Answer the questions on your own paper in COMPLETE SENTENCES. Be sure to label each set of questions!
Engle v. Vitale (1962)
The NY State Board of Regents had students recite a prayer at the beginning of each school day. The prayer was as follows,
"Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon
Thee,
And we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our
teachers, and our Country."
Several parents sued, claiming that the prayer was unconstitutional. The parents initially lost the case, but they appealed it to the Supreme Court.
The school board claimed that since the prayer was non-denominational, it was permissible. The school board also defended its actions on the grounds that no student was required to say the prayer.
The Supreme Court, however, ruled that the prayer was unconstitutional because, in short, it is not the duty of the government to write prayers or carry out religious programs. It also ruled that the prayer "breaches the constitutional wall of separation between church and state."
The Court also stated that the purpose of the Establishment Clause was to: (exact quote from decision)
1. to prevent the union of government and religion,
which tends to degrade religion and destroy government.
2. to express the principle that religion is too
personal, too sacred, too holy, to permit its unhallowed perversion by
a civil
magistrate.
3. to prevent religious persecutions which have
historically arisen from governmentally established religions
Questions:
1. How did the state defend the prayer?
2. How did the Supreme Court view the prayer?
3. According to the Court in this case, what is 1 purpose of the Establishment
Clause?
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Abington School District v. Schempp (1963)
A Pennsylvania law required students to read at least 10 verses from the Bible at the beginning of each school day. Any student who objected had the opportunity to wait in the hallway during the reading.
The Schempp family sued, claiming that this practice violated the Establishment Clause. They accused the school of promoting a certain religion. However, the school system claimed that the Bible verses served a "secular" (non-religious, worldly) purpose, such as promoting moral values and teaching literature.
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the parents because using the Bible in this way amounted to a religious ceremony; the Bible can be used for historical or religious studies, "but these exercises do not fall into those categories." Therefore, the government cannot require students to read or recite religious passages or the Lord's Prayer.
Questions:
1. What prompted the protest by the Schempp family?
2. How did the school defend its actions?
3. Are schools allowed to have students read the Bible? Explain.
4. How did the Court view the Bible reading?
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Wallace v. Jaffree (1985)
In the mid 1980s, 23 states had so-called moments of silence laws. State laws varied, but in general they allowed students time to pray during the school day. For instance, the Alabama legislature required public school classes to begin each day with a minute of silence for "meditation or voluntary prayer."
Jaffree, the parent of 3 children, filed a lawsuit challenging the Alabama law. He claimed that it amounted to a government endorsement of religion.
The Supreme Court struck down the law, stating that it was "motivated by the purpose to characterize prayer as a favored practice." Such an endorsement "is not consistent with the established principle that the government must pursue a course of complete neutrality toward religion." The Court ruled that this moment of silence law meant to "convey the message of state approval of prayer activities in the public schools." Therefore, this type of moment of silence law was "an endorsement of religion lacking any clearly secular (non-religious, worldly) purpose."
Since then, the courts have ruled that moments of silence are legal as long as it is clear that that purpose is secular and not religious.
Questions:
1. Why did the court strike down the Alabama law?
2. Can a moment of silence law ever be legal? If so, explain.
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Recent developments
Lee v. Weisman (1992)
The Supreme Court ruled that schools cannot hold prayer at graduation services
Santa Fe School District v. Doe (2000)
Students voted to have a pre-game message before the football game; they also voted on the person that would deliver the message. The student chosen to deliver the message chose to say a Christian prayer. In response, two families in the community (called Doe to protect their identities) protested and claimed that this violated the Establishment Clause.
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the families. The Court claimed that since the prayer was delivered at a school-sponsored event, on school grounds, and using school equipment, it amounted to a school-sponsored prayer. Therefore, the school was violating the Establishment Clause.