REPORT PAPER

Prayer in Public Schools

Prayer in Public Schools

Introduction

The Supreme Court of United States, along with lower federal courts has always affirmed that school-sponsored prayer through normal school timings, and Bible reading for sectarian reasons is unlawful. These problems have offered an overabundance of lawsuit centering on church-state affairs. The First Amendment has barred the Congress from legislating any rule allowing or prohibiting the religious services in the schools. The First Amendment's religious liberties, just not merely defends from Congress, it also safeguards against the person from subjective acts of the states (Cantwell v. Connecticut, 1940). On the base of the institutional and liberated use sections of the First Amendment, judges have to decide the legality of such queries as permitting prayer and Bible reading in the public schools, in usual school hours, silent prayer, and prayer at graduations or football games, release-time programs, and authorizing spiritual assembly to convene on school premises.

Prayer and Bible Reading

The Supreme Court's decisions in 1962 held that everyday recital of a New York State Board of Regents prayer in the attendance of an educator, was unlawful and in breach of the Establishment Clause. Neither state, nor school, nor teacher can hold religious services of any type in the public schools. The Court did assert, however, that the study of the Bible as part of a secular program of education for its literary and historic values would not be unconstitutional.

Silent Prayer

Since Engel and Schempp, the courts have decided a number of school prayer cases. Many state constitutions, statutes, and school board policies changed, thereby permitting voluntary prayer in the public schools. Teachers and students both have maintained that the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment permits them to conduct silent prayers in the classroom. This issue settled by the U.S. Supreme Court in Wallace v. Jaffree, 1985. The Court held that a period of silence for meditation or voluntary prayer in the public schools is unconstitutional (Wallace v. Jaffree, 1985).

Prayer at Graduation and Extracurricular Activities

Courts asked to render a decision on the constitutionality of prayers at graduation day workout plus any other extracurricular activities sponsored by the school such as football, squad practices, and pop group concerts. The U.S. Supreme Court in Lee v. Weisman, 1992 held that prayers organized by school officials at graduation exercises were unconstitutional. The Court opined that while some common ground of moral and ethical behavior is highly desirable for ...