Jack Wendt next author in 2016-2017 MLHS senior student editorial series
The People’s Choice
In the creation of America, people came for religious freedoms, such as the Puritan groups led by William Bradford, or even John Smith helping to establish the first settlement in the New World. In fact, almost all of the settlements of the New World were started on the basis of Christians looking for religious freedoms and a new start. Also, looking at all of our nation’s important documents, such as the United States Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and going all the way back to the Mayflower Contract, and including our nation’s Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem, all were founded and created upon Christian principles.
In schools today, religion isn’t mentioned or discussed, including the fact that even the Pledge of Allegiance is taken out of schools because the Lord’s name is mentioned in it. Look at the court cases suchas as Vidal v. Girard’s Executors, Sante Fe Independent Schol District v. Doe, Zobrest v. Catalina Foothills School District and Agostini v. Felton. Most of those cases were fought because either students or a teacher or teadchers expressed their religious views or worked in a public school and wanted to tutor a student who went to a private school. People considered this wrong just because it involved religion. Religion played a huge role in the creation of this country, so why would there be a need to take it out?
Also, the truth between politics and religion is that both of them need to come together for a compromise, to find a balance between the two. According to the University of Copenhagen, if the argument of religion and politics all came together to find the balance of how far religion can go and how much it can be taken out, together they could find a fine balance on it all working together and find peace in the subject.
Statistics say, according to the Pew Research Center, that religion has declined, and in politics today, religion isn’t even thought of to matter. Well, today in public areas and in public schools, it needs to change. It was a huge reason our country was founded and why people came here. Religion needs to be thought of and encouraged. It is not like we are forcing people to choose religion; it is their choice, so let them choose. Don’t suppress it so no one can have that right. Let them choose!