North Escambia.com has an article on the Northview High School seniors holding a baccalaureate service. The class is “not going to let a federal judge and the ACLU put an end to the school’s history of holding a Baccalaureate service.” (Read)
The ACLU suit with the Santa Rosa County schools, particularly Pace High School, was not about students praying or having baccalaureate services. It was about the school administration and teachers pushing their religion on the students.
Baccalaureate service are permissible as long as attendance is voluntary and the school isn’t planning it. Gulf Breeze High School has held them for years and wasn’t named in the ACLU suit. The interfaith ministry council plans the event, which is rotated between churches.
The lack of understanding over what the ACLU lawsuit is about is astounding. We’ve got ministers trying to build their reputations off this without any knowledge about what it was about. I doubt few have read the documents.
We wrote about the suit last September – Faith No More.
Here are two of the specific complaints about Pace High School:
Pace High math teacher and softball coach Dustin Gray preached to students about “instant reply” and “Judgment Day with the Lord” at a First Priority meeting during the 2006 school year.
Pace High history teacher and girl’s cross-country coach Clint Martin has preached to cross-country students and other students before school in the parking lot with use of a bullhorn.
No religion – or brand of Christianity- should be forced on kids at public schools.