THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 18, 1994 TAG: 9409200511
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 172 lines
A resolution circulating among northeastern counties has brought public school prayer to the lips of nearly every active politician.
Boards of county commissioners have been rushing to catch up with a bandwagon launched a year ago in Texas that has sped through North Carolina under the banner of restoring organized school prayer.
Officials have snatched up resolutions sent from other states and counties, attached their own names and approved them with little or no dissent from their colleagues or communities.
Supporters, who acknowledge that the resolutions carry no legal weight, say the activity is part of a grass-roots movement to change the way school prayer is viewed from the highest levels of government.
Their personal wishes range from pronouncing a period of silence to encouraging ministers to lead students in prayer at school.
But what these resolutions specifically call for, and whether their aims can be accomplished, remains unclear.
Dare and Perquimans counties led the resolution drive in the northeast, adopting statements Sept. 6 urging ``that prayer be returned to the public school systems across this nation'' and encouraging other local governments to take the same stand.
The resolutions argue that the nation was founded on ``freedom of,'' not ``freedom from,'' religion, and that a Supreme Court ruling forbidding collective prayer during school hours means ``prayer has been banned from the public school system.''
Many forms of prayer are still allowed in public schools, state officials say. Students can pray silently at any time, can say grace before meals, and can organize religious clubs before and after school. School districts can permit a moment of silence at the beginning of the school day, as long as it's not strictly for religious purposes.
But since a 1962 Supreme Court court case struck down voluntary classroom prayers and scripture readings, collective prayer during school hours has been forbidden.
``What the court worries about in those cases is any sign that the government . . . approves of or supports or endorses religious activities,'' said constitutional law Professor Jack Boger of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
``The state is not supposed to establish a religion, and that includes promoting religion over nonreligion,'' Boger said.
``It's reasonably certain that prayer in the public schools is not going to be permitted by the Supreme Court.''
The only real options open for those who want to change that reality are to pass a constitutional amendment or to create another test case with a law that violates the court's ruling, Boger said.
Pasquotank County, which approved a school prayer resolution of its own on Wednesday, took some of these considerations into account.
``From a legal perspective, the idea . . . that prayer had been banned from school is incorrect,'' Pasquotank County Attorney Ike McRee said Thursday, adding that some counties' resolutions were not ``legally or historically accurate.''
For instance, the resolution passed by Dare and Perquimans, modeled after documents sent from such counties as Macon and Yancey, assert that religious freedoms are set forth in Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution.
Freedom of religion is actually outlined in the First Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights.
Pasquotank's version of the resolution, which will be taken up by Camden County commissioners soon, calls on cities and counties to ``insure that no governmental restriction be placed on public school student prayer.''
It asks that restrictions be ``removed'' unless the removal interferes with others' religious and educational rights.
``Our board is not just taken to adopting resolutions that are sent to it'' without examining them, McRee said.
``What the Pasquotank resolution is advocating is students having a prayerful relationship. . . . Our board is saying, to the extent that there is restriction on allowable expression, let's cut that out.''
Pasquotank Commissioner Patsy McGee said the resolution speaks for itself and did not name any restriction to school prayer that she felt should be removed. She said she was satisfied with a draft Pasquotank school prayer policy, which abides by Supreme Court rulings.
``The resolution is sufficiently ambiguous that it could be put forth in support of a variety of actions,'' said law professor Boger, who heard the text of the document over the phone. ``It's hard to know from the resolution what's really the collective sense of those who passed it.''
Pasquotank Commissioner Bill Owens, who had been prodded by his opponent for the state House of Representatives to get a school prayer resolution passed, also did not name specific restrictions he thought should be removed from school prayer.
Owens said it was time to put the issue behind him.
``We voted on an issue; we've done what we were requested to do,'' Owens said. ``It's still a political football right now at this time of year, and that's not what prayer is all about. . . . That's not a political issue.''
``I personally think that we need to concentrate more on doing what's already allowed in our society,'' Owens said. ``Students can have student-led prayer now, so why don't we encourage them to use what they can do?''
Owens' opponent, Republican John Schrote, said that's not good enough. He believes prayer in school should be student-led but ``facilitated'' and ``encouraged'' by school officials and PTAs. Elementary school is ``the appropriate time to start bringing them in,'' Schrote said.
Schrote, who said he would pursue the issue if sent to the General Assembly, said school prayer should show respect for all faiths, but ``I'm not sympathetic to the atheists.''
The issue has caught the attention of legislators already working in Raleigh.
Marc Basnight, president pro-tem of the state Senate, said he supports organized school prayer and is exploring options for moving the issue forward.
``Prayer is important to all people, except obviously for people who don't believe,'' Basnight said. ``That obviously is an extreme minority.
``If we could restore prayer in schools, I think we should do it . . . I think it's exciting that local elected officials are making that request.''
Basnight said he would look for ways to support the resolutions, but ``I'm not sure what the North Carolina General Assembly can do. . . . I'm not sure to what extent there will be any successes, if any.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphics
GUIDELINES
Constitutional law is open to interpretation and can change with
every court ruling on a given issue. The following guidelines are
compiled from opinions of state officials and publications of the
American Civil Liberties Union.
Allowed:
Students may participate in religious clubs at school - without
involvement of school officials - during nonschool hours.
Students may say grace before meals or pray before taking an
exam, or pray at other times in nondisruptive ways.
In North Carolina, school systems may allow teachers the option
of offering a moment of silence at the beginning of the school day.
Not allowed:
School officials and students cannot lead collective prayer
sessions during school hours.
Prayer periods generally cannot be held at public school
graduation ceremonies.
School districts cannot require a moment of silence that is
specifically set aside for prayer.
ON SCHOOL PRAYER
``. . . Whereas, our nation was founded on the freedom OF
RELIGION and was not founded on the freedom FROM RELIGION. . .
``Whereas, through time, court decisions and certain interest
groups have contributed to the deterioration of those religious
beliefs and ideals to the extent that prayer has been banned from
the public school system. . .
``. . . Be it resolved that the Dare County Board of
Commissioners strongly urges that prayer be returned to the public
school systems of this nation and invites all cities and counties
across this State to join in an effort to reinstitute prayer in the
public schools by passing similar resolutions and uniting in a grass
roots movement for that purpose.''
- Resolution adopted Sept. 6, 1994. A similar resolution was
adopted the same day by Perquimans County and has been adopted by
several county commissions and school boards throughout the state.
Whereas, by its inclusion in the Bill of Rights . . . language
prohibits government sponsorship, aid or formal establishment of
religion and protects the practice of any religion. . .
``. . .Whereas, a prayerful relationship with God in accord with
a person's faith and religious doctrine is essential for the
continuation of a civilized people and nation. . .''
``Be it resolved by the Board of Commissioners for the County of
Pasquotank, North Carolina that all cities and counties across this
state and nation join in an effort to insure that no governmental
restriction be placed on public school student prayer and that if
restrictions exist then such restrictions be removed to the extent
that removal does not interfere with the ability of all students to
enter into a prayerful relationship with their God and will not
interfere with the right of all students to a public education.''
- Resolution adopted Sept. 14, 1994. A similar resolution is
pending in Camden County.
by CNB