God in Our Classrooms

Benjamin Rush said, “If we ever take the Bible out of school, we will spend our time and money fighting crime.” (The same can be said for fighting uncontrolled teen pregnancy and abortions!)

Such was our founder’s belief in the preeminence of God that when the First Continental Congress convened in 1774, Massachusetts delegate Thomas Cushing suggested to the assembly that together they pray for divine guidance and protection. The historical events that would forever change the world were preparing to unfold: war loomed on the horizon; the Declaration of Independence would be signed, and a nation “conceived in liberty” would be born. In this moment, men of varied religious beliefs -- Presbyterians, Episcopalians, some Quakers, others Baptists or Congregationalists – were led in prayer by an Episcopal priest in an appeal to the almighty that was described as “extraordinary…filling the bosom of every man present.”

It would not be the last time the founders appealed to the Almighty God.

James Madison acknowledged God’s favor in our founding in Federalist 37 referring to “a finger of that almighty hand, which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the revolution.” I dare say that men like Madison and Cushing would not recognize the America of today, filled with politicians afraid to confess their faith or educators fearful of offending the sensibilities of their students with any mention of God.

Math teacher Brad Johnson of Westview High School of the Poway School District in San Diego, California, is a case in point.

In 2007, Westview Principal Dawn Kastner ordered Johnson to remove banners hanging in his classroom because they contained the words “God” and “Creator.” According to media reports the banners, which had hung in his classroom for 25 years, measured approximately 7 feet long by 2 feet wide and carried the phrases: "In God We Trust," "One Nation Under God," "God Bless America," "God Shed His Grace on Thee" and "All Men Are Created Equal, They are Endowed by Their Creator."

Kastner objected to the banners, claiming that they promoted a Judeo-Christian viewpoint and might make some students feel uncomfortable. The school district agreed. Oddly enough neither Kastner nor school district officials were concerned with posters hanging in other classrooms containing Buddhist, Islamic, and Tibetan prayers or those containing anti-religious messages that might make Christians uncomfortable. What remains unclear is why those that preach diversity and tolerance seem incapable of practicing those same virtues when it comes to Christians and the role of Christian faith in our American history.

Kastner and Poway district officials might argue that they are simply enforcing the Constitution’s wall of separation between church and state. The U.S. Constitution, of course, recognizes no such wall. There are roughly 4,500 words in the original unamended document and not one of them was written to imply that God – specifically the God of Abraham – should be hidden from school children.

The Bible – Old and New Testament – was the most common piece of household literature of the time; it was the primary textbook from which children and adults learned reading, writing, and morality. The first American dictionary contains biblical references on just about every page.

Moreover, the founders believed religion and religious teaching to be essential to the maintenance of a free society. The great patriot Benjamin Rush of Pennsylvania wrote, “All its [Christian revelation] doctrines and precepts are calculated to promote the happiness of society, and the safety and well being of civil government.”

Therefore, reasoned Rush, “the only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and liberty is the object and life of all republican governments.” In short the founders recognized not only the nexus between virtue and happiness, but also virtue and liberty.

We should not be surprised when those that endeavor to erase God from our history also seek to shackle us to the administrative state. Man will “either be governed by a power from within or controlled by a power from without.”

In his farewell address, George Washington said, “Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”

The founders would find the mushy multi-cultural political correctness of the 21st century to be outrageous.
The first round of the legal battle was won by Johnson. U.S. District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez delivered a scathing rebuke to the Poway School District, correctly reasoning that “recognizing that God places prominently in our nation's history does not create an Establishment Clause violation requiring curettage and disinfectant for Johnson's public high school classroom walls. It is a matter of historical fact that our institutions and government actors have in past and present times given place to a supreme God."

Not content to leave well-enough alone, the Poway School District has appealed the decision, which will be heard by the liberal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Heaven help us!


God in Our Classrooms
by Joseph C. Phillips – Townhall.com



Related:

Did You Know… the Founding Fathers and God

Andy Rooney… Did You know??

Checkout WallBuilders.com about the history of the Founding Fathers on God, Jesus and Christianity

This is chilling ...

In

1952

President  Truman

established one day a year as a
"National Day of Prayer."

