Prayer in Public Schools?

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What does the law say about allowing prayer in public schools?

What is the Catholic position on allowing/disallowing prayer in public schools?

I’m doing this for a research paper.
 
High level? A public school administration cannot get up and say “pray this prayer”.

Students can pray on their own, they can only pray aloud in circumstances where they are free to speak casually (at breaks, at lunch, etc.). Students can pray before they eat, silently before they take a test, during breaks or recess, they can have clubs that meet to pray or read the Bible. They can pray physically by making the Sign of the Cross, etc.

School rules are set by the State and local School Board. I have never seen a handbook of rules for any public school that says “students cannot pray”. That is a myth.

The Catholic Church teaches that Christians should lead lives of prayer.
 
Koolerkev said:
What does the law say about allowing prayer in public schools?

What is the Catholic position on allowing/disallowing prayer in public schools?

I’m doing this for a research paper.
Click to expand...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engel_v._vitale

As for the Catholic position… well, of course, every Catholic wants a prayer here and there, so I’m pretty sure they are displeased with the decision of Engel v. Vitale.

Ironically Yours, Blade and Blood
 
I don’t know but before I take a test I pray a Glory Be to the Father, Hail Holy Queen, Our Father, and a Hail Mary.
 
Just a few days ago, I got in trouble for praying in school. I would rather get in trouble for doing the right thing then not get in trouble at all…🙂
 
Jamison97 said:
Just a few days ago, I got in trouble for praying in school. I would rather get in trouble for doing the right thing then not get in trouble at all…🙂
Click to expand...
Were you praying inappropriately?

By that I mean aloud in the library, aloud during/ just before a test. In ways that any form of conversation would be inappropriate.
 
Koolerkev said:
What does the law say about allowing prayer in public schools?

What is the Catholic position on allowing/disallowing prayer in public schools?

I’m doing this for a research paper.
Click to expand...
Well, as an interesting tidbit, you might want to look into the very early history of prayer in schools, back in the 1840’s and 1850’s. The Church was actually opposed to prayer and bible study in schools in the United States, because it was introduced by Protestants who wanted to deCatholicize the Irish immigrants of that time, and was an attempt to shove Protestant theology down the throats of Catholic students.

It was, interestingly enough, a big factor in the rise of parochial schools.
 
Check your library for a book by Hamburger on Separation of Church and State. It’s not an easy read, but it is chuck full of footnotes and references and presents a good history of the whole idea and how the definition has shifted through the years since the constitution was written.
 
Hi Koolerkev,

I believe it was the early 1960s when prayer in public schools begin to disappear. If you type in “prayer in public school” you will get many links to answer what the law says about prayer in public schools.

I don’t find any official stance that the CC has on prayer in public schools. As one poster said earlier, it was protestant beliefs being taught to Catholic children that led to the rise of the Catholic parochial school system in the US.

I don’t think prayer in public schools is a good thing. Public schools serve children from many kinds of religious/non-religious backgrounds. Whose prayers do you say? How do you make it fair for everyone?

I think that if prayer is important to people then they can teach their children to pray in the privacy of their own homes. They can send their children to a private school that teaches their particular religious beliefs. They can take their children to their chosen house of worship.

Good luck on your paper!

Jean
 
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