This is a problem that will not go away. Not only because of the mental shift toward secular humanism that is apparent in our society, but also because of the pervasive ignorance among so-called "educators," and the powerful resolve of atheist activists. I'm talking not merely about religious discrimination, but about the cynicism, skepticism, and increasingly apparent hatred directed at Christianity in particular.
It goes like this: Public School officials in America today, allow and promote all sorts of vile, vulgar and destructive expressions of self throughout the educational setting, dismissing them as nothing more than where our society has progressed to and the innocent truths of today's youth. You know what I'm talking about: sexual promiscuity, championing gay lifestyles, drug-addicts turned heroes simply because they go clean, pagan-satanic rituals, and of course, evolution and humanism that deny the truth and existence of God.
At the same time, they prohibit a 10 year old boy from wearing a Jesus costume as his way of saying "NO" to the pagan message he believed was inherent in the school's holloween activities. Not only was he told he could not wear a plastic crown of thorns, he was not allowed to mention the name of Jesus. (See, Boy Who Wanted To Wear Jesus Costume Sues at www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17266174/)
The legal problems with the school's actions are many and obvious. It's fairly well settled that an individual student's expression of religion may not be suppressed simply because it is religious. That holds true whether the religious "speech" (and it's obvious that wearing a Jesus costume to protest holloween school activities is most definitely religious speech) is expressed outside of organized school activities, or in the context of non-curricular expressive activities in which students are given freedom to choose their own speech, and then are censored when they choose something with religious content.
This happens often. The instant case is a good example of allowing school children the freedom to choose their own speech… so long as it is not Christian in nature. But most champions of religious rights and protectors of the Christian faith can point to many other examples, often perpetrated by public school officials against children with a strong Christian faith. I can recall off the top of my head the case where an elementary public school teacher assigned a report to her students on "Who Is My Hero." When a Christian boy in her class turned in a report on Jesus, not only did she give it back and give him a failing grade, but the school district backed her up with a "scorch the earth" mentality and resolve. In a more recent case, an elementary school student chose a Christian song for a school talent show that was held in the evening. She was censored because of the Christian message it sent.
These are blatant violations of our children's First Amendment rights, on many levels. Not only is it apparent from legal precedent, but it's also apparent from a simple, logical review of the facts. I doubt that, in organizing holloween activities, school officials first asked whether the organizing administrator had a leaning toward the occult or satanism. There is no indication that they censored any other costumes, including those of witches and devils, as expressive of a religion. (Of course, that would defeat the purpose of the activities at hand.) And I strongly doubt that had someone shown up in a costume of Buddha or Hare Krishna anyone would have batted an eye.
But, should anyone even suggest the name or idea of Jesus, public school officials come out fighting with all guns blazing. It signifies a pervasive and disturbing ignorance about what separation of church and state in America means. School administrators seem to think it means "do not allow expressions of Christianity in any form and in connection with any school setting or activity whatsoever." Nothing could be further from the truth.
Let us not forget where much of this comes from. There are many negative, destructive and evil forces at work in this world. It is, after all, the work of the darkest of enemies. But he works through ignorance and hatred. I believe that when public school officials so blatantly and mercilessly discriminate, not against religion, per se, but against Christianity in particular, it had to start in another place and another time. Too many people today have turned their backs on Jesus because they're more attracted by the lies of the world. They believe the answers to life lie in their own discoveries and inventions. Many think psychology and philosophy are the supreme theories that will solve humanity's problems.
When people's lives go awry, they blame God. When the world beats them up, they blame the Lord. When they can't escape their own slavery to sin, whatever form it takes, they blame it on Christ. When they don't want to face the fact that their lives may at times seem meaningless and purposeless, they try to deny the meaning and purpose of the cross. It's the loss of faith and the lure of the world. More than ever, people worship the idols of money, beauty, success, pleasure, and possessions. It isn't convenient to believe in a Christ who teaches us to deny ourselves.
And then there's the atheist movement. What else can we say about atheism, except that it's everywhere, even in public school administration. But here's a telltale sign that even atheists, despite their activism, fear Jesus Christ. They fight with all their might to keep His name out of every place imaginable. I suppose the good news, aside from the fact that Jesus cannot be denied, is that He cannot be stopped. Have you heard the one about the convention of atheists who were in the middle of singing their denial song when a mighty earthquake struck and the walls began to tumble? Well, they all knelt down to pray that their lives be spared.
And that is where much of the problem lies. Somewhere deep inside, people know the truth and power of God, but cannot stand the fact that it convicts their soul. So they do their best to prop up a secular system, purporting to lean on the power of law and the authority of policy to deny what is really going on in themselves and in society. They deny that God is watching. That he cannot be mocked. That He cannot be denied. That Christ is what's missing.
Does anyone really believe that public school officials really thought that by allowing a 10 year old boy to wear a Jesus costume at a holloween activity, that the school district would get in trouble for promoting religion? Would allowing a child to write a report about Jesus as their hero, that only one teacher gets to see, promote Christianity? Would allowing an elementary school girl to sing a Christian song at an evening talent show amount to the school itself promoting the Christian faith? Obviously, the answer is No, No and No. Even if they suggested that was their fear, where did they get their facts or legal research from? It's obvious that they either do not have legal counsel, or they have one that knows very little about this area of law.
School districts always point to a "policy" that does not allow the targeted speech, as though the word "policy" carried inherent authority or meaning. The truth is that policies can be based on anything, including ignorance, lack of research, and a strong anti-Christian influence in the political and administrative ranks of a school district. The time has come for public school officials to wake up and understand that the law is settled. And that their harassment of small children and discrimination against all things Christian in a public school setting are ill-advised and an exercise in futility.
Their tact, in discouraging expressions of faith, is to overwhelm the faithful Christian with seemingly insurmountable odds. In other words, they force small children to sue them just so they can sing their song, write their story, or say no to paganism. I suggest that Christians turn it upside down on school district officials. If more Christian families encouraged their children to engage in expressions of their Christian faith in the school setting (understanding them to be not only right and appropriate, but also legally and morally sound), and if more Christian defenders resolved to step in and help faithful children fight the good fight, school districts would think twice about violating our children's First Amendment rights and inviting such ridiculous litigation.
Let's make them weigh the prospect of too much litigation against the prospect of letting small innocent children engage in simple expressions of their Christian faith. Not that we need to see what some school officials are already made of–I think we already know that–but I do think we need to see where their priorities lie: the promotion of education and enlightenment, or the perpetuation of ignorance?
As for me and my house, we stand with Christ.
(I am not suggesting in this posting that a majority, or most, public school officials are anti-Christian. But it's apparent that this is a problem in public education. As in all things, if the shoe fits, wear it.)
For more on your legal right to religious expression in the public school setting, go to: www.firstfreedom.gov.
