Bibles Distributed In Schools Raise Parents' Ire
Gideons' Bible Dispensing Violates Separation of Church and State
May 20, 2009
The brouhaha erupted as a result of Bibles left on tabletops by the Gideons in all of the middle and high schools in the Frisco School DIstrict last week.
The Gideons International is an evangelical Protestant organization dedicated to distributing free copies of the Bible. Gideons distribute the Bible in over 80 languages in over 175 countries throughout the world for the benefit of those who otherwise might not encounter it. Gideon Bibles are typically distributed in motel and hotel rooms. The Gideons were founded in 1899 and began distributing free Bibles in 1908. They have dispensed approximately 1.5 billion Bibles worldwide since.
School Administrators Say Gideons Didn't Violate the Law
Frisco School District administrators claim that they allowed the Gideons to leave Bibles on the condition that they observe the law by refraining from proselytizing on school grounds, or having contact with students.
But some parents are angry. Debbie Lutz, a mother of three, felt the Gideons encroached on her freedom to raise her children as she sees fit without interference of religious groups.
"I am not an athiest — I believe in God. But I just don't want any religion forced on my child at school. That's why my child goes to public school", Lutz told FOXNews.com.
She added that allowing one group to distribute Bibles could open a legal can of worms. It would set the precedent for allowing any other religious group to dispense their literature, too. Michael Baier, the father of a Frisco high school student, agreed. Baier stated that school is for academics, that it is a place for learning and not for worship.
Gideons Sued Before For Distributing Bibles In Schools
A non-profit group, Americans United For Separation Of Church And State (AU for short), ended the Gideons' Bible distribution practice in the South Iron R-1 School District in Missouri. But the AU is not the only group to sue the Gideons over Bible distribution in schools.
In 1995, two anonymous families sued the Santa Fe, TX School District. One family was Catholic; the other was Mormon. The families filed suit over voluntary school prayer they believed was related to the free Bibles left at the school by the Gideons.
The families reported that their children were harrassed and discriminated against in school by teachers and other children. The Mormon and Catholic families said the harassment was due to their children's membership in a minority religion in the overwhelmingly Southern Baptist town. Both plaintiffs exlperienced a pattern of teachers and other students promoting their dominant religion at the school after the Gideons left Bibles at the school. At lunch time, all students were told to bow their heads and pray before eating.
But the problem escalated beyond a promotion of Southern Baptist revivals and Southern Baptist dogma. The problem was the outright harassment endured by the Mormon and Catholic children.
One of the children from the Mormon family questioned a teacher's promotion of a Baptist revival. The teacher asked the child's religion. When the child answered "Mormon", the teacher launched into a tirade saying that Mormonism is an un-Christian devil cult and that the child was going to burn in hell.
Other Groups Disenfranchised By Christian Influence In Laws
Separation of church and state means keeping religion out of public schools. This is because of the "electioneering" that arises when certain religious organizations move to sway the political balance in the legal and judicial system. This resulted in minority groups being judicially and legislatively disenfranchized.
An example is in the US Supreme Court ruling in Johnson v. McIntosh (1823) which disenfranchized Native Americans. Johnson was based on papal bulls and never overruled.
