Posted on 05/12/2003 8:37:48 AM PDT by Blood of Tyrants
MAYNARDVILLE, Tenn. — Every year, hundreds of Union County students take a field trip for the soul. Children are excused from class, loaded onto school buses with teachers and sent to a three-day Christian revival.
"I am going to ask you a question," an evangelical leader recently yelled to a sea of students ready for their field trip. "If you are glad to be here, say amen!"
With the ardor of a pep rally, the students shouted back: "AAAA-men!"
Not everyone is so enthusiastic.
Fourteen-year-old India Tracy said she was harassed and attacked by classmates for nearly three years after she declined to attend Baptist Pastor Gary Beeler's annual crusade because of her family's pagan religion.
Her family has filed a federal lawsuit against Union County schools, claiming the crusade, prayers over the loudspeaker, a Christmas nativity play, a Bible handout and other proselytizing activities in the rural school system have become so pervasive they are a threat to safety and religious liberty.
Union County officials say the system is neutral when it comes to religious activities, pointing out that the crusade is voluntary, teachers chaperone on their own time and school buses are operated by private contractors.
"We do not endorse, promote or prohibit it," said school spokesman Wayne Goforth.
District officials say the crusade, now in its sixth year, is like any other field trip, with parental permission required to let the children attend for two hours a day over three days. On the crusade's final day this year, April 30, more than 1,300 of the school system's 3,000 students attended.
"All local boards of education have the authority to allow students to voluntarily attend these types of events," said Christy Ballard, legal counsel to the Tennessee Department of Education.
But, she added, "it is very clear in the statute that they can't harass a student or coerce them to participate ... and, of course, they can't be school-sponsored."
Charles Haynes, a senior scholar at the Freedom Forum's First Amendment Center in Arlington, Va., said school officials and Christian leaders in Union County need a "crash course on the meaning of the First Amendment -- especially the part that separates church from state."
Beeler, 63, who lives and preaches in Union County, said he has been contacted by communities around the country wanting to set up similar crusades, and sees nothing wrong with children getting time off from school to attend them.
"The principals, the teachers, the bus drivers all have told us that they have less behavior problems after this crusade than they do before. So that tells us the positive effect," he said.
India said she was called "Satan worshipper" and accused of eating babies when it was revealed she was a pagan. She said she was taunted, found slurs painted over her locker and was injured when classmates assaulted her and slammed her head into the locker.
The lawsuit said school officials took no disciplinary action. In a May 2 legal response, school officials said they acted appropriately, denied the attacks happened, or said they were unaware of them.
Paganism is an ancient religious tradition that embraces kinship with nature, positive morality and the idea that there is both a female and male side of Deity.
After Christmas break in early 2002, India said three boys chased her down a hall at Horace Maynard Middle School, grabbed her by the neck and said, "You better change your religion or we'll change it for you."
She broke free and fled into the girls' bathroom. A teacher stopped the boys from following her, the lawsuit said.
"That was pretty much the last straw because she was terrified," said India's father, Greg Tracy.
The Tracys took India out of school on Feb. 26, 2002.
A straight-A student, she belonged to the leadership-service organization Beta Club, chess club, and band. She was the only girl on the middle school football team.
Now she takes Internet courses at home and hopes to transfer to a public school in Knoxville, 25 miles away.
"When was it too hard? I don't know," India said. "On a couple of occasions it was too hard and then it got easier and then it started getting bad again and I would come home bawling my eyes out."
Really. You seem awfully defensive and argumentative for someone who is laughing. If you profess no belief in God, what is all this hurting? You don't seem to be a very good atheist to let this get to you so much. A true atheist would not even bother with this thread as it would serve no purpose. Your rantings are more anti-Christian than anything else.
I have no intention of being anti-Christian and I hope I'm not sounding hysterical.
I simply believe that mixing government and religion is an extremely bad idea.
Government certainly has no calling to repress religion - freedom to exercise one's religion is one of our most important rights.
But it also has no calling to show favoritism to one religion over another, which is what I believe the school is doing.
I think some of our fellow Freepers take that as anti-Christian, but it is definitely not. Such lack of favoritism protects ALL religious folks. If we allow favoritism to creep in, Christians will find themselves at the mercy of majority rule.
