREASING RELIGIOUS HOSTILITY
In just the past year alone we have defended the religious liberty of:
-High school valedictorians told they can’t mention their faith in graduation speeches,
-High school cheerleaders banned from using inspiring Bible verses on banners at football games,
-A college student told to remove her cross necklace because it might offend someone,
-A class of college students ordered to write JESUS on a paper and then stomp on it or be punished."
RECENTLY:
Calif. County Bans Churches from Singing in Online Services April 14, 2020
Mendocino County in Northern California released the order April 10, saying the referenced rules run through at least May 10 and apply to churches, concert halls, auditoriums, temples and playhouses. Any recording or live-streamed event must be limited to four individuals at the venue, with all social distancing rules being practiced.
The county’s order targets churches with multiple people on stage singing and playing instruments.
“No singing or use of wind instruments, harmonicas, or other instruments that could spread COVID-19 through projected droplets shall be permitted unless the recording of the event is done at one’s residence, and involving only the members of one’s household or living unit, because of the increased risk of transmission of COVID-19,” the order says.
In 2011, the class president at Hampton High School in Tennessee wanted to deliver a prayer at graduation.
The principal issued an edict that any child who attempted to pray would be stopped, escorted from the building by police and arrested.
NO DRIVE-IN CHURCHES, BUT DRIVE IN TO LIQUOR STORES?
Much of seminary president Albert Mohler's recent column referenced the banning of drive-in churches, as has happened in several locations.
Although churches “should follow generally applicable shelter-in-place orders,” they should not be singled out, Mohler wrote.
“During this crisis, governments must determine what services are essential to society and those that can be suspended in order to slow the spread of the virus,” Mohler wrote. “However, we have a major problem when governments indicate that liquor stores and pet stores are essential but religious services are not. When governments assert that abortions are essential but singing in a streamed worship service is just too unsafe and nonessential, then we have slipped into a complete upending of the American constitutional order.
“Government should never be in the position to derail any religious ministry and deem it nonessential. That is, on its face, completely unconstitutional,” Mohler concluded.
Greenville, MS Mayor Waives $500 Tickets Given to Congregants Attending Drive-In Church Service.
APRIL 14, 2020
The mayor of Greenville, Mississippi said Monday that he has waived the $500 tickets that were issued to Temple Baptist Church congregants at an April 8 drive-in church service, CBN News reports.
Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons’ announcement comes after he initially approved an executive order on April 7 that prohibits drive-in services.
Reports say eight Greenville police officers issued $500 tickets to congregants who refused to leave a parking lot where Temple Baptist Church was having a drive-in service on April 8. Church members were parked in the church’s parking lot with their windows rolled up, listening to a sermon broadcast.
THIS DISCRIMINATION AGAINST AND TARGETING OF CHRISTIANS AND CHURCHES IS NOT NEW.
CAN A TEACHER WEAR RELIGIOUS GARB TO SCHOOL, PROVIDED THE TEACHER DOES NOT PROSELYTIZE TO THE STUDENTS?
The First Amendment Center’s A Teacher’s Guide to Religion in the Public Schools provides that “teachers are permitted to wear non-obtrusive jewelry, such as a cross or Star of David. But teachers should not wear clothing with a proselytizing message (e.g. a ‘Jesus Saves’ T-shirt).”
Can the government ever interfere with someone’s religious practices?
Under current constitutional law, the government CAN impose restrictions on a religious belief or practice, as long as the law in question applies to everyone and does not target a specific religion or religious practice.
IS IT LEGAL FOR STUDENTS TO PRAY IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS?
Yes...BUT...
The Supreme Court has never actually "outlawed “prayer in schools.
Students are free to pray alone or in groups, as long as such prayers are not disruptive and do not infringe upon the rights of others.
But this right “to engage in voluntary prayer does NOT include the right to have a captive audience listen or to compel other students to participate.” (This is the language supported by a broad range of civil liberties and religious groups in a joint statement of current law.)
What the Supreme Court has repeatedly struck down are state-sponsored or state-organized prayers in public schools.
The Supreme Court has made clear that prayers organized or sponsored by a public school — even when delivered by a student — violate the First Amendment, whether in a classroom, over the public address system, at a graduation exercise, or even at a high school football game. (Engel v. Vitale, 1962; School Dist. of Abington Township v. Schempp, 1963; Lee v. Weisman, 1992; Santa Fe Independent School. Dist. v. Doe, 2000)
BOTTOM LINE?
