Carey Dillinger, October, 1994
The Daily Commercial
When complaints are aired in the newspaper or on television and radio that prayer needs to be restored to the public schools, I know these people are sincere in their convictions, but I believe they are not truly in touch with reality. I have been in the Florida public school's as a student, intern or teacher since 1959, and doubt if many weeks have gone by that I have not prayed while at school. Some of these prayers have been rather selfish: help me pass this test; help me remember my vocabulary words; save me from being beat up by "Punkin'head" Johnson; get me a date with the Homecoming Queen; get me through this year of college; don't let me be drafted; and why do I have to have "Punkin'head" Johnson's oldest boy, "Mellonhead," as a student in my sixth period class? Other prayers have been extremely mature: be with the family of my high school friend John (who was killed our senior year); keep my J.V. basketball players safe from injury; make me a better teacher, co-worker and friend; help me do what is in the best interests of my students, not just what is easiest for me; thanks for all the blessings I have in my life, including the opportunity to teach these past few generations of Leesburg teenagers.
I know their are many students that have come through Leesburg High in the past 19 years that had an active prayer life while in school and on campus. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (F.C.A.) has permission to meet for prayer before school as often as they wish. There have been and are teachers and administrators whose daily prayers reach up to God from campuses all over this county.
If all this praying is going on in our public schools, and I assure you it is, then why hasn't the government put a stop to it? Because it's private prayer. Private prayers of course are uttered silently or in a quiet place, not over the school P.A. system or in front of a school assembly. The political correctness of private prayer is a moot point, since no one can be offended by what they cannot hear. No one can control this form of prayer and that is what makes it perfectly suited for the public schools.
The private school is perfectly suited for public prayer. Since many of the local private schools are already affiliated with a religious organization, it is only natural that these schools would be operated under a set of procedures that would include not only public prayer, but required Bible study and mandatory attendance and participation at daily devotional assemblies. If you believe these things are an important part of a school's curriculum, then you must find a way to send your child to a private school.
The eclectic make-up of the public school population makes public prayer an impossibility. Any public prayer said in such a generic fashion as not to offend anyone's religious sensibilities would not be an acceptable prayer to many. For example, many Christians feel that a prayer is not acceptable unless it is prayed in the name of Jesus, but this is totally unacceptable to the Jews, Hindus, Moslems and those of other non-Christian religions. The entire concept of praying to one true God is foreign to many religions and of course the Atheists are mad no matter what deity is being petitioned. Atheist's have it made as far as prayer is concerned because they are allowed to not pray anytime. (I read that in Johnny Hart's cartoon B.C. a few years ago.)
The rest of us need to consider when and where our public prayers would be acceptable not only to our fellow man, but especially to our God. Praying aloud in front of family, friends, co-workers of like faith, and our religious brethren can be beneficial to all involved, but trying to overcome unwilling participants with a loud speaker and 200 or 300 watts of amplification can do nothing to enhance their lives and perhaps turn them against the system of religion using such tactics.
The same people who are insisting that public prayer be allowed in public schools, will be the same ones to complain if the prayers being led are not to their liking. Who will lead these prayers? Students, faculty, administrators or outsiders? If ten percent of the student body is Jewish, will one out of every ten prayers be led by a Jew. Even among the so-called Christian denominations there is disagreement as to who is qualified to lead public prayers. Can a woman lead public prayer? Must the leader even be a regular churchgoer? Who will decide? As a practitioner of freedom of religion I am unwilling to let these decisions be made for me.
The laws of the state of Florida allow the public schools to provide a moment of silence at the beginning of each school day or school sponsored event. It is our responsibility as parents to see to it that our children are taking advantage of these moments in whatever "silent" way we see fit. Tomorrow morning around 7:30, more than one person at Leesburg High will be praying for himself or herself and your children, privately and with the utmost sincerity. Wherever you are tomorrow morning at 7:30 stop for a moment of silent prayer. Pray for your child and us. Amen.
Public prayer for private school, private prayer for public school. There you have it, the solution to the great debate. It really can be that simple.