Easy question. Because ALL the other religions (every single one of them, look it up) are based on YOU and what YOU do in this life. Christianity is the ONE religion that teaches that no person is good enough to enter into the presence of God and that by grace alone can you enter into heaven.
So just what is your religion and if it doesn't profess to have all the answers, then why follow it?
The truth is in the Bible, historicaly accurate, and Spiritually accurate.
As your self these three questions:
1. Was Jesus a Lunatic? Who is more of a lunatic, the lunatic himself or the Multitudes that followed witnessing the miracles and healings? If he was, then he was the most stupid person ever to commit himself to the most cruelest and humiliating death known to man. 2. Was Jesus a Liar? He claimed to be the Son of God, who can dispute that? He said he would rise on the third day, and he did... 3. Is Jesus Lord? If you answer no, then you must have to deal with this answer. For it is once man to die, then judgment. Jesus is at the Mercy Seat to judge mankind. All faiths believe in a judgment. They are a copy of the original Judge! Christianity is based on Christ crucified, buried and risen, for the forgivenss of sin in mankind, and a way to spend eternity with God the father in heaven. You don't have to believe in something for it to exist. It will anyway.
There is NO such thing as a one size fits all religion, not even Christianity is believed the same way by EVERY Christian,
The differences are mere differences in doctrine. ALL Christians belive the same basic tenements, that Christ was God incarnate who walked on earth, that he lived a sinless life so that His covenant of ultimate sacrifice could be fulfilled through His death, that he laid in the tomb for three days, and that He arose on the third day and is alive now, and that the only way to heaven is through Him..
Although Unitarian are not pagans, CUPPS is, which is where the information was attained.
Michael S.F. may be, since it's likely hard to freely and responsibly search for truth if you're willing to portray a major Western religion as a completely different religion to fulfill some nefarious agenda.
The error made was in shortening the name to "Unitarian Universalists 'assoctiation'" and omitting Pagans from the opening. No attempt was made to portray Pagans as anything other then the cult that they are. All words were from the "CUPPS" website referenced.
I will ignore the "nefarious agenda" slam, since it is based on a false premise and a misunderstanding.
Can you cite any examples of Unitarian Universalists not respecting Christians?
Again we are talking apples and oranges. The reference was made to Pagans, not to Unitarians. That was an error of omission, and not an attempt to falsely portray Unitarians, as being a 'bizarre religion'. Although I do not know all of the details of Unitarians, I have nothing at all against the religion and would consider them to be one of the many Bible based religions, which are wholly acceptable.
The reference to not respecting Christians, was to the specific couple in this posting, who are suing to prevent Christians from freely associating in an activity which is faith based.
I would compare this to devout Muslims who pray several times a day. If Muslim students can do this at a school, whould a lawsuit to stop this from happening, be considered a lack of respect for their faith? I believe it would be. And I would not support such a lawsuit.
So am I to research all forms of Paganism before I voice the opinion that I thinbk it is a bizarre cult? Get real. I picked a random Paganist website to confirm and illistrate my belief that Paganism is a cult religion, which exists on amongst the fringe members of society.
And you never did explain how the Principles and Purposes exclude members of other faiths from searching for truth and meaning, regardless if those who adhere to the Principles and Purposes are Pagan, Unitarian Universalist or any other sundry religion.
It is my opinion that this family, by filing a lawsuit, is aiding in preventing others from finding their form of truth through evangelical Christianity. If they really believe in a "Free and responsible" search for truth, by preventing the field trips they are indeed attempting to exclude others rights to expression of their own religion.
In looking back on this whole discussion it appears that the CUUPS page may heve cross linked to the Unitarian beliefs, or I may have been mistaken in my search under Pagans and some how got cross linked to Unitarians.
In which case then it seems a monumental mistake was made. I was under the impression that the listing I quoted from represented Pagan Philosophy. If it is indeed Unitarian philosphy, then I will with draw my comment regarding Unitarians.
It seems that the Unitarian beliefs are a bit more, abstract(?) then I had realised.
I propose eliminating government schools. Private schools somehow don't seem to have the same discipline problems.
Well, I admit the kids in MY private school are known to chase each other in the halls, but from the dialogue, it's a Civil War reenactment! We'd prefer they did it outside, but it's tornado season.
Cheers! Xy
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