The Six Commandments?

[Sojourner55]

Let me point out something. I'm not saying there are no news reports of anyone being prohibited from silent prayer, reading Scripture, wearing certain clothing.

I will say that in today's society, and especially the media, we find biased reports which are easily followed if you want to take them at face value.

When I hear "I've seen reports" or "I read an article", without so much as a reference to or a link for that particular accusation, how can there be reproof?

If scientific studies were conducted in the same manner as this thread, I should be able to state that I had read somewhere that the moon is made of green cheese, and expect everyone to begin placing orders for a pound, thinly sliced, to pay for the next moon mission.

Come on people. If you want to make accusations, point to the proof. Even science requires blind studies.

Conversely, let me say that I don't doubt that you haven't seen such articles--though they've been rather prevalent in the news for the last few years. However, I suppose if you avoid biased conservative news sources in favor of biased liberal ones, that might explain why you may not have seen them. For some reason, most liberal news outlets usually elect not to cover such news stories. (Which is why despised sources such Fox News and other conservative outlets such as worldnetdaily are so often cited as the only sources).

I have neither the time nor inclination to search out all the copious, bona fide examples of bias against Christians that have been reported over the years. If you do a search, you'll find them. Unfortunately, I can't presently find the article on the teacher reprimanded for saying grace silently, but I assure you it was an actual event, and I'll try to find it later. In the meantime, I will link to a few items regarding bias against Christianity and godliness that I found with a very cursory search. I'm uncertain as to the most recent developments in some of the resulting court cases, but the articles themselves serve to make my point: officials often greatly over-react to the first clause of the first amendment, while the second clause is essentially ignored. And that was my point.

Students lose points on test for saying "bless you" to sneezing classmate:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/0..._n_987930.html

teacher makes third-grader put away Bible during quiet time:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,580359,00.html

psychology student told to modify her faith-based-beliefs about LGBT:
http://www.christianpost.com/news/ga...raduate-46010/

Professor calls Student fascist "bastard" for speaking about God and morality:
http://www.wnd.com/2009/02/88723/

classroom tolerance: Tibetan prayer flag...okay. Sayings of the Dalai Lama...okay. Images of Buddha...okay. "In God We Trust..." No way!
http://www.wnd.com/2011/09/346701/

Teacher fired for offering to pray for sick student--considered "bullying."
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...-bullying.html

Pro-life t-shirts: pro-life slogans akin to swastikas? Yet aborted baby remains being thrown in the garbage is okay?
http://www.wnd.com/2006/11/38945/
http://www.wnd.com/2004/03/23689/

[awestruckchild]

Harrington school in Washington:Student made to turn "religious" tshirt inside out.
Lawsuit brought by ACLJ. School lost and had to allow the wearing of tshirt as an obvious freedom of expression.

Colorado school: Announcement made on PA system that all students must immediately remove any religious jewelry and never wear to school again.
Lawsuit begun. School relented.

New York school. (This one actually went all the way to, and through, court and was won) Student repeatedly suspended for two days at a time for continuing to wear rosary beads with a cross on them that school said could be seen as a gang emblem. Court ruled in favor of student.

Many cases, in many different locations and in highschools and on college campuses, where valedictorians and salutatorians have been informed they need to strike all references to God in their speech. Courts ruled in their favor though not all have wanted to go to court. In one case, bizarrely, student was told mention of God was allowed, but not mention of Jesus. In all cases where the student did not relent, the mic was turned off on their speeches.

Burlington Township, N.J. - 'nuff said!

Junior high school, Washington. 9th grade English honors class given a list of banned books for their "reading for pleasure" time - bible was one of them. Lawsuit threatened. School removed bible from the banned list.

Texas. Mandatory assembly in which students were given instructions in Islamic relations by two women from CAIR. Among the things said in this 40 minute mandatory assembly:
"Adam, Noah, and Jesus are prophets."
"There is one god. His name is Allah."
Students were also taught the 5 pillars of Islam, and were given instructions in how to pray.

Colorado. Another rosary ban. Won for the student in court.

And how can anyone ever forget the one where the mother of an elementary school student was killed in a car crash and the next day before school they joined (completely unbidden by any adult) and began to pray. They were told they must stop praying immediately because it was against the law. At lunchtime, they again prayed and the police were called to investigate the crime. Because of the media outcry, as you will recall, the school relented and allowed that if children want to pray, they may do so.

Another one out of Kansas that I don't believe any of us will ever forget. Fifth grader who drew a cross for art class was told he was breaking the law by drawing a cross in school.

Or the Fla. middle school where a childs bible was confiscated by the school, being told he was breaking the law by reading it on school grounds.

Or Missouri, where a principal banned the reading of bibles on school buses.

The field trip to the abortion clinic in Pennsylvania....too disgusting to repeat once more. We all heard quite enough when it was in the news and don't need to repeat the nausea.

Ditto for the story out of Maine. You know, the one with the 11 year olds being given birth control without parental consent.

Legitimate news stories. Not fiction. Many on the COURT DOCKETS.
I repeat, on the court dockets.
Won in court.
Records of them in the court.
I can't cut and paste, well a few times I have been successful, but mostly doesn't work for me.
How is it I can find the stories? I don't use some magical search engine...just yahoo.

Now, I know I heard the news story of the U.S. student suspended for his tshirt. It was quite prevalent in the news at the time. I THINK I even recall that the back of it was John 3:16. I might be getting it confused, but I think Napoleon Dynamite was on the front...
But I have done enough work looking the information up. Someone else can do some more digging and find THAT particular story, because frankly, I've done enough.

