10 Commandments in School

PRO 1

Our government was based on religious principles from the very beginning. The 10 Commandments are the foundation of our moral government.



CON 1.1

Having religious principles does not mean that they wanted to use the government to force religion on the country. The ratification of the constitution by the states was held up because it didn't have a written list of basic rights that couldn't be taken away. The very first line in the Bill of Rights reads "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". After these were assured only then was the constitution ratified.



PRO 2

Since the court outlawed prayer, the nation has been in steady moral decline. Former Secretary of Education William Bennett revealed in his cultural indexes that between 1960 and 1990 there was a steady moral decline. During this period divorce double, teenage pregnancy went up 200%, teen suicide increased 300%, child abuse reached an all-time high, violent crime went up 500% and abortion increased 1000%. There is a strong correlation between the expulsion of prayer from our schools and the decline in morality.



CON 2.1

If you go back the other way in time, do you find higher morals in slavery, or our treatment of Indians, or more recently, Jim Crow laws in the South, or official discrimination against women or children being used as cheap labor?



CON 2.2

The Census Bureau reports that 63 percent of the population claims church membership, a figure that has remained virtually unchanged since the 1960 census.


CON 3

The BILL OF RIGHTS was designed to protect the minorities basic rights from the majority. In the case of religion "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". It says its against the constitution to prohibit free exercise of religion. Free is a key word here, state supported religion is not "FREE EXERCISE" its "FORCED RELIGION" and that is prohibited.



PRO 4

Rep. Bob Barr, R-Ga., a cheerleader for the measure, reportedly said that if the Ten Commandments had been posted at Columbine, the shootings would never have taken place.



CON 4.1

The boy who shot six of his fellow students in Barr's home state of Georgia had attended a church service the night before.



CON 5

The book of EXODUS has two completely different versions of the 10 Commandments. EXODUS 20 and EXODUS 34. One Commandment that is common to both versions is keeping the Sabbath. In EXODUS 35 Moses tells the people that those who break the Sabbath, even lighting a fire in their homes, should be put to death. Will this Commandment teach our kids about ignoring inconvenient rules?



PRO 6

All that we would like to do is give the kids a foundation for moral behavior. This is not an evil conspiracy, its an attempt to make things better and safer for all kids.



CON 7

"This is about the government playing favorites and saying Judaism and Christianity are the appropriate religions and everyone else is wrong," explains Peter Eliasberg, an ACLU attorney. "That's not moral guidance, it's dividing the people on the basis of religion."



CON 8

The 1st Commandment says "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me". I believe some reasonable people might consider this "establishment of religion".

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like ten commandments in christianity
u have ten commandments for sch...............................
8) :lol: :lol:

what's that .................................????????????????? ??

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whtat???

I would have to agree with each and every CON point that ftvfatboy makes. We have allowed religon to be far to involved in schools, politics and more in this country, much to my dismay. I believe that is why the country has become less civil, filled with more hate and has divided this country in a way not seen since the civil war.

Yes, allow 10 Commandments. Our nation has gone down in social statistics since the 60's -- when prayer was removed from schools, etc.

I am new here, but this is a topic I feel I can jump in with both feet. :-)

I am an American Christian - but still feel strongly that the Ten Commandments should not be displayed in the schools. Some of them do shape American legal laws, but it is primarily the last five - don't murder; don't commit adultery; don't steal; don't lie under oath; don't covet your neighbor's property. That last one isn't a law, but I'd argue it's mainly because it's a thought not an action and it's very hard to legislate thought. We have hate crimes but those are thoughts paired with action, not thought alone.

The first five commandments are very religious in nature. They really have no part in a society that is free to *all* religions. This sounds like an okay idea, but what about the people who aren't religious, or whose religions don't have a weekly sabbath? It's not inclusive to recognize this as a central moral tenet of their land. And in America at least our Constitution says that the government won't set up an official state religion.

And from a very practical point I wouldn't feel comfortable with quotes from other religions' holy books being displayed like that. To be fair I can't have my own tradition's quotes plastered on the walls of the courthouses, schools, etc.

I take the point about morality - but there are better and more effective ways to do this than making a case over displaying the words. How about encouraging parents to teach their children what those words mean? Or have the parents learn them themselves. It's surprising how many people claim to be Christian, fight to get the commandments posted, but still can't name five out of the ten if asked.

Marta

It is the basis for all of our laws...so for me I say yes...Teach it to children young so that they will have morality early in life!

The ten commandments should remain out of the classroom. By allowing them, you are essentially highlighting one specific religion over all of the others. Our country is not one homegenous race, relgion or creed so in the same light -- we need to have all relgions highlighted in the schools -- which is unfeasable due to the number as well as the militant interpretation of some people's beliefs. Can you imagine the scuffle that would take place if the Wiccan Rede was placed next to the Ten Commandments. It simpler and safer for religion to remain in home. A person's relgious beliefs should be just that personal and private not be tossed in the face of others.

I think they are going about it all wrong. It's not about religion, it's about civil moral code. What's wrong with the 10 Commandments? They tell us that we should live and strive for a higher amount of excellence in our lives. They tell us that living murderous, adulterous, covetous lives is unacceptable. The problem is that no one wants discipline, no one wants to be told they are wrong... that's why they tout freedom of speech and other rights they way they do. This life should be about living it in excellence, not finding new ways to make it "okay" to break moral laws.

good work i like it
creative idea good work

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Our government was based on religious principles from the very beginning. The 10 Commandments are the foundation of our moral government.

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The basis on religious principles can certainly be argued. Evidence indicates that many of the founding fathers were secular and practiced Deism rather that theism. If they were alive today, they would be classified as atheists (even though pretty much everyone is technically agnostic btw). Also the Treaty of Tripoli essentially comes out and declares our nation not founded under religious principles.

From wiki (more credible sources are around if need be)

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Many of the more prominent Founding Fathers were vocal about their opposition to organized religion or anti-clerical, such as Jefferson. Some of them often related their anti-organized church leanings in their speeches and correspondence, including George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson (who created the "Jefferson's Bible"), Benjamin Franklin, Ethan Allen, and Thomas Paine.

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Several of the Founding Fathers considered themselves to be deists or held beliefs very similar to that of traditional Deists, including Jefferson, Paine and Ethan Allen.

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"The government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion," states the 1797 Treaty of Tripoli. This document was ratified by Congress without much debate or contention and stands today as a reminder of the founding fathers' intentions.

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What's important to note is that around this time period, there was no widespread rioting or discontent caused by the treaty. This suggests that the public was far less enthusiastic about religion than we believed. It is important to separate an idealized view of American History from facts and a cultural analysis of the time. Think of Jackson, Wilson and all of the other racist presidents. Jackson was an equal opportunity Indian killer. Wilson and other presidents were often racist, some more openly than others.

parents should teach their kids morals and the schools enfore them. most parents dont do their job.

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Originally Posted by buslady

parents should teach their kids morals and the schools enfore them. most parents dont do their job.

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I agree to this.
It is easyest to blame everybody then to look on your self and your behavior.
If someone wants to belave in God so let ih, if someone dosen't, so what?!
If there weren't christianity, the europe would probably still be savages, and in usa would be filed with indians...

10 Commandments in schools????

I would have to say no... For the reasons posted above, not everyone is of Christian beliefs....

Schools are a place that children have to go to, they do not have a choice normally, so why should it be forced upon them???

Everyone is totally entitled to believe or not believe anything they want, you worship in your way, I will do it in my way ;) ;) ;)

The ten commandments teaches people morals, and shows them that they cannot run ramp'ed.