Your Basic Rights — Christian Law Association
The assault on religious liberty in public schools began in 1962 when the
United States Supreme Court suddenly decided that officially-sponsored
prayer in public schools was unconstitutional. A second blow was delivered
in 1963 when the Supreme Court decided that it was unconstitutional for
schools to begin each day with readings from the Bible.
Regardless of these legal barriers, the Christian Law Association has been
persistent in defending the rights of Christian students to express their
Christian beliefs in public school. God has rewarded these efforts by
restoring the rights of many Christian students to not only pray in school,
but also to witness.
The Rights of Christian Students
The following is a list of the activities that today are legally permissible
for Christian students in public schools:
- Nonsectarian, non-proselytizing,
student-initiated prayer at public school-related events is permitted in
Florida, Georgia, and Alabama, provided there is no oversight or
supervision from the school. More than likely, the same standards would
apply in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
- Students in every state are free to
personally express themselves in prayer, such as before a meal, a
sporting event, or a test. Students may read the Bible or other
devotional material during free-reading times or study halls. Students
may use notebooks, pencils, and other material with religious logos or
sayings, including Bible verses.
- Christian messages on T-shirts, other
clothing, or jewelry may be worn unless there is a school uniform
requirement that applies equally to everyone. For example, it is a
violation of a student’s free-speech rights for a principal to require
that a student turn his pro-life T-shirt inside out while at school.
- Students may write book reports, present
speeches, prepare show-and-tell displays, or do artwork using religious
themes, provided such assignments closely follow the teacher’s
instructions. For example, when an assignment calls for students to
bring in their favorite book to read to the class, a teacher must permit
a Christian student to read from the Christian book they describe as
their favorite.
- Religious viewpoints may be shared as part
of general class discussions when appropriate to the topic.
- Equal access to school newspapers must be
given to Christian students on the same basis as is given to students
with a non-Christian point of view. Students may sing religious music in
a general concert program; such music is not devotional in a concert
setting but has general historical and cultural value.
- Students may gather on their own time for
devotions before or after the school day. Students may distribute
Christian literature to fellow students or teachers on school grounds,
outside class hours.
- Voluntary, student-initiated Bible clubs
may meet on public secondary school premises during non-instructional
time if other non-curriculum related student groups are also permitted
to meet.
- In Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and Utah, a student volunteer may deliver nonsectarian and non-proselytizing invocations and benedictions at public high school graduation ceremonies. All over this country, a student may speak of God and may offer a prayer in a nonsectarian and non-proselytizing way in a student address at graduation.
The Rights of Christian Teachers and
School Employees
The right of teachers and other school officials to share their Christian
faith is much more limited than the rights of students. A teacher must
remain totally neutral about religious matters. Indeed, teachers MAY NOT
do the following:
- Read the Bible or tell Bible stories in
the classroom;
- Conduct devotional exercises;
- Pray in the classroom or during
extra-curricular events, such as sports games;
- Witness to students in any way while on school grounds.
Teachers MAY do the following:
- Although teachers may not lead prayer in
schools, the states of Georgia and Massachusetts permit classroom
teachers to conduct a moment of quiet reflection, meditation, or prayer
at the beginning of the school day.
- Public school teachers are permitted to
teach values and moral codes in a religiously-neutral way in the
classroom even if the values and moral codes are those practiced by
various religious groups. Teachers may promote truth, compassion,
sharing, and abstinence from destructive habits as positive values for
society. Teachers may also teach about religion as part of the academic
curriculum -- including the history of religions, comparative religions,
biblical literature, and the role of religion in American history and in
the history of other countries. The history of religious holidays may
also be taught. While teachers may not subjectively discuss their own
faith with students in the classroom, they may objectively answer
student questions about what various religions believe.
- Teachers may arrange to meet students
outside school hours, off campus -- at a McDonald’s or at the teacher’s
church, for example -- to witness to students who are asking questions
about spiritual matters. A faculty member may meet with the student
leaders of Bible clubs off campus in order to assist them and train them
to lead other students.
- One Florida teacher who contacted the
Christian Law Association was initially frustrated by this restriction,
but chose to use the situation to mentor a few student leaders in an
off-campus setting in how to disciple other students. It was exciting
for this teacher to then see the students take an active role in leading
their classmates to Christ, something that might not have developed so
well had the students relied on the teacher to do the witnessing
herself.
- It is also legal for the coach of a sports team to organize a voluntary prayer time off school property before the players are scheduled to gather on the field.
The Rights of Local Churches and Ministries
There are multiple opportunities for outside community groups to defend
Christian education in public schools.
For instance, people of faith have direct access to public school students
on the sidewalk areas that encircle school property.
- These individuals may not be prevented
from witnessing or distributing tracts on public sidewalks outside
schools, as long as the free-speech activity remains orderly, the noise
level does not exceed appropriate limits, and there is no interference
with the educational activity of the school.
- In some cases, Christian groups will even
have access to students on school property. A Christian group will be
entitled to such access if school officials have already permitted
representatives from groups such as the Little League, the 4-H Club, the
Boy Scouts, or any other groups to distribute informational pamphlets to
students during the school day.
- For example, Gideons have used the principle of equal access to gain the right to distribute Bibles to students on school property during non-instructional times in the school day. The most under-used method by which groups can reach public school children is a Release Time program. If approved by a school board and with parental permission, students may leave the school for no more than one-hour-per-week in order to attend religious instruction.
While there is constant legal pressure to further resist these freedoms, God’s people must be diligent to exercise the liberties currently available. The future of America depends on the training and heart which is instilled in the young people of today.
