Importance of school prayer
There are different reasons why some people support or are against school prayer. Those who support school prayer argue that banning of prayer in schools causes a decline in the moral standards of people. Cases of teenage pregnancies, divorce, drug abuse and crime rate are likely to increase.
This is due to the fact that prayers have a direct relationship with the moral standards of people. Various categories of people such as religious conservatives have a strong belief that religious activities in schools are very necessary since they help to instill good morals and values among the students (Ezeh 17).
Religious conservatives also support school prayer since they believe that all human beings are equal and God provides different unalienable rights. Therefore, a school prayer is an important part in terms of religious experience. Therefore, individuals should be free to conduct prayers from any location.
Other people who support of school prayer believe that knowledge, morality and religion are essential in providing good governance. In addition, religion provides mankind with happiness. As a result, they advocate for the use of different modes of learning such as school prayer. They believe that prayers help to strengthen religion and consequently make people to live and co-exist peacefully.
There are other myriads of reasons why some individuals support school prayer. For example, school prayer helps in nurturing the souls of students and also reinforces the values that are instilled to children either by parents or community members. In addition, school prayer provides an opportunity for religious students to observe religious beliefs and practices in schools (Ezeh 37).
Weakness on school praying
Those who are against school prayer argue that since all individuals are equal, it is not necessary to have school prayers. They support their argument by noting that school prayer eliminates equality because it is largely biased towards the needs of Christian students.
They continue to add that school prayer does not provide any teaching on tolerance. Instead, a prayer teaches students how to live a given lifestyle. They believe that students should not be subjected to such teachings and that they should be given the freedom to live their own lives without any interference. They add that good morals are not necessarily taught through prayers or religion.
An individual should not demonstrate his/her religion and force other people to practice it. Having a school prayer is a sign of coercing other individuals to practice a given religion. In addition, those against school prayer assert that schools exist mainly to educate people and not to proselytize. They believe that incorporating prayer in school activities is not just invasive. It is also coercive.
Individuals who support school prayer should understand that the decision on whether or not to practice religion is a private affair. Similarly, schools are public institutions and therefore, school should not be mixed together with religion. Introducing religion to schools through prayers is like building walls between people who are not aware of any religious differences (Ezeh 48).
Another argument against school prayer especially in public schools is attached to the fact that schools are meant to cater for all children irrespective of whether one is a Baptist, Catholic, Buddhist, Atheist, Agnostic, Jewish or a Quaker. In addition, schools receive support from all individuals who pay taxes. Hence, religious coercion and observances should not interfere with schooling activities.
It is the duty of churches and parents to educate their children on religious beliefs. Those who advocate for school prayer usually interfere with individual neutrality by forcing some people onto a given religion. The proponents of school prayer should also understand that individuals can pray silently among themselves without necessarily subjecting them to collective school prayer.
In this way, children are free to practice their different religions without any form of coercion. Students who fail to participate in school prayer should not be humiliated, degraded or insulted since it is not right to force a given student to conform to a given religion.
A school prayer should be legal in schools where individuals are allowed to pray on voluntary basis. Thus, subjecting children to a common school prayer is not necessary at all. Providing the student with the freedom on whether to participate in a school prayer is beneficial to their study since the student is not always under pressure to pray (Ezeh 68).
In recap, it is evident that some of the reasons that support the need to keep prayer away from schools are strong. Having a school prayer is likely to interfere with the smooth learning of students. Praying is a voluntary practice and thus, children should not be forced into engaging in school prayer.
Coercing children into school prayer is an unfair treatment which at times may make some of them to grow with an indifferent view about religion. However, individuals who see the sense in having school prayer should also be respected because a school prayer is also helpful in different ways such as reducing cases of increased teenage pregnancies and lowering crime rates.
Works Cited
Ezeh, Christopher. Disaster of the Absence of Moral and Religious Education in the American Public Schools: Controversies and Possible Solutions. Bloominton, Indiana: Xlibris Corp, 2010. Print.