YOU HAVE TO HIDE THAT YOU'RE PRAYING AND NOT PRAY ALOUD.
INCREASING PERSECUTION
Since 2014 there has been a 76 percent increase in religious freedom violations, according to “Hostility to Religion: The Growing Threat to Religious Liberty in America.”
Family Research Council president Tony Perkins said, “This report is designed to quantify the threat to our First freedom and to challenge Americans to use their God-given freedoms to protect these freedoms we enjoy as Americans,”
Among the cases listed in the report:
· -- An 11-year-old student in Hattiesburg, Mississippi was penalized for mentioning Jesus in a Christmas poetry assignment.
-- Pace High School Principal Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freedom of the Santa Rosa County school district in Florida were charged with criminal contempt because they prayed over a meal at school. They were later found not guilty of violating an injunction banning the promotion of religious events at school.
The ACLU also requested documents from the Escambia County School District that might relate to religion or prayer. Specifically, the ACLU requested records from Escambia Schools about graduations and baccalaureate services. The ACLU public records requests also asked for the notes of all speakers at the event as well as any audio or video recordings of the events. The ACLU request extended to all schools in Escambia County, including Northview High School.
--· A Christian A cappella group at James Madison University in Virginia was told they could not perform “Mary Did You Know” because it was religious. They were directed to only sing secular songs.
The name of the report is “Hostility to Religion: The Growing Threat to Religious Liberty in America.”
A few other religious violations listed in the report include:
-- The Federal Reserve forced an Oklahoma bank to remove Christmas decorations. (God forbid we celebrate a holiday that’s been around for 2,000 years.)
-- The Freedom from Religion Foundation protested having Mother Theresa on a stamp. Why? Because she was a religious figure. (She was also a Nobel Peace Prize recipient.)
--In 2011, the Obama Administration was against placing a copy of a D-Day prayer on a World War II memorial in Washington, D.C. The kicker is: the prayer was by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. (Three years later, they allowed it.)
--The Freedom from Religion Foundation sued the city of Santa Clara, California. The city’s crime? They displayed a granite cross in Memorial Cross Park. (Wow! If you can’t have a cross in a park named “Memorial Cross Park,” where can you have one?)
--An Ohio library banned a Christian group from meeting to discuss traditional marriage. The library told the group they had to include supporters of same-sex marriage. (Let me turn the tables: Would they force a group wishing to discuss same-sex marriage to include those who support traditional marriage?)
--In 2012, the government banned prayers at a homeless shelter in Evansville, Illinois. Even though the prayers were open to all and were not required. (Now, they only allow a moment of silence.)
--San Diego firefighters were threatened with discipline if they refused to participate in a gay pride parade. (The firefighters were then insulted during the parade.)
--In 2013, the Freedom from Religion Foundation (yes, them again) demanded that the city of Coos Bay, Oregon remove its Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial. Guess why? Because it includes a cross. (So far, the city has refused to remove it.)
There are too many examples of attempts to remove nativity scenes, “In God We Trust” mottoes, Christian monuments and symbols, ban Bibles in public places and “God Bless America” signs to include here.
NO HANDING OUT BIBLES ON CAMPUS
May Bibles from third-parties be distributed in public schools?
Courts have uniformly decided that Bibles from third parties CANNOT be distributed in public elementary schools and the vast majority of courts have decided that Bibles CANNOT be distributed in public middle or high schools, as well.
ONE decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit allowed for "passive" distribution of Bibles from a third party.
However, under the relevant policy, teachers or other school personnel could have NO active or passive involvement with the distribution, including having no custody over the Bibles.
Additionally, the policy placed numerous other restrictions on the distribution.
[See Roark, 573 F.3d 556; Berger, 982 F.2d 1160; Roe, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32793; Jabr, 171 F. Supp. 2d 653 (W.D. LA 2001)]
NO CLERGY ON CAMPUS EXCEPT FOR SECULAR REASONS, BUT IT'S OKAY TO HAVE 'DRAG QUEEN STORY HOUR', CLASSES ON ISLAM, CLASSES ON BECOMING TRANSGENDER, CLASSES ON MARXISM.
