With the amount of people who proclaim to be atheists on the rise, it’s been a hot-button debate about whether or not prayer should be allowed in schools. Most people I have encountered have a very strong view on this issue, and are not easily swayed to see the other side of the argument. My personal opinion is both a “yes” and “no.”

Arguably, the issue of prayer in private schools is much less complicated than the public counterpart. Private schools receive no government funding in order to function, and are thereby exempt from the notion of the separation of church and state. If prayer is something that the board of directors wishes to institute into its curriculum, it is their right within the law to do so. For those parents who do not agree with the school’s decision, it is as much their decision to remove the child as it was to enroll them in the first place.

Public schools, however, are another matter entirely. To fully understand my viewpoint on prayer in public schools, a little American history is in order. When the founding fathers of our nation created our nation, they included in the Bill of Rights the right to the choice of an individual religion. That is not to say, though, that the founding fathers were at all in opposition to the idea of God. Many of the signers of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are considered to be “men of God,” but not necessarily that they were devoutly religious. This falls into place considering many Christian teachings can be found in the founding documents, such as the idea that all are created to be equal.

None of this is to say, necessarily, that the founding fathers would have approved of religion in government-run schools. Keep in mind that the Department of Education, which oversees all of the government’s handling in schools, was not created until 1867. Whenever the United States was founded, there was no inkling that the education of our youth was to be placed into the hands of government.

I am inclined to believe, though, that the government has no right to institute any obligation of a student to participate in prayer, as this would be in direct violation of the First Amendment of freedom of religion. In that situation, the only outlet for a child who does not practice Christianity, would be for the parent to enroll them in private school, or to home school, since education of minors is required by law. It’s an unfortunate truth that most parents are not able to accept anything other than government-provided education.

I am not opposed, however, to the idea that there can be prayer in schools in extracurricular activities. Growing up in Texas, the middle of the Bible Belt, the idea that students gather for a club which sings the praises of the Lord isn’t an unfamiliar concept. As long as all students are given the option to not participate if they choose, then I find nothing wrong with that.