I cringed when I heard this after the murders at Columbine
High School.
I bristled when I heard this after the slaughter at Virginia
Tech.
And now I’m angered whenever I hear this in the aftermath of
the senseless tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
God IS in our
schools!
God is everywhere and God has always been in our schools! I
see God every day at my school. In fact, just this past Friday I experienced
God’s presence in the student who stopped in the hallway to help another
student pick up colored pencils that had been spilled... and in the kind words of
welcome for the student who just moved here from Nigeria. I hear God in the
laughter and words of encouragement pouring out from every classroom. God IS in
our schools!
Prayer is ALSO in our
schools!
I pray every day at school. I pray for patience when dealing with a
difficult student, I pray for wisdom and creativity as I plan how to present a science
topic in an engaging way to thirteen-year olds, and I pray for students who are
struggling with grades or acceptance or difficulties at home. I’ve also heard from my students that
they pray at school. They pray before tests. They pray for their friends. After my father
passed away several years ago I had students tell me they had been praying for
me! Prayer IS in our schools!
It’s true that, because of our nation’s commitment to separation of church
and state, students in public school are not required to recite or listen to
prayers that reflect only the beliefs of one particular religion. Let’s not
forget that the United States is a nation that enjoys the richness of many
religions. Separation of church and state does NOT mean, however, that God and
prayer are not in our schools!
I hope we never forget that God is everywhere and that we commit to
praying FOR our schools and IN our schools! Amen?!
