Hi Mq-
I was a Christian for much of my life. Even after I lost my faith, I continued singing in church choirs because for me, music is a spiritual experience unrelated to particular beliefs, an expression of one of the purer aspects of being human. I've been prayed over, with, at, and for and never been bothered by it- as a believer or as a non. This was the first time I ever felt uncomfortable.
So I think it wasn't so much personal, as a reaction to a situation I saw as being inappropriate. I do think Christians can be exclusionary and, living in Texas Bible Beltland, we have watched it happen to our own kids and to friends. For instance, CW was once assigned a report on Henry Miller in AP English and when I said, wow, he can be dicey, CW informed me that the teacher said it probably wouldn't bother us because we were atheists. There is an assumption of moral inadequacy by some towards non-believers that can hurt children in many ways, large and small.
As for theatre, I have been in it all my life; I did my grad work in it. I have done all levels, and experienced the joy of great performance and the lows of truly abysmal nights. (What scene is this? Who am I? Why is the orchestra in a different key than the one I am singing in?)
This was the first time a cast has ever prayed the Lord's Prayer together in my experience. As an adult, I can choose to participate or not, but I think it is much harder on young people.
It never bothered CW or Ammo, but they are both pretty secure kids, and when it happened, we talked a lot about it. I think the most noticeable slap happened at an athletic banquet when they gave an award to a boy and defined him as the ideal athelete--hardworking, reliable, and---Christian. We were sitting with CW and his best friend, a Muslim, and another boy and his parents who were Jewish. We all sort of did a double take and joked about whether to laugh or sue.
A choir director at one of my schools told me a couple of weeks ago, that a girl announced she didn't believe in the religious pieces we are singing, and the kids
really attacked her until she started crying and ran out. I was there the next day (she wasn't) and the director said to the class, "You will never again tell someone they are stupid or judge them if they believe differently from you."
One kid said, we weren't judging her; we were just trying to tell her what the Truth is."
This is troubling stuff to me.
So that is what's behind my objection to seeing specific prayer in schools under any guise. It has nothing to do with my own ability to enjoy rituals and fantasy (although I think I will sit on the sidelines with you re: decapitations and witchburnings). I have great respect for people of faith. And for those who live without it. |