During school hours may clergy or other third-parties visit public schools to proselytize or otherwise religiously indoctrinate students?
Schools are not required to allow any third parties on campus during school hours to meet or have discussions with students on any subject.
Other than for the purposes of Equal Access Act Clubs (see Chapter 9), if third parties are allowed on campus during school hours, they should not proselytize or otherwise religiously indoctrinate students.
[UNLESS THEY ARE LGBTQ, MUSLIM, ATHEISTS, EVOLUTIONISTS, HUMANISTS, JUST ABOUT ANYTHING EXCEPT JUDEO-CHRISTIAN.]
However, there are limited cases indicating that clergy are permitted on campus during school hours to meet or have discussions with students on secular subjects, provided that clergy do not wear clerical garb and that non-clergy or secular professionals are permitted to meet with students on the same terms and conditions.
OTHER EXAMPLES
(1) Florida Ministry Told To Choose Between Jesus And Helping The Poor:
"For the past 31 years, the Christian ministry has been providing food to the hungry in Lake City, Fla. without any problems. But all that changed when they said a state government worker showed up to negotiate a new contract. ...A state agriculture department official told them they would not be allowed to receive USDA food unless they removed portraits of Christ, the Ten Commandments, a banner that read 'Jesus is Lord' and stopped giving Bibles to the needy." When the government tells the Christian Service Center it has to give up on Christ or quit using USDA food to help the poor, that’s religious discrimination.
(2) California Christians Found “Not Guilty” of Reading Bible Near Government Offices:
"A court has said that a pair of Christians were ‘allowed’ to read the Bible aloud outside the Department of Motor Vehicles in Hemet, California. Wasn’t it kind of the government courts in California to say that these Christians were allowed to have their rights to free religious expression? ...Back in 2011 Mark Mackey and Bret Coronado were arrested and charged with misdemeanor offenses for reading the Bible outside the DMV location. ... But on August 13, Superior Court Judge Timothy Freer found the men ‘not guilty’ of any offenses.
Interestingly, the judge also pointed out that the law prosecutors tried to invoke was likely unconstitutional as it gave law enforcement over-broad powers to quash public gatherings in the first place. Sadly, this case did not go toward settling the constitutionality of the law, but it was a victory of sorts to have the judge even mention the fact."
(3) Detroit, Michigan (May 6, 2013) — After more than two years of intense motion practice and discovery, the City of Dearborn has agreed to enter into a settlement that includes a public apology for arresting several Christian missionaries who were peacefully preaching to Muslims at the Dearborn Arab International Festival in 2010.
(4) Senior Master Sgt. Phillip Monk found himself at odds with his Lackland Air Force Base commander after he objected to her plans to severely punish an instructor who had expressed religious objections to homosexuality. During the conversation, his commander ordered him to share his personal views on homosexuality.
“I was relieved of my position because I don’t agree with my commander’s position on gay marriage,” he told me. “We’ve been told that if you publicly say that homosexuality is wrong, you are in violation of Air Force policy.”
The accusations against Monk are a court-martial offense in the Air Force – and it’s quite possible that the 19-year veteran with a spotless record could be booted out of the military because of his Christian beliefs.
And he’s not the only Christian at Lackland Air Force Base facing persecution for opposing gay marriage, according to Monk’s pastor.
(5) Government Forces Churches To Get Permits For Baptisms:
The Park Service recently began a new policy requiring churches that wished to hold baptisms in public waters to apply for a special permit at least 48 hours in advance of the baptism. The Park Service justified this recent demand by saying that the permits were necessary to “maintain park natural/cultural resources and quality visitor experiences, specific terms and conditions have been established.”
…On August 21, Rep. Jason Smith (Missouri, R) heeded the complaints of his constituents and wrote a letter to the NPS asking what the heck was going on…
…Between citizen outrage and Rep. Smith’s threat to bring the matter before the full Congress, however, the Park Service quickly reversed its new policy, writing to the Congressman that, “As of today, the park’s policy has been clarified to state that no permit will be required for baptisms within the Riverways. I can assure you the National Park Service has no intention of limiting the number of baptisms performed within the park.”
When the government demands that a church get a permit to do baptisms, it’s also tacitly saying it has the right to deny that permit. That's not acceptable.
