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Friday, April 22, 2022

Offsite Posts: Two Essays on Christianity in Public Schools

 

The first essay:

https://thehayride.com/2022/04/garlington-riverbend-elementary-could-lead-the-way-to-restoration/

Which garnered this reply:

https://thehayride.com/2022/04/sadow-little-room-for-louisiana-schools-to-encourage-religion/

And the answer to the reply:

https://thehayride.com/2022/04/garlington-parents-can-and-should-fight-for-christianity-in-public-schools/

Here is a portion from the first essay:


As circumstances of society change, laws and constitutions must sometimes change to fit them:  This is a basic axiom of political life in the States, and the recent controversy at Riverbend Elementary School in West Monroe illustrates a glaring need to put that axiom into practice. 


For, even though Easter is upon us, the holiest day of the year, when we celebrate Christ’s glorious Resurrection, His conquering of death and the devil, His gift of a new mode of being to mankind, KNOE reported on 15 April that the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) has issued a demand to Riverbend to disallow daily prayer at the school because of the complaint of a parent over the ritual.


The basis of this complaint is no doubt the clause in the Louisiana and federal constitutions that no laws shall be made to compel people to adhere to one particular creed or another (‘no establishment of religion’).  There was a time when that was the main religious concern of the peoples of the States – that one of the Christian communions, with support from the government at some level – local, State, federal, would persecute the other communions using political power.


That is no longer the case.  The main threat to Christianity now comes from the weaponization of clauses like those just mentioned by militant anti-Christian groups like FFRF, ACLU, et al. to expunge all public expressions of Christianity from society.


Louisianans have never been shy about amending their constitutions.  Now is not the time to abandon that habit.  For the sake of protecting the Christian faith in our State, Article 1, Section 8, which reads, ‘No law shall be enacted respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof’, needs to have added to it a few more words:  ‘In order to uphold the Christian faith which is the preeminent source of Louisiana’s culture, it may be given special preference over all other religions by any public entity in this State.’ 


Through such a change, a public school like Riverbend could voluntarily adopt Christian prayers and incorporate the teaching of Christianity into its curricula without fear of being sued; others could just as freely choose not to. 


Thus, no one would be forced to join a Christian communion, but it would be a salutary step towards protecting Christianity from its enemies.


The culture of the South grows largely out of the soil of Christianity.  If we value the fruits of it – kindness, hospitality, love of family, love of nature, respect for authority and the laws, good manners, beautiful architecture, etc. – we will take steps like those proposed above to strengthen it.


But while the process of amending gets underway, local action needs to begin immediately.  . . .

***

A shorter version of the first essay is here:

https://www.hannapub.com/ouachitacitizen/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/letter-to-the-editor-christian-faith-essential-to-riverbend-elementary/article_8a640160-c0b0-11ec-9f74-ebfa86bd8a16.html

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Holy Ælfred the Great, King of England, South Patron, pray for us sinners at the Souð, unworthy though we are!

Anathema to the Union!

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