Memo from the Elementary School Principal

PRAYER AROUND THE FLAGPOLE: The event takes place every Monday at 8:15 at the flag pole next to the office and is sponsored by our area Pastors. This is not to be confused with the “Pray around the flagpole” which is annual on the 4th Wednesday in September. Our pray around the school’s flagpole event is to pray for the nation, for each other, and for our school. Many outstanding people are leading information session to our congress for them to understand the first amendment. Pastor Steven Andrew states: “Our children need God back in schools,’ and he is calling Christians nation-wide to bring back the Holy Bible and Christian prayer to schools. The First Amendment was for Christianity, not other religions. The First Amendment says, “Congress shall make no law…prohibiting the free exercise of [Christian] religion.” Including God, the Constitution says, “The year of our Lord” and “except Sundays.” Our Founding Fathers fought for God’s unalienable rights of Christian life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Freedom comes from obeying God. Let’s get active to bring back the Holy Bible and Christian prayer to schools.” Our prayer around the flagpole gatherings are permissible because they are community led and take place outside of class time.[1]

The principal says that he does not agree with the quotes.  He says he was not trying to endorse the prayer event.  He does believe that the First Amendment applies to all religions.  The actual pastor who will be leading the event, Pastor Baker, says he believes that the First Amendment applies to all religions.

So then why did the principal quote at length another pastor's views that the First Amendment only applies to Christianity?

"This is his opinion and what he says,” Davis said about Andrew’s article. “To me it just looked like it all went together with the morals. I don’t think it was a stretch at all for him to make those comments or for me to share them.”[2]

Given the rest of the memo, I am tempted to believe the principal.  He goes on to talk about Congress and tax policy.  Pastor Baker leads the prayer events at three other schools.  It is not Baker's fault that another pastor wrote something and it is not Baker's fault that the principal decided to quote it in a school memo.   Baker did cancel the events at all four schools originally, but then renewed them at all four schools.  He believes that to cancel would admit that there was something wrong in the first place.

The principal on the other hand really screwed this up.  Yes, the faculty need to be notified. However, the way he notified them was ridiculous.  If he did not endorse the event, he sure did seem like it.  He quoted a constitutional opinion that was contrary to the school's policies. 

If the principal was not trying to endorse the event with a school memo, he did a poor job.  I feel sorry for the pastor who is leading the event who seems like a reasonable guy to get sideswiped by this principal.