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Should Religion Be Taught In Schools Essay

885 Words4 Pages

Talabi Toluwalase

Professor David Nelson

ENG 101

[insert date of completion here]

Should Religion Be Taught In Public Schools?

With more than 15 court cases - including the famous Scopes Trial in Tennessee (Murray 135) - associated with the very topic over the course of U.S. history, the degree to which religion can be allowed in many institutions of society has ignited numerous debates; so much so that it has been excluded completely in the US public school education. While the fear of potentially discriminating students of minor religions is understandable, I believe that religion should be taught in public schools for the following reasons: educating students to be religion literates, providing students with the tools to fight religiously-motivated hate crimes, and promoting positive morals in the institutions of society.

Religion literacy …show more content…

For instance, Phil Bryant, the current governor of Mississippi, explained in 2013 that prayer in schools wasn't meant to promote Christianity, but to teach students about the religious freedom they have as citizens of the United States (Religion). The display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms is also a much debated topic between religious conservatives and their counterparts. The Ten Commandments may have content that is not supported by members of faiths other than Christianity, but 60% of the Ten Commandments lists what everyone, regardless of faith, is expected to do as law-abiding citizens; for example, we are taught not to steal, tell lies, or commit murder, all of which are in the Ten Commandments. Since most religions teach positive values such as love and kindness, religion in the classroom shouldn't be perceived as some form of establishment, but rather as promotion of behavior that is expected in the

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