Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1962-06-26


Education of Union Free School
District No. 9. New Hyde Park,
N. Y, acting in its official
capacity under State law, direct
the school districts principal to
cause the following prayer to be
said aloud by each class in the
presence of a teacher at the
beginning of each school day:
Almighty God, we acknowl-
edge our dependence upon
Thee, and we beg Thy blessings
upon us, our parents, our
teachers and our country"
This daily procedure was
adopted on the recommended
tion Of the State Board of Re-
gents, a governmental agency
created by the State ConStitu-
ton to which the New York
Legislature has granted broad
supervisory. executive and leg
islative powers over the States
public school system.
Composed by Officials
The State officials composed
the prayer which they recon-
mended and published as a
part Of their Statement on
moral and spiritual training in
the schools" saying: I'VE be-
lieve that this statement will
be subscribed to by all men
and women of good will, and
we call upon all of them to aid
in giving life to our program.
Shortly after the practice of
reciting the Regents Prayer
was adopted by the school dis
trict. the parents of ten pupils
brought this action in a New
York State Court insisting that
use of this official prayer in
the public schools was contrary
to the beliefs, religions, or re-
ligious practices of both them
selves and their children.
Among other things, these
parents challenged the con-
stitutionality of both the State
law authorizing the school dis
trict's regulation ordering the
recitation Of this particular
prayer on the ground that these
actions of official governmental
agencies violate that part of the
First Amendment of the Fed
eral Constitution which COM
mands that Congress shall
make no law respecting an
establishment of religion"-a
command which was made APP
plicable to the State of New
York by the Fourteenth
Amendment of the said Con-
stitution."
Order Sustained
The New York court of ap-
peals, over the dissents of
Judges Dye and Fuld, sustained
an order of the lower State
courts which had upheld the
power of New York to use the
Regents Prayer as a part of
the daily procedures of its pub
lie schools so long as the schools
did not compel any pupil to join
in the prayer over his or his
parents objection.
We granted certiorari to re-
view this important decision
involving rights protected by
the First and Fourteenth
amendments.
We think that by using its
public school system to encour-
age recitation of the Regents
Prayer, the State of New York
has adopted a practice wholly
inconsistent with establishment
clause.
There can, of course, be no
doubt that New York'S program
of daily classroom invocation
of Gods blessings as prescribed
in the Regents Prayer is a
religious activity.
1t is a solemn avowal of di-
vine faith and duplication for
the blessings of the Almighty.
The nature of such a prayer
has always been religious. none
Of the respondents has denied
this and the trial court ex-
pressly so found.
Government Program
The petitioners contend
among other things that the
State laws requiring or per-
hitting use of the Regents
Prayer must be struck down
as a violation of the establish
ment clause because that
prayer was composed by gov
eminent officials as a part OF
a government program to
further religious beliefs.
For this reason, petitioners
argue, the States use of the
Regents Prayer in its public
school system breaches the
constitutional wall of separa-
ton between church and state.
We agree with that conten-
ton since we think that the
constitutional prohibition
against laws respecting an
establishment of religion must
at least mean that in this
county it is no part of the
business of government to COM
pose official prayers for any
group of the American people
to recite as a part of a religious
program carried on by govern
ment.
1t is a matter of history that
this very practice of establish
ing governmentally composed
prayers for religious services
was one Of the reasons which
caused many of our early colo
nists to leave England and
seek religious freedom in Amer
Opposition Cited
1t is an unfortunate fact Of
history that when some Of the
Il