Questions from School Law and the Public School Book Assignment

Questions from School Law and the Public School Book - Assignment Example A state that promotes liberty and free will knows when not to mix state affairs with religion. Separation of church and state is paramount in bringing up a society that respects freedom of religion, and which enables people to tolerate others’ religions. The state therefore must not side with one religion over another, or promote the creeds of one religion over another. Although all religions should be taught in schools, the government should not foster the spread of certain religions over others. Students should be given the freedom to choose which religion to belong to, without their schools indicating support of any religion. In the first situation, allowing the Local Church Association to donate a copy of the Ten Commands to be placed in the hallway would be a plus for students who profess that religion. However, it is discriminatory because it highlights the basic teachings of that religion over other religions. It indicates a preference of that religion, which would not be taken very kindly by students whom it does not represent. Placing the Ten Commands in the hallway of the school symbolizes an endorsement of that religion by the school administration. Additionally, the act may influence students to follow the commands and profess the beliefs of that religion. Therefore, the act violates Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. It fails the three prongs of the Lemon test in that it does not have a secular legislative purpose. Secondly, it has a primary effect of advancing that particular religion. Thirdly, it results in â€Å"excessive government entanglement† in that it displays direct contact with church authorities (Essex, 2011). In the second situation, applying the lemon test would render starting a Bible club in School a violation of the Establishment Clause. This stipulates that the school is not allowed to establish any religious group including a church. Since the religious group in the school would promote particular religious precepts, this implies that the wellbeing of other religions would be compromised. Furthermore, it is worth appreciating that the school program is already established. Arguably, fixing the religious club as one of the options that students have during the club’s period implies that the school administration considers it equally important and would actually give it an opportunity when given a chance. This contravenes the provisions of the lemon principles that prohibit the government from advancing or inhibiting religion. In the third situation, I would give the non denominational a chance to conduct prayers on a rotational issue, just like the previous principal. From the outlook, the school community is appreciative of religion and does not force its members to participate in the prayers. Furthermore, the prayers do not unfairly promote the beliefs, values and practices of a single region. This is consistent with the provisions of the Est ablishment clause that seeks to uphold the respective state of affairs (Essex, 2011). Question 2 Although the school is responsible for providing religious education, it should not promote the religious precepts of any particular religion. In addition, the students should be at liberty to choose which religious principles to support and promote. Relative decisions need to be personal and should not be influenced by the school admini