In

1988
resident Reagan

designated the
First Thursday in May of each year as

the National Day of Prayer.

In June

2007
(then)

Presidential
Candidate Barack Obama

declared that the USA

Was no longer a Christian nation.

This year
President Obama,

canceled the
21st annual National Day of Prayer ceremony

at the White
House under the rouse
Of "not wanting to offend anyone"

Judge:  National Day of  Prayer Unconstitutional – This Progressive Judge needs to learn history and re-read the Constitution!!

On September 25, 2009

from 4 am until 7  pm,

a National Day of Prayer

for the Muslim religion was Held on Capitol Hill,
Beside the White House.

There were over 50,000 Muslims that Day in DC.

I guess it Doesn't matter

if "Christians"
Are offended by this event -
We obviously
Don't count as

"anyone" Anymore.

The direction
This country is headed
Should strike fear in the heart of every Christian.
Especially knowing that the
Muslim religion believes that if Christians cannot be
Converted they should be Annihilated



This is not a Rumor -

Go to the website
To confirm this info:
( http://www.islamoncapitolhill.com/ )

Pay particular attention to the very bottom of the page:
"OUR TIME HAS COME"
I hope that this Information will stir your spirit.

British Islamist Anjem Choudary: Freedom and Democracy Are Idols That Must Be Destroyed and Replaced with Obedience to Allah

Muslim Demographics

The words of 2 Chronicles 7:14
"If my people, Who are called by my Name,
Will humble themselves And pray,  
And seek my face, and Turn from their Wicked ways,
Then will I hear from Heaven
And will forgive their Sin and will heal Their land."


We must pray for Our nation, our communities,
Our families, and especially our children.  
They are the ones that are going to suffer the most
If we don't PRAY!
May God have Mercy...

IN GOD WE TRUST.

Please share this,

Maybe someone, somehow can figure out a way to put America

back on the map as it was when we were growing up,

a safe place to live and by
The Ten Commandments and Pledge of Allegiance.

Thomas Jefferson and the other Founding Fathers consciously and purposely chose the values of Christianity as a basis for the American value and legal systems. And, both the concept of and the word GOD are evident everywhere in our founding documents, buildings, laws, traditions. and the writings left from the Founders.

Yet, the Founding Fathers were very tolerant of other religions and believed in freedom of religion for all, including not believing or practicing.

(What this means in simple terms is that religious groups, other than Christians and Jews may practice their religion as long as they are peaceful and do not impinge on the basic values and traditions of the majority and of the Country’s founding principles.  It does not mean that (hostile or questionable) religious groups whose goal is to undermine our way of life have Carte Blanche to do so or can tell us what we can believe or do.  It also allows people not to have a religion, but that does not mean that the small minority or atheists have the right to stop the majority from putting up Crosses, Menorahs, Christmas Trees, Easter Bunnies, lines of scriptures, etc.; sing carols;  or teach and reference God.  Atheists have the right not to participate, but they do not have the right to prevent the majority’s traditions.  Today a Federal Judge ruled that a National Day of Prayer was unconstitutional…  That is absolutely a wrong and progressive interpretation and ruling!!  Another Progressive move was to stop teaching Constitutional Law in Law Schools and replace it with the teaching of case law… which takes us further and further away from the Constitution and our founding principles.

Freedom of religion and tolerance did not mean that those we allowed to share in our freedom could then tell us that “We”, the Judeo-Christian base and majority of this country, had to change our beliefs, traditions, practices or laws to accommodate their feelings.  The Founding Fathers counted on Americans knowing the Constitution, U.S, history, the Bible and using common sense.  Sadly most of us don’t know or use any of those sources.

Also… Did you know that nowhere in the Constitution does it talk about Separation of Church and State.  It is only found in two references, including an often referenced letter between Thomas Jefferson and his cousin.  The reasoning behind the concept of separation is to protect religion from government controls and restrictions not to protect the government from religion or references to God~  So how do we find ourselves with the present upside-down notions?

Those misguided ideas and thoughts have been programmed into us by the American Progressive Movement that like a creeping vine has infiltrated every part of our life and slowly brainwashed several generations now and has been promoted and defended by liberal organizations like ACLU and corruptive concepts like Political Correctness. (A must read article) if you haven’t!!