ot affected by any religious thoughts, he was just "mad at life, mad at students, mad at whole school" (Sterngold, Baltimore Sun). Religion will probably make it Religion, page 6worse. Sociologists have looked at this issue. They perceived it preposterous. Sociologists also think if we had prayer in school, might as well force us to read a Bible and say "amen" every time a teacher finishes a sentence. Of course, there are always opposite views to the same problem. On one side, it is unconstitutional and a clear violation of our First Amendment. Remember that amendment contains the "Establishment Clause" which prohibits the government from "establishing” religion. Simply put, secular institutions like the public schools should NOT be a forum for religious ritual or indoctrination. In addition, do a majority of people “support” school prayer? Often, those results depend on exactly how the question happens to be asked. Surveys suggest that most people reject the notion of mandatory prayer. Nevertheless, even if the overwhelming majority thought that prayer was, somehow, a “good idea”, that does not make the practice ethically just or constitutional. Prayer is not efficacious, therefore school prayer is obviously a form of religious indoctrination. It teaches children that there are invisible, supernatural entities, which can be implored and appeased through mumbling prayers or reading from holy books. Many people believe that just because there is a Bible, it means we have to take it seriously. If we wrote a book, put it in a time capsule, and send it back 4000 years ago, will it become a religion? What about school initiated prayer? Before getting excited about “student initiated” prayer, ask yourself: “which students” are doing the initiating? Student populations often reflect the diversity of the culture. Some students may wish to pray in class or at official school ceremonies lik...
