Religion and Prayer Must Not be Permitted in Public School Essay

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Early American colonists anticipated a country full of freedoms and opportunities. As the new government was beginning to develop, the Founders took into consideration the restrictions placed on them and their fellow immigrants in their former home lands. One difficulty the colonists encountered back in Europe was the inability to practice a desired religion or not to practice one at all. Since the newly formed country was made up of people from more than one religious background, the government had to come up with a way to accommodate all of its citizens. Understanding the country's diversity, the writers of the Constitution of the United States of America included in the First Amendment the words, "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise therof . . ." (Alley, 24). The two parts of the religious freedom declaration became known as the Free Exercise Clause, which allows for religious expres sion, and the Establishment Clause, which protects citizens from state-imposed religion. To ensure that the government could not interfere with religious establishments, the American government mandated a more precise interpretation of the religious clauses, which commonly became known as secularism, or complete separation of the church and the government.    Secularism is the foundation underlying the issue of the role of prayer in the public school system. Due to the Establishment Clause, which protects Americans from state imposed religion; the role of prayer in the public schools is considered unco nstitutional. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor professed, "In my view, however, the principle underlying the Establishment Clause is that go... ...Buffalo, New York: Prometheus Books, 1994. Barker, Dan. "The Case Against School Prayer." Internet Infidels. Online. Internet. 21 October 2002. Available: http://www.infidels.org/org/ffrf/issues/pray.html Farmer, Rod. "The School Prayer Issue." Education 104 (1984): 248-49. Gaffney, Edward McGlynn. "A Church in Texas." Commonweal 124 (April 25, 1997): 9-10. O'Connor, Sandra. "Forward: the Establishment Clause and Endorsement of Religion." Journal of Law and Religion 8 (1990): 1-4. Sikorski, Robert. Prayer in Public Schools and the Constitution 1961-1992. New York: Garland Publishing Inc., 1993. Thomas, Oliver. "Prayer and Speech." Finding Common Ground 12 (1996): 29 pars. Online. Internetr. 1 October 2002. Whitehead, John W. The Rights of Religious Persons in Public Education. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1994: 33,49-50.