Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Tuesday May 5th Class

Yesterday in class we watched the final God in America episode which brought us up to religion in America in 2008. Through out the God in America videos we can see a constant push for or against religion and a push back in politics and social settings. Prayer in schools was a debate that went beyond the social boundaries and came to the attention of law. In this case an atheist family sued the school board for allotting time in school for prayer and won. Although it wasn't not over yet, there were still social conflicts that were created by having a different set of believes then those around you. The family received hate mail and the son was outcasted at school.
In conjuction with the civil rights movement there was a religious movement these struggles eventually lead more people to become more accepting of people who were "different" form themselves. Presidents like John F. Kennedy and Obama answered to people who questioned religion in politics. They did so in such a way to reassure the people that while religion or a persons belief set may lead them to make certain decisions, they would not force America into a certain religion. It really highlighted the way you can keep state and church separate but still have people who have a religion or none at all lead a country.
Overall religion has been a part of American culture and will continue to be for a long time so the best thing to do is educate yourself on it to gain a better understanding of others.

5 comments:

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  2. Nick, I would most definitely have to agree and come to terms with your conclusion of your entry. Religion has played a huge factor in the progress and development of American culture and there is no doubt that it will continue to be pursued within our modern day society, seeing it's huge influence! Knowledge is vital towards this subject as well for it allows for us to keep an open mind about all of the aspects of religion.

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    1. I second this! I think that religion and education go hand in hand. Since religion has had such a large effect on the way our nation has evolved, it is hard to completely cut it out of our lives. However, education (specifically about religion) creates the perfect buffer for religion in politics. Religion becomes easier for people to understand and accept once they learn more about it.

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  3. As a pretty religious person who has gone to Catholic school for 10 1/2 years, it was interesting watching how religion played a role in past society. Although I appreciate, support and enjoy having religion apart of education, I also am able to see that people should have the choice to follow their own path - in faith or not. I did not like how the schools and other people reacted to the case and found it a bit ridiculous. We've come a long way as a society and it was super interesting seeing how people now have the option to pursue religion or not. However, if one decides to not pursue religion or if one doesn't believe, I still think it is important that they educate themselves about variety of religions throughout the world so they can understand and appreciate various cultures and beliefs.

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  4. I am in the same boat as Meghan, but I do believe that religion and politics do not play should be seperate, just as a person's public life should be separated from their private life. I think the Evangelicals tried to gain leