At best, this amendment is unnecessary, as it calls for religious liberties that are already clearly part of our every day lives. At worst, this resolution threatens the very religious liberties it proposes to strengthen. Forcing state controlled prayer into the public schools violates the rights of children whose families are practicing members of minority religions and it is in clear opposition to the Social Principles of The Methodist Church. We cannot support either an amendment that proposes to divert public funding form public schools to private institutions. We believe that this measure is not in the best interest of Americas children.
Students already have the right to pray in public schools.
We endorse this practice. They can often pray orally in a group. Religious clubs under the Equal Access Act abound and provide a constitutionally permissible opportunity for devotional Bible reading as well as prayer. Even neutral moments of silence, when properly administered, provide yet another opportunity for prayer. The GBCS is the public policy and social action agency of The United Methodist Church.