BSAT17SPL Posted July 24, 2004 Share Posted July 24, 2004 I don't believe in Santa Claus, but I'm not going to sue somebody for singing a Ho-Ho-Ho song in December. I don't agree with Darwin, but I didn't go out and hire a lawyer when my high school teacher taught his theory of evolution. Life, liberty or your pursuit of happiness will not be endangered because someone says a 30-second prayer before a football game. So what's the big deal? It's not like somebody is up there reading the entire book of Acts. They're just talking to a God they believe in and asking him to grant safety to the players on the field and the fans going home from the game. "But it's a Christian prayer," some will argue. Yes, and this is the United States of America, a country founded on Christian principles. And we are in the Bible Belt. According to our very own phone book, Christian churches outnumber all others better than 200-to-1. So what would you expect-somebody chanting Hare Krishna? If I went to a football game in Jerusalem, I would expect to hear a Jewish prayer. If I went to a soccer game in Baghdad, I would expect to hear a Muslim prayer. If I went to a ping pong match in China, I would expect to hear someone pray to Buddha. And I wouldn't be offended. It wouldn't bother me one bit. When in Rome... "But what about the atheists?" is another argument. What about them? Nobody is asking them to be baptized. We're not going to pass the collection plate. Just humor us for 30 seconds. If that's asking too much, bring a Walkman or a pair of ear plugs. Go to the bathroom. Visit the concession stand. Call your lawyer. Unfortunately, one or two will make that call. One or two will tell thousands what they can and cannot do. I don't think a short prayer at a football game is going to shake the world's foundations. Christians are just sick and tired of turning the other cheek while our courts strip us of all our rights. Our parents and grandparents taught us to pray before eating, to pray before we go to sleep. Our Bible tells us just to pray without ceasing. Now a handful of people and their lawyers are telling us to cease praying. God, help us. And if that last sentence offends you, well..........just sue me. The silent majority has been silent too long. It's time we let that one or two who scream loud enough to be heard, that the vast majority don't care what they want. it is time the majority rules! It's time we tell them, you don't have to pray. You don't have to say the pledge of allegiance, you don't have to believe in God or attend services that honor Him. That is your right, and we will honor your right.. but by golly you are no longer going to take our rights away... we are fighting back...and we WILL WIN! After all, the God you have the right to denounce is on our side! God bless us one and all, especially those who denounce Him. God bless America, despite all her faults...still the greatest nation of all..... God bless our service men who are fighting to protect our right to pray and worship God... May 2004 be the year the silent majority is heard and we put God back as the foundation of our families and institutions. Keep looking up.... In God WE Trust Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlyn_LeRoy Posted July 24, 2004 Share Posted July 24, 2004 I'll ignore all the other mistakes and logical fallacies and just point out that "Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe" (the supreme court case that struck down prayers before high school football games) was brought to court by a Mormon and a Catholic family who did not do it to remove god from society, but to stop their public school from infringing on their religious rights by having a prayer before every football game. Also note that the case is "vs. Doe"; the families filed anonymously because they wanted to avoid intimidation and harassment from people who wanted the school to keep pushing religion. Here's the 6-3 decision: http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/99-62.ZS.html Why do you need the government to support your religion, anyway? Can't it survive without the government propping it up? "When a religion is good, I conceive it will support itself; and when it does not support itself, and God does not care to support it, so that its professors are obliged to call for the help of the civil power, 'tis a sign, I apprehend, of its being a bad one." -- Ben Franklin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hops_scout Posted July 24, 2004 Share Posted July 24, 2004 Our varsity football team ALWAYS does a quick prayer before going out onto the field right before the game. They do it in the locker room or off to the side somewhere. Our coach started that 4 years ago when he came here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9muckraker7 Posted July 24, 2004 Share Posted July 24, 2004 I think I got this quote from one of these forums... "The Constitution was never meant to prevent people from praying; its declared purpose was to protect their freedom to pray." I agree with that wholeheartedly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuzzy Bear Posted July 25, 2004 Share Posted July 25, 2004 I do not agree with the loud speaker kind of prayer because God can hear quite well and it may or it may not support the God of your choice or the elements of the prayer that agrees with the individual. (*even Christians disagree with each other and with each others approach) I recommend that before each and every game, all sports included, every person stands up at the beginning of the game and gets 2 uninterrupted minutes of any kind of screaming, silent, rolling around, chanting prayer to whatever God, god, gods that they believe in. They can pray for faith, healing, winning the football game, a safe ride home or whatever. The atheists can stand silently in awe of the whole demonstration or get a coke. All religions and non-religions would be covered and nobody would be left out including the football teams and coaches which would feel free to come out of the field house for their part of the episode. FB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Old Guy Posted July 25, 2004 Share Posted July 25, 2004 "Also note that the case is "vs. Doe"; the families filed anonymously because they wanted to avoid intimidation and harassment from people who wanted the school to keep pushing religion." Not very strong in their faith, are they. I believe that their Bible tells them to stand proud and be counted (okay, I'm mixing metaphors). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoutldr Posted July 25, 2004 Share Posted July 25, 2004 A Scout does not plagiarize. When posting something that's not yours, it is polite and ethical to quote the source. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSAT17SPL Posted July 25, 2004 Author Share Posted July 25, 2004 Thanks to those who agree. and if anyone care this peice was written by Samuel Thompson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packsaddle Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 I have to agree with Merlyn. I can remember Jewish boys and their families who were ostracized by local government because they objected to school prayers to Jesus. This was, of course, prior to the Supreme Court rulings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuzzy Bear Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 School prayer as an issue should be intellectually challenging to any person that believes in God. It appears that people are simply mad about not "doing" or being told to not do. If prayer works, if God is real, if there is any power whatsoever from an outside Source, then silent prayer from one within the school, a prayer spoken quietly from across the street, a prayer said from a family from down the street, prayers said in church loaded with believers on a Sunday before Monday morning would work what ever miracles that believers seek. Once again, God is not hard of hearing and His memory works quite well. God works in spite of no school prayer or no loud speakers or the day of the week the request is made on. Nobody can stop God, not even the Supreme Court. FB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Dog Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 Remember: As long as there are Algebra tests, there will always be prayer in school.... bd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packsaddle Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 As I remember, Algebra was a swayback mare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acco40 Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 How religion (and patriotism) got shoe horned into athletic competition has always mystified me. Like the old joke, "What are the last two words of the national anthem? - Play ball!" I am in Fuzzy Bear's (I can't get Sesame Street out of my head!) corner on this one. Prayer does not need to be verbal or "group think" in a public setting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SR540Beaver Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 Being a Christian, I find no offense to prayer being said in school or at games, "in God we trust" being on money, the Ten Commandments being displayed publically, "under God" being in the pledge or manger scenes in front of the local fire stations. That being said; as a Christian, my faith is sustained by my personal relationship with God and none of these other things. Whether they exist or not does not add to or diminish my faith, service, duty to God or raising my family in a Christian environment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster7 Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 Nor does prayer have to be banned. Prayer is a form of expression just like any other. The focus of that expression should not hinder one's rights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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