[awestruckchild]

Yes, SOJ,
I ran across the one of the teacher saying grace (and not out loud either.) It was the bowing of the head and folding of the hands that was not allowed. I didn't include it in my list, nor many others, because I was specifically researching the ones involving students.

[Athanasius]

Yes, SOJ,
I ran across the one of the teacher saying grace (and not out loud either.) It was the bowing of the head and folding of the hands that was not allowed. I didn't include it in my list, nor many others, because I was specifically researching the ones involving students.

Incidentally, bowing one's head and folding one's hands aren't, from what I can tell, a biblical requirement of prayer.

[keck553]

Huh?

I bow my head almost always before I eat - as a thankfulness for the provisions and to ask that the food be used by my body for strength and health.

I talk to Jesus a lot of the time. Most of the time out loud.

How is that "hiding my light under a bowl"?

Do it outloud at a city council meeting or when you join your child for lunch at a school we pay taxes for and get back to me. Hiding in your home and saying "Thank you Jesus" is not lighting your lampstand.

Jesus didn't ask us to internalize our faith.

[awestruckchild]

Incidentally, bowing one's head and folding one's hands aren't, from what I can tell, a biblical requirement of prayer.

So?
Please don't make someone come in and yell strawman again. I can't take it.

[Vhayes]

Do it outloud at a city council meeting or when you join your child for lunch at a school we pay taxes for and get back to me. Hiding in your home and saying "Thank you Jesus" is not lighting your lampstand.

Jesus didn't ask us to internalize our faith.

In my home?

You really know very, very little about me.

[Vhayes]

Students lose points on test for saying "bless you" to sneezing classmate:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/0..._n_987930.html

A student sneezed.

Twenty students said, "Bless you". The student thanked all twenty with a "Thank you" - to each one individually.

That would lend credence to this paragraph of the story you posted:

The punishment has nothing to do with religion, Cuckovich tells KTXL News in Sacramento. Rather, it's about deterring students from being disruptive in class and interrupting learning time.

How is this infringing on a students right of free speech or freedom of religion? It's about teenagers finding a way to get one over on the teacher.

[Athanasius]

So?
Please don't make someone come in and yell strawman again. I can't take it.

Who is yelling 'strawman'? You should maybe take your level of excitement down a few notches.

As to my post: what was it Jesus said about praying in Matthew 6:6? Certainly someone's freedom to express their religion as they choose is being trampled upon if they are told not to bow their head or clasp their hands while praying. But in reality that isn't a requirement of the religion (at least, Christianity), and that should be kept in mind while all the arguing is going on. If he was being told not to pray, that's one thing. If he's being told not to pray in a certain position, that's another, especially when the position isn't a requirement, but convention.

[Vhayes]

teacher makes third-grader put away Bible during quiet time:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,580359,00.html

Here's the story from the link.

A third grader was told by a teacher at her New Jersey elementary school that the Bible was not appropriate reading material for quiet time, MyFoxNY.com reported.

The teacher at Madison Park Elementary School in Old Bridge, N.J., ordered the girl, Mariah, to put away her Bible.

Michelle Jordat, Mariah’s mother, said her daughter was upset and confused by the incident, MyFoxNY.com reported.

"This was injustice," Jordat said, according to MyFoxNY.com.
"No other child has to go through this again."

The school’s principal apologized for the incident, saying school policy does in fact allow students to read the Bible during quiet time and that the teacher had simply made a mistake, MyFoxNY.com reported.

Jordat said she accepts the apology but also wants to see something in writing. She plans to talk to an attorney about the issue, according to the site.
The town’s board of education met with parents Tuesday evening to address concerns in the community.


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,...#ixzz1wUFLru2M

Seriously? Injustice? She plans to "talk to an attorney"?

And the administration of the school said the teacher was mistaken. They apologized for the teacher. What more should they do?

This had NOTHING to do with anything other than a teacher not understanding the law.

[awestruckchild]

A student sneezed.

Twenty students said, "Bless you". The student thanked all twenty with a "Thank you" - to each one individually.

That would lend credence to this paragraph of the story you posted:


How is this infringing on a students right of free speech or freedom of religion? It's about teenagers finding a way to get one over on the teacher.

Nowhere in the story - either yours from your news source, or Soj's from his news source - nor on the video from your news source, does it say anything about twenty students each being individually thanked...

In addition, the teacher in the video with the reporter, lets it be known that it irks him because the phrase makes no sense to him.

[Vhayes]

psychology student told to modify her faith-based-beliefs about LGBT:
http://www.christianpost.com/news/ga...raduate-46010/

This one actually deserves some discussion. I'd have to read more about it but I would think there is room here to discuss what happened.

[Sojourner55]

Incidentally, bowing one's head and folding one's hands aren't, from what I can tell, a biblical requirement of prayer.

And from what I can tell, it isn't a violation of church and state, either. It certainly doesn't warrant any criticism from school officials. The issue with religion in schools revolves primarily with teachers and faculty leading in prayer. This private, silent grace doesn't fall into that category. Silent grace said over a meal is between an individual and God--an nobody else's business.

[awestruckchild]

In addition, ah....ah...ah...CHOO!!!

[Vhayes]

Professor calls Student fascist "bastard" for speaking about God and morality:
http://www.wnd.com/2009/02/88723/

classroom tolerance: Tibetan prayer flag...okay. Sayings of the Dalai Lama...okay. Images of Buddha...okay. "In God We Trust..." No way!
http://www.wnd.com/2011/09/346701/

Pro-life t-shirts: pro-life slogans akin to swastikas? Yet aborted baby remains being thrown in the garbage is okay?
http://www.wnd.com/2006/11/38945/
http://www.wnd.com/2004/03/23689/

Wing Nut Daily doesn't count. That's like me asking you to accept something from The Daily KOS as "real" news.