Have Public Schools Adequately Accommodated Religion - Essay Example

Those of a more liberal approach strictly adhere to the principle laid down in the Constitution for the separation of church and state. They believe it unlawful for schools to promote any one religion but do want the teaching of all religions as a part of the curriculum. This discussion examines the vast difference of opinion regarding religion in public schools including evolution versus creationism, the controversy over prayer in schools, religious observances and the questions of the distribution of religious literature.

It will also touch on teaching the subject of religion and explore reasons of why it should be taught and why it is not. The argument supporting the insertion of Christianity into the school system is that this country was formed upon religious principles. For example, on September 17, 1796 George Washington said, “It is impossible to govern the world without God and the Bible” (Evans, 2005). The third president and author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, wrote in1781, “God who gave us life gave us liberty.

And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift of God?” (Evans, 2005). Jefferson, a well recognized liberal thinker, as well as the entirety of the Founding Fathers, was confident that the U.S. existed only because of the intervention of a divine being, God. They would have fully supported prayer and other Christian teachings in public schools. The Constitution allows for activities involving religion to be practiced in public schools though teachers and administrators are largely unaware of the laws pertaining to the issue.

Because of this lack of knowledge, activities such as prayer are banned outright so as to ensure the schools are not violating the law. Public school students do, in