Lemon v. Kurtzman - Reader comments at The New York Sun

Reader comment on:
Report: Principal Tried ‘Magic' To Cure School
in response to reader comment: Who's over the edge?

Submitted by Tom, Aug 10, 2007 15:04

The court case is Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602 (1971) [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemon_v._Kurtzman ], which I think more people should be familiar with. It emphasizes that the "separation of church and state" does not mean a public system absent of all religious references/practices (as I interpreted your comment to mean), but rather the government should be free of religious entanglements. Under their three-pronged analysis, public schools (or any public building), could be rented out for religious services, so long as no one organization was given preference. In this case of the Santeria ceremony, you are correct that public money should not have been paid, but whether the ceremony should be allowed if initiated for and paid by a private entity is a much murkier question. The statement you made was broad, sweeping, and final, preferring absence of religion to freedom of religion. Your statement improperly precluded the individual right of worship. I was attempting to demonstrate through sarcasm that religion may appropriately be part of our public discourse.

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Other reader comments on this article

Comment	By	Date
I heard about this article and considered the sepration of "church and state" statement previous to mine. The separation should be... [MORE]	Quantum Inspirations	Aug 10, 2007 07:34
No one has the right to perform any religious practices in public schools--Christian, Hebrew, Hindu, Moslim, Santeria or anything else.... [MORE]	Celia M. Stewart	Aug 8, 2007 13:16
"No one has the right to perform any religious practices in public schools"... You're right. Schools shouldn't be allowed to rent... [MORE]	Tom	Aug 9, 2007 15:25
I simply pointed out that the standard of separation of church and state is applicable to all schools supported by... [MORE]	Celia M. Stewart	Aug 10, 2007 09:10
The court case is Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602 (1971) [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemon_v._Kurtzman ], which I think more people should...	Tom	Aug 10, 2007 15:04
I think the problem is the hype on the term black magic here. The hard question is, if over a... [MORE]	Monique Stines	Aug 12, 2007 19:33
Give credit for this Principal wanting all positive energy going towards the school on every level. The traditions she used... [MORE]	Dee Tanner	Aug 8, 2007 08:25
Dee Tanner brought up the issue of this prinicpal's background and whether other similar incidents were on her record. I... [MORE]	Arlo Duff	Aug 16, 2007 05:32
Arlo, this was supposed to be laughable. Tamayo wasn't that fair, you remember how she was to me, and clearly... [MORE]	James Anthes	Aug 16, 2007 16:38
Well actually I don't think it was Tamayo that banned me. Sinclair's the one who banned me, but after I... [MORE]	Arlo Duff	Aug 16, 2007 21:17