Damon Fowler

[dorkmaster]

So what's the deal with this story? The way i see it, the school holding prayers is not in any way unconstitutional unless the school forces him to participate, which I don't believe they did. An atheist I know uses this case as an example of religious people forcing their beliefs down everybody's throats and why religion should be abolished. Why are the atheists getting all of this attention and now winning court cases so often?

[Tevko]

You're exactly right. It isn't unconstitutional at all. Separation of church and state means that the state cannot force religious participation Or Lack thereof upon a citizen. The prayer is not being forced upon the attendees because there would be no legal penalties if Fowler chose not to participate in the prayer and/or not attend the graduation entirely. If the state were mandating the prayer, there would be legal consequences for those not joining in the prayer as well as mandatory attendance for all graduates. The prayer was an element enacted by the school board not by force but voluntarily, and therefor not at all in violation of separation of church and state. Again, there is only violation if there are penalties enacted by the state for or against religious participation. The reason the Fowler case held such weight was because his entire community (parents, teachers, friends, ect.) turned against him for taking action to try and remove the prayer. It is unconstitutional for the state to force members of a school from engaging in prayer in a public forum. That is most definitely in violation of separation of church and state. And the reason that Athiests are gaining momentum in the political world is because it is exactly what the bible predicts.