Girl says 'hell' in school, suspended (2nd Grader)

AP | 2/04/04 | DAN NEPHIN

[kattracks]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A second-grader was suspended for a day for telling a classmate he would go to hell for saying, "I swear to God."

Brandy McKenith, 7, was suspended for swearing for saying the word "hell," but her family says she was referring to the biblical location of fire and brimstone.

She served the suspension Tuesday.

The Pittsburgh Public Schools' student code of conduct prohibits profanity, but doesn't provide a definition, spokeswoman Pat Crawford said. The school would not comment further.

Brandy's father, Wayne McKenith, said when he learned about the suspension, he thought perhaps his daughter had said something worse, so he called the teacher for details. He was told another student overheard his daughter say the word.

"I said, `Hell? She got suspended for that?'" McKenith said.

He said he asked the school to evaluate its profanity policy.

"`Hell' is like the least of the words in school today," McKenith said. "You go home and turn on the TV tonight and tell me how many times you hear the word 'hell.' And I mean network TV, not even cable."

Without a clear definition, the district could run into problems enforcing the policy, said Witold Walczak, legal director of the Greater Pittsburgh chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

"The school's policy says 'no profanity' and that's not further defined," Walczak said. "How should this little girl know that `hell' is not allowed?"

"It's questionable whether `hell' is even a profanity, and it certainly isn't in the way that she used it," he added.

McKenith, a suburban Pittsburgh police detective, said family members aren't "religious fanatics," but there's a healthy respect for the Lord, so he accepts her daughter's explanation.

"She's under the assumption that good people go to heaven and ... bad people go to hell," he said Wednesday.

[eastforker]

I used to say dog gone it and got chastised that dog spelled backward was god and I was being blasphemous.

[azhenfud]

But "enog" maked those who blamed you look a might ridiculous....

[California74]

Since when is "Hell" a bad word? It's definately not in the context the little girl said it, but saying "Hell no!" or "What the hell?" etc. is bad?

I say Hell all the time. It never occurred to me that it was one of the bad words.

[T.Smith]

"Train up a child in the way that he should go: and when he is old he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6

[azhenfud]

Yeah, it "maked" them look ridiculous, alright....

(feeling kinda ridiculous, myself about now)

[eastforker]

That is exactly why I turned away from any organized form of religion. They all suck and want your money for the purpose of salvation.

[MosesKnows]

A second-grader was suspended for a day for telling a classmate he would go to hell for saying, "I swear to God."

Gosh, if they suspended the student who said "hell" they must have strung up the by the heels the student who said "God".

It doesn't take much wisdom to suspend someone and take no position of their own. Are the mangers of our schools without options; can they only suspend? .

When the only tool in your tool box is a hammer, all problems begin to look like nails.

[biblewonk]

That is exactly why I turned away from any organized form of religion. They all suck and want your money for the purpose of salvation.

What a copout. Our church never asks for your money yet Paul certainly does. I spose Paul is one of those "Organized religion guys". BTW it's the apostle I'm speaking of.

[eastforker]

Not realy, you hit the d instead of the S.

[Rebelbase]

This is the school's website. With a bit of poking around you can figure out the principal's email address. I just fired off one to her.

[eastforker]

What is your church if it does not ask for money?

[Rightly Biased]

Thank you I was afraid I was alone on that one.

[kegler4]

So let's see, in your world a 7-year-old kid (I'm assuming they were both the same age) says "I swear to God" and he's automatically condemned to hell? No chance for redemption. That's a pretty harsh place you inhabit.

[weegee]

It's right there in the 10 commandments: Thou shall not take the Lord's name in vain.

Does it matter what church someone goes to?

[azhenfud]

"That is exactly why I turned away from any organized form of religion. They all suck and want your money for the purpose of salvation."

True, they can. But I have a responsibility - and that's not necessarily to a congregational gathering. OTOH, when I contribute time, resources, etc. - I've done my part as a steward. What THEY do with what's given them, they'll answer for. But that's just my simplistic perception.

[newgeezer]

That is exactly why I turned away from any organized form of religion. They all suck and want your money for the purpose of salvation.

I'm sorry you think so (that is, unless it makes you feel better).

Seriously, though, our church never asks anyone for money, and certainly doesn't tie any hope of salvation to giving. It's way, WAY different than the big, unbelieving church we used to be in where, every year, they had a big pledge card drive and the sermon topic always changed to 'stewardship'.

Here, there's no pledge cards, no sermons about giving, no pressure whatsoever. Yet, plenty of cash comes in. Go figure. ;O)

[biblewonk]

What is your church if it does not ask for money?

It's a Plymoth brethern church. Their naming convention is often "name of the city or town or street" "bible or gosple" "church or chapel". This particular flavor of Brethren is called open Brethren in that we will usually allow people who claim to be Christians to visit and partake of the Lords Supper with us without much adu(sp).

One of the reasons we are so unmoney oriented is that we do not have professional pastors but "lay" elders who have jobs outside church. We don't have to support a pastor and we are also conservative with our other bills and are debt free. For quite some time I gave my offering money towards supporting my sickly old mother in law as the bible says we should do. The Pastor at a Baptist church I visited thought that was bad and that I should be supporting both.

So in that case I would tend to agree with you in that he was too money oriented. There are quite a few people who believe that people only get saved through the efforts of men therefore the more resources churches have the more people will get saved. Due to their not understanding election and God's soverignty they have a wrong mindset and will tend to seem too money oriented. But not all churches are that way.

[eastforker]

It han't been that long ago one would swear to God on the witness stand. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God. They leave off those last four words now.

[kegler4]

"Does it matter what church someone goes to?"

I guess it does. My church doesn't teach that a young child who says "I swear to God" is automatically condemned to hell. It sounds like yours does. If so, I'd guess a HUGE percentage of the American public is going to have a warm afterlife.

[azhenfud]

Yeah, it used to be one was frowned upon who wouldn't take that oath. It seems we're fast headed in the opposite direction.

Years ago, (actually some decades ago) my grandmother told me, "It used to be a lazy man who'd let a hill of grass grow in his yard - now it's a lazy man who won't have a yard of grass."

We're still coming a long way around the same circle.