Separation of Church

1
Separation of Church State

• By Laura Haw, Kyle Hartwig, Kevin Leonard, Jake
  Rizkalla

2
Content Overview

• Early History
• Divine Rights
• Galileo
• Foundation of the United States
• Puritans
• Jefferson Bible
• Education
• Public School
• Home schooling
• Evolution
• Prayer in sports
• Churchs Role within the Judicial Branch
• Justices
• Court decisions
• Medical Policies Religion
• Pro-life / Pro-choice
• Terri Schiavo
• Gay Rites
• Current Issues

3
Early History
4
Early History Divine Rights

• Divine Rights
• states that a monarch owes his rule to the will
  of God, not to the will of his subjects,
  parliament, the aristocracy or any other
  competing authority.
• Divine Rights of Kings, Wikipedia.
• lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Right_of_Kin
  gsgt, 3 April 2007.

5
Early History Galileo

• Published book Sidereus Nuncius in 1610.
• Some of Galileos findings contradicted the
  Bible.
• Feb 16th, 1616, Galileo presents his case to the
  Inquisition in Rome.
• Results included that he had to abandoned such
  opinions.

6
Early History - Puritans

• Roger Williams, a Separatist, believed that
  church and state should be separate.
• William founded his own colony, Providence in
  1636.
• It was founded on the belief that church and
  state should remain separate.

7
Early History

• Jefferson Bible The Life and Morals of Jesus of
  Nazareth
• Wanted to make the teaching of Jesus less
  supernatural.
• Though it would be better to use only the worlds
  and teaching of Jesus himself.
• Left out any mention
• of angels, genealogy,
• prophecy, miracles,
• the Trinity, the divinity
• of Jesus and resurrection.

8
Education
9
Education - Public Schools

• 90 of American children attend public schools.
• Has prayer been expelled from our schools, as
  some people claim?
• Has bible reading been banned in public schools?
• Do teachers need to avoid all mention of religion?

10
Education Public Schools

• 1962 Supreme Court Case ()
• Ruled official prayer had no place in public
  education.
• Government sponsored worship.
• Nothing in the 1962 ruling made it unlawful for
  students to read a bible during school hours.
• High school religious clubs must be outside of
  hours.
• Objective study about religion in public schools
  is legal and appropriate.

11
Education Public Schools

• Is it right to allow advertising for religion in
  public schools?
• Should parents be pulling out a pamphlet on a
  Friday night from their sons or daughters
  backpack telling them about the Pagan religion?
• Should we be worried that religious groups use a
  child's backpack as a outreach strategy?

12
Education Public Schools

• Doors Open For Pagan Proselytizing In Virginia
  Public School
• Have you ever wondered what Holidays refers
  to?
• Everyone knows about Christmas but what else
  are people celebrating in December? Why do we
  celebrate the way we do?
• An educational program for children of all ages
  (and their adults), where well explore the
  traditions of December and their origins,
  followed by a Pagan ritual to celebrate Yule.

13
Education Public Schools

• Can high school students meet with religious
  intention?
• How constitutional is it to read a bible in
  class?
• What about religion in the class room, can
  teachers instruct about it?

14
Education Public Schools

• No holding of this Court suggests that a school
  can persuade or compel a student to participate
  in a religious exercise
• Supreme Court Justice
• Anthony Kennedy

15
Education Public Schools

• Can students use religion in their reports and
  homework?
• How far does religious freedom go with student
  presentations heard by the class?

16
Education Public Schools

• Should students be allowed to try to convince
  their peers about religious views?
• What should faculty do about these debates?
• Should public schools be able to celebrate
  religious holidays?

17
Education Public Schools

• Main Point of Interest
• Being neutral on religion is not the same as
  being hostile towards it.

18
Education Prayer in Sports

• Lee v. Weisman
• This ruling made prayer in public schools
  unconstitutional.

19
Churchs Role in the Judicial Branch

• Why you should be shocked with our Justices?
• First Catholic majority in history.
• 5/9 Justices are Catholic, compared to 25 of
  Americans.
• 2/9 Justices are Jewish, while only 2 of
  Americans are Jewish.

20
Churchs Role in the Judicial Branch

• There has been only one Justice who was not
  considered to be a member of any church.
• Justice David Davis (1862-1877).
• 1/108 total Justices.

21
Justices Samuel Alito

• Confirmed by the Senate with a 58 42 vote.
• Voted with the majority in ACLU v. Schundler.
• Held that government sponsored holiday displays
  were permissible as long as they included both
  secular and religious symbols.
• Held a dissenting opinion in C.H. v. Oliva et al.

22
(No Transcript)
23
Medical Policies Religion Terri Schiavo

• Condition
• Brain damaged
• Cardiac and respiratory arrest
• Persistent vegetative state (PVS)
• Parents v. Husband

24
Same - Sex Marriage and the Violation of Church
and State

• Should church and state interaction exist on the
  subject of marriage?
• Does the purposed amendment violate the
  separation of church and state?
• Should federal and state governments recognize
  marriages between gay couples?

25
Same - Sex Marriage and the Violation of Church
and State

• Does banning gay marriage infringe on religious
  rights?
• Unitarian Universalist Association
• Union for Reform Judaism
• United Church of Christ
• Would churches ever have to sanctify same-sex
  marriages?

26
Current Issues - Locally

• Current revision of the Michigan State
  Universitys Religious Observance Policy
• Who does this effect?
• Students / Professors

27
Current Issues - Locally

• The Okemos Christian Center is in the process of
  trying to build a larger church.
• Okemos District Court ruled.
• Currently being appealed to the 6th U.S. Circuit
  Court of Appeals.