There is a saying that has been both popular and true for as long as I can recall: As long as there are tests, there will always be prayer in schools. Of course, this assumes that there will always be students who are religious, and I personally hope that this is not the case, but I see no way to force that issue and will let it lie.
Still, there is the issue of what role, if any, religion can be allowed to play in publicly-funded schools in the United States. Christian activists have a long list of items they would like to implement. Some of them are things that I think no one would have any objection to, like Bible study groups that meet after classes or during lunch breaks. Often, though, there are things that are tried that many people find offensive, and that the government should shut down.
One of the most notorious items that has been in the news lately is "Creation Science." This is an attempt to bring religion, particularly the Christian religion, into the science classroom under some rather ineffective camouflage. It is also a particularly dangerous thing, in light of the fact that it both cuts away at the freedom of religion that is supposed to be so precious to Americans, and it attempts to undermine the quality of science education. The attack by the religious zealots in this area are harmful in many ways. Not only does this perennial struggle lead to confusion and a waste of time, but it puts at risk the ability of the youth of America to participate in the world's scientific community.
As mentioned earlier, there is another struggle in America today - the struggle over prayer in the schools. We're not talking about extra-curricular student groups that meet for prayer after school. No, we're talking about prayers held before football games, broadcast over the public address system. We're talking about entire crowds, gathered for a non-religious purpose, open to the public, that are stopped from talking, told to stand with their heads bowed in silence while a person (adult or student) leads them in a religious (most often expressly Christian) prayer. The issue here should be obvious. Not only is this sort of practice rude and inconsiderate toward those who belong to minority religions in said crowds. It is a patently clear that this is a violation of the constitutional principal of the separation of church and state.
A third area in which religion gets inserted into the life of public school students is harder to pin down and debate about. That is the area of religious studies. There are classes where it can be perfectly legitimate to study the Christian Bible in public school, such as literature courses, or in classes on comparative religions. Unfortunately, such venues often become places where the mandate is abused, and someone, either teacher or student, takes the opportunity to preach on school time. It also is often the case that musical programs are co-opted as areas where Christian preaching can safely take place. My son, in particular, has been a "victim," if you will, of his Chorus teacher's desire to select Christian pieces for the class to produce. Thus, he has been dragged along for a ride on a proselytizing bandwagon. In the name of "community relations" and "gaining performance experience," he is required to participate in concerts given at local Christian churches in order to earn his grade with the Honors Vocal Ensemble.
All of this is, I think, a symptom of a deep problem. All through the history of America (up to fairly recently, at least), the Christians have enjoyed a position of dominance in American society. They instituted their schools' morning prayers, their anti-evolution laws and religious songfests with impunity, never dreaming that anyone could possibly question the legality of their actions. The public school venue was part and parcel of the comprehensive approach to raising America's children to be Christian.
Certainly, this approach was both useful and successful in achieving the goals of the Christian church. It was instrumental, no doubt, in the "taming" of the Native Americans. The usefulness to the church of maintaining a uniform growth environment for the children of the church is obvious. If they are given the same lessons at home, in church and at school, they are far more likely to grow up believing strongly in Christian beliefs. This is absolutely vital to the continued dominance of Christianity in American society, which is one reason the church is so insistent on carrying on the struggle.
The problem is that America is not under any obligation to support the Christian church. In fact, just the opposite is the case. In a nation which is built upon a purely secular foundation, it is imperative that no actual aid should be given to any religious group, be it a majority or not. Otherwise, there would be no real separation between church and state, and the freedom of religion would not exist in any real, useful sense.
(c) 2000 J. Eric Harrington