SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE IS NOT THERE

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By Steve Moore

      A few weeks ago the Westmoreland Tennessee Middle School football team played a football game at home.  Following the game the players and cheerleaders prayed on the field.  The prayer was entirely student led.  To show respect, the coaches removed their hats and bowed their heads.  They did not, in any way, lead the prayer.  The ACLU has decreed that prayer must be led by students.  Therefore, the coaches who are also teachers were not allowed in any way to verbally pray.  All they did was to show a measure of respect.  So their transgression in the eyes of Principal Danny Robinson was the fact that they stood respectfully with the players with hats removed and heads bowed.  They were required by Principal Robinson to sign individual letters acknowledging that they will be relieved of their coaching positions if they violated a Sumner County School Boad policy prohibiting any school personnel from engaging in any conduct that appears to endorse an organization's or club's message.  People can surely see that this policy is specific to school personnel who pray.  This is a direct result of the ACLU's suit that was filed because they oppose the Gideons giving out Bibles at schools, ministers to evangelize to students at school cafeterias, or holding graduations at churches.

      Recently, the "See-you-at-the polls" prayer event was held.  School personnel were told that if they wished to pray, they would have to do so out of sight and earshot of students.  School employees, according to the ACLU, must not give the impression of endorsement of religion--specifically Christianity.  You can bet this restriction wouldn't apply to muslims.

      The ACLU never refers to the First Amendment.  It's always separation of church and state which is not in the Constitution.  Where is the legislation passed by Congress that would establish a National religion?

      Americans must never lose sight of the fact that first despots take away religious right before taking away civil liberties.

UPDATE:

      The subversize ACLU won again.  Let's set the table:  Several parents, a definite minority,  approached the ACLU which filed suit to stop all religious activities that staff, but not students, could engage in.  To make a long story short, the School Board rolled over and acquiesed to the ACLU.  Sumner County was represented by the American Center for Lawy and Justice (ACLJ).  Teachers can't even wear a cross.  The School Board met in Executive (secret) session and voted 10-1 to become the ACLU's lap dogs.

      When will we stop rolling over to a small vocal minority?

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Joyce P. said on Sunday, Jan 22 at 4:31 PM

Put prayer back in our schools, workplace and public. American schools were founded on the Bible.

aveteran said on Saturday, Dec 17 at 4:33 AM

In the past, despots relied heavily on an imposed majority religion and persecution of minority beliefs, much like what happens in the backwater of Bible-belt America. Just wait until a Muslim group wants to pass out Korans in schools; then you'll be crying separation from the rooftops like a good hypocrite.

Ed Joyce said on Thursday, Dec 15 at 9:53 AM

The "minority" you refer to are exactly the people that our Bill of Rights was intended to protect. In this case, it's protecting minorities from having to see Christianity held up as the community-accepted religion.

Anonymous said on Wednesday, Dec 14 at 3:44 PM

So you attended the Westmoreland game & witnessed this? You might want to make sure your info is true & factual. Teachers can wear a cross. And just to clarify, SYATP is a student-initiated event...not adult. It was never intended to be an adult event. How did you get to sit in with the School Board and ACLJ during their meetings? Those were private meetings that only board members, attorneys, & the superintendent were part of. So you were not in the meetings; therefore, you do not know what was said. Basically, you have written an article full of lies - probably based on what you have read/heard from other unreliable sources. It would probably benefit you greatly to learn how board meetings work...executive session is legal...not a forbidden secret. It appears that you rely on others to provide you information. Might want to start doing a little more research and publish the truth.

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