Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois vetoed a ‘moment of silence’ bill for students. Now, oddly enough, I find that it doesn’t bother me that much. Why? It is not the “separation of church and state” that has been misinterpreted for so long. Partly, it is the coercive nature of it. While I believe (as do many who actually study such things) that the “separation of church and state” has been overdone, at the same time it is forcing people to observe time that while not specifically or legally defined as religious, it is in intent.
There is also my belief that one minute of silence is ineffective for prayer or reflection. It takes me a least a minute, often longer, to settle myself to a “place” of silence, where I can even begin to prepare myself for prayer. Does a rational adult (“rational” somewhat tongue-in-cheek for all human beings) think that any child can calm and center themselves then pray effectively in a minute?
The organizations that are pushing these “moments of silence” are unanimously “Christian”, which clouds the “separation” issue further. I wish that they would focus on the students ability to form religious clubs and gather together for religion meetings on school grounds separate from school functions. That would be much more effective and useful. Also, the constitutional gray area disappears as it outside of school functions.
hattip to: OneNewsNow.com