(6) Florida Professor Demands Student Stomp On Jesus:
It all started with a conflict between an antagonistic professor and one brave student at Florida Atlantic University.
Ryan Rotela was told by his professor to write Jesus Christ’s name on a piece of paper and stomp on it. Rotela defiantly refused and in retaliation, a formal disciplinary action was started against him.
But, before the system could roll over Rotela, a funny thing happened. The word about what was happening to him got out, Christians became outraged, and suddenly the university’s tune quickly changed. “FAU’s Senior Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. Charles Brown, has since issued a groveling formal apology.” Next thing you know, the disciplinary action was waved off.
Now, comes word that the professor, Deandre Poole, has been put on administrative leave following a withering public response, that included complaints from the Governor of Florida, Rick Scott.
Unfortunately, that story didn't have a happy ending. Even after the governor got involved, Deandre Poole still kept his job. However, had Christians not risen up, the student who refused to stomp on Jesus would have been the one punished while the professor would have paid no price at all. Moreover, you can be sure there won't be any more Jesus stomping going on in the classrooms at Florida Atlantic University any time soon.
(7) U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Resolve Public Schools’ Double Standard in Promoting Islam while Disparaging Christianity.
ANN ARBOR, MI—The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to review the case of Caleigh Wood, a Christian eleventh-grade public high school student in Maryland who, despite threats of receiving a failing grade, refused to deny her faith by making a written profession of the Muslim conversion prayer known as the Shahada—“There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
She was also forced to view a series of pro-Islamic PowerPoint slides, including one that stated, “Most Muslims’ faith is stronger than the average Christian.” The high school’s content specialist, Jack Tuttle, testified that use of such comparative statement was inappropriate and that he would have advised the teacher not to use it.
Nevertheless, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals opined that the teaching did not violate the Establishment Clause.
CAN WE IMAGINE WHAT THE SCOTUS WOULD HAVE RULED HAD ANY MUSLIM BEEN FORCED TO WRITE OR REPEAT A CHRISTIAN PRAYER?
MAINSTREAM MEDIA WOULD HAVE GONE BALLISTIC AS WELL.
(8) Army Ranger Chaplain Punished for Being Christian
A chaplain in Georgia is under fire for talking about his Christian beliefs in an Army suicide prevention training session.
On Nov. 20, Army Chaplain Joesph Lawhorn spoke about his struggles with depression and how he used the Bible to overcome the problem.
One of the soldiers at the seminar complained to an atheist group about the presentation.
(9) Michigan’s Systematic Inquisition of Parents Over Religious Objection to Vaccines Leads to Federal Lawsuit.
TMLC brought the law suit on behalf of Tara Nikolao, a devout Catholic, registered nurse, and mother of four. Mrs. Nikolao objects to vaccines manufactured from aborted fetal cells and other vaccines on religious grounds. Her lawsuit claims that government employees violate the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses of the First Amendment, the religious protections in Michigan’s Constitution, and a Michigan statute when they subject parents to detailed interrogation about their religious beliefs.
The Michigan legislature enacted a statute in 1978 to protect the right of parents to exempt their children from vaccinations because of religious beliefs. For nearly 40 years, this mandatory religious exemption remained unchanged. All that parents had to do was state in writing that they cannot comply with the vaccination requirements because of their religious beliefs. Mrs. Nikolao exercised her statutory right to a religious exemption approximately 10 times before a new rule was implemented in December 2014. This new administrative rule requires parents to drive to local health departments, submit to a religious inquisition, and explain their religious beliefs to local health department employees in order to receive a waiver.
In October 2015, in an effort to comply with the new rule, Mrs. Nikolao took time off work, packed her four children into the car, and drove approximately an hour to the Wayne County Health Department office in an attempt to obtain a religious exemption. Upon her arrival, two health department employees bullied and harassed Mrs. Nikolao because of her religious beliefs.
When Mrs. Nikolao explained that she had a religious objection to vaccines, the health department employees demanded that Mrs. Nikolao explain her actual reason for objecting. Despite Mrs. Nikolao’s repeated insistence in the face of berating questions from State employees that her personal religious beliefs did not allow her to vaccinate her children—a belief that the Michigan legislature enacted a statute to protect,—the health department employees would not accept her religious objection and insisted that no religions object to vaccines.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (“MDHHS”) instructs local health department employees to implement this religious examination and inculcation by providing county employees with a document to “teach” parents their faith. The document entitled “Religion” is used as a tool by county health departments to coerce and trick parents with religious objections to vaccines into vaccinating their children.
