When religion pops up in public school sports, it always seems to center on the game of football, never girls’ volleyball. Linebackers and tight ends apparently need more prayers than setters or middle blockers.
In the last few weeks alone, there have been reports of baptisms of team members on a high school football field in Alabama and coach-led prayers in Hall County. In the South, Friday night lights often become a prelude to Sunday morning sermons.
The latest appearance of Jesus in the huddle occurred in Madison County, Ga., where a Christian-themed monument designed to inspire the crowd and the football team has also inspired threats of lawsuits for violation of the church-state divide.
Erected at the Madison County High School stadium, the donated monument contains the Bible verses Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me,” and Romans 8:31: “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Members of the Red Raiders football team took to touching the rock-like statute as they headed onto the field.
The overtly Christian references on the monument prompted warnings from the Freedom from Religion Foundation and the American Humanist Association. The groups said the Bible verses on the monument were a clear violation of the law and could lead to a legal challenge if not removed.
“Courts have continually held that school districts may not display religious messages or iconography in public schools,” Andrew Seidel, attorney for the Freedom from Religion Foundation, wrote in a letter to the school board.
Seidel contended the monument divided students: “This divisiveness is heightened by the particular passages displayed. ‘If God be for us, who could be against us’ literally turns the student body into ‘us’ and them’ — into Christians and everyone else. The import is clear, if you are not Christian, you are not a Red Raider.”
Allen McCannon, the Madison superintendent, told me in an email, “We did not see the blueprints for the monument before it was placed in its current location. We knew the basics about the monument but saw no drawing or plan. After seeing the monument, I was concerned that it would be become an issue and communicated these concerns to the board.”
The school board listened. In a unanimous vote earlier this month, board members agreed to follow the law — which means the verses will either be removed or covered, disappointing the crowd of 200 community members who witnessed the vote, most of whom wanted Madison to defend the Bible verses.
I know many parents in Madison County are upset with the school board’s decision, but they ought to consider these questions: Are you sending your children to public school for religious training or academic instruction? Do you want district funds — at a time when schools are nearly broke — diverted to fight this losing battle?
If parents are going to urge their schools to spend money, shouldn’t it be in defense of higher standards, quality instruction and effective teachers rather than a rock? If you look at Madison County High’s academic standings, there’s room for improvement; the 2013 Georgia report card showed SAT scores below the state average, and only 42 percent of graduates met HOPE eligibility.
My parents valued religious instruction. So, I went to 12 years of Catholic school. I send my kids to public schools, and I don’t want or expect them to get religious training there. I want them to learn calculus. I want them to learn Spanish. I want them to learn physics.
Students attend school about 1,000 hours a year. There are nearly 9,000 hours in a year. Surely parents who want their children exposed to religion have plenty of time outside school to do so.
Religion is not the job of the schools. And when schools in Georgia make it their job — as a surprising number do — they violate laws designed to respect and protect religious differences. Monuments, such as this one in Madison, amplify and highlight those differences. The board members made the right call and ought to be applauded for their courage in the face of community pressure.