[See the Document Here]
Kate Oliveri, TMLC attorney handling the case commented: “The new rule allows government employees to take on the role of priests and pastors, molding religious beliefs to further the State’s agenda. This is antithetical to the religious protections found in the Federal and Michigan constitutions and the religious protections enacted by the Michigan legislature.”
In Mrs. Nikolao’s case, health department employees used the MDHHS Religion document, which falsely attributes a quote to Pope Benedict XVI, in an attempt to coerce her into violating her beliefs by vaccinating her children.
The documents claims that, according to Pope Benedict XVI, “parents who chose not to give vaccines derived from [aborted fetal] cells would be in ‘more proximate cooperation with evil’ than those who gave their children the vaccines in question because of the life-saving nature of vaccines.”
Pope Benedict never made such a statement.
Moral Reflections, the Vatican document produced on vaccines containing the cells of aborted children by the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life, also did not contain any condemnation of parents who refuse to vaccinate, especially not the MDHHS characterization of parents who do not vaccinate their children as “evil.”
[Read Moral Reflections Here]
CHURCHES HAD TO CLOSE THEIR DOORS
SURELY SHE HOLDS TO THE RALLYING CRY OF PRO-ABORTIONISTS WHO SAY THAT A WOMAN'S BODY IS HER OWN AND THAT WOMEN HAVE A RIGHT TO HAVE AN ABORTION, HAVE A RIGHT TO REMOVE A FETUS FROM THEIR BODIES, WITHOUT ANY RIGHT OF A LIVING FETUS OR RIGHT OF A FATHER OF THE CHILD TO STOP SAID REMOVAL.
WHAT ABOUT A PERSON'S RIGHT TO REJECT ANYTHING BEING PLACED INTO THEIR BODIES OR THE BODIES OF THEIR CHILDREN?
IS "MY BODY, MY DECISION" JUST FOR PRO-ABORTIONISTS?
IF THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF A VIABLE FETUS DON'T COME INTO PLAY WHEN A WOMAN MAKES A CHOICE TO DISPOSE OF ONE, WHY THE OUTRAGE WHEN A PARENT MAKES A DECISION TO NOT INTRODUCE FOREIGN SUBSTANCES/DRUGS INTO THEMSELVES OR THEIR OWN CHILD WHOM THEY CHOSE TO GIVE BIRTH TO?
IF RELIGIOUS BELIEFS, CONCERN FOR SAFETY, COMMON SENSE, OR RESEARCH CAUSES A PARENT TO REFUSE VACCINES, HOW DARE A PRO-ABORTIONIST PROTEST?
The U. S. Supreme Court through a series of decisions starting in the 1960s, has incrementally engineered the de-Christianization of our nation while most Christians are sitting silently in the pews.
APRIL 28 2016
Several senators have introduced a bill that would deem "all efforts to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity an 'unfair or deceptive act or practice' under the Federal Trade Commission Act."
That's right. It would be illegal — a form of "medical malpractice" — to counsel someone struggling with same-sex attraction or gender identify confusion, but it would be perfectly legal to encourage someone to embrace those attractions or act on that confusion.
Already in 2009, conservative journalist Matthew Cullinan Hoffman wryly observed:
"A man goes to a psychologist with a problem. "Doctor," he says, "I'm suffering terribly. I feel like a woman trapped inside the body of a man. I want to become a woman."
The psychologist responds: "No problem. We can discuss this idea for a couple of years, and if you're still sure you want to be a woman, we can have a surgeon remove your penis, give you hormones for breast enlargement and make other changes to your body. Problem solved."
Gratified, the first patient leaves, followed by a second. "Doctor," he says, "I feel terrible. I'm a man but I feel attracted to other men. I want to change my sexual preference. I want to become heterosexual."
The psychologist responds: "Oh no, absolutely not! That would be unethical. Sexual orientation is an immutable characteristic!"
Student Religious Expression: Individual student expression may not be suppressed simply because it is religious. For example, the Division filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case of a group of Massachusetts high school students who were suspended for handing out candy canes to other students with religious messages attached.
The court agreed that the students' First Amendment rights had been violated.
In another case, a group of Muslim high school students in Texas alleged that while other student groups had been allowed to meet during lunch periods, their request for space to kneel and say midday prayers during lunch period was denied.
The Division reached a settlement agreement with the school in May 2007 allowing students to meet in a designated space in a common area outside of the cafeteria.
Religious Dress: Schools may not discriminate against students who wear religious clothes or head coverings. In Hearn and United States v. Muskogee Public School District, the Civil Rights Division intervened in the case of a Muslim girl who was told that she could not wear a headscarf required by her faith to school. The Civil Rights Division's suit was based on the fact that the school was enforcing its uniform policy in an inconsistent manner. The case was settled by consent decree in May 2004.
Religious Holidays: The Civil Rights Division filed a brief in the case of a boy in Indiana who was threatened with suspension, and his mother threatened with child neglect, when he missed several days of school for religious holidays. The school permitted only one excused absence per year for religious holidays, even though more days were permitted for secular reasons including attending the state fair and serving as a page in the state legislature. The case was settled.
If you believe your educational rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with the Civil Rights Division's Educational Opportunities Section.
Religious Liberty Protection Kit for Students and Teachers
25 Surprising Facts About Religious Rights in Public Schools
1. Students and educators do have First Amendment religious rights inside public schools.
2. Students can speak about their faith even when teachers must be neutral.
3. Schools cannot treat religious activity differently than other activity.
4. Students can pray during lunch, recess, or other designated free time.
5. Students can pray silently during a school’s moment of silence.
6. Students can read the Bible or other religious materials at school.
7. Students can share their faith with fellow students.
8. Schools can acknowledge religion.
9. Students can pray, either individually or as a group, at school athletic competitions, student assemblies, or other extracurricular activities when school officials are not involved.
10. In many cases, a school district can allow studentled prayer before an athletic competition (such as a football game), a student assembly, or other extracurricular event as part of the school program.
11. Students can pray at graduation ceremonies or include religious content in their speeches.
12. A public school can refer to “Christmas” and have a “Christmas party” if the intent is not to advance Christianity.
13. A public school can display Christmas decorations if the intent is to teach and not part of a religious exercise.
14. A public school can include religious Christmas music, art, or drama in a school play or performance if it is used to teach history or cultural heritage and not advance a particular religion.
15. Students can give out Christmas gifts with religious messages at school parties.
16. Students can incorporate their faith or religion in classroom and homework assignments under normal and appropriate circumstances.
17. A public school district cannot be hostile toward religious beliefs.
18. Teachers and other public school employees can discuss religion with students under many conditions.
19. Teachers and other public school employees can discuss religion with other teachers or other school employees.
20. A public school or a teacher cannot limit religious speech by students unless they limit other speech.
21. Students can have a religious club at their school.
22. Religious student groups can meet on campus whenever other non-curricular clubs can meet.
23. Religious clubs can use the same school resources available to non-religious clubs (e.g., school facilities, bulletin boards, public address system) to promote or facilitate club events.
24. In most states, teachers or other public school employees may attend a religious student group’s meetings in a supervisory role.
25. Members of religious student clubs can distribute flyers about meetings and events just like non-religious clubs.
The First Amendment prohibits a school district and its employees from being hostile toward religious beliefs and expression.
The proper role of a school district is to remain neutral and accommodating toward private religious beliefs. Unlike the government, students may promote specific religious beliefs or practices.
The U.S. Supreme Court stated that “nothing in the Constitution as interpreted by this Court prohibits any public school student from voluntarily praying at ANY time before, during, or after the school day.”
Can students verbally share their faith with fellow students?
Yes, if a school allows students to freely converse with each other about various topics during non-instructional time, then students can also share their faith verbally with fellow students
KNOW YOUR "INALIENABLE RIGHTS", AMERICA, TEACH THEM TO YOUR CHILDREN, AND NEVER GIVE THEM UP.
STAND FOR YOUR FAITH, YOUR BELIEFS; NEVER BOW TO OTHERS WHO CONDEMN THEM OR WHO DISAGREE THAT WE HAVE A RIGHT TO THEM.
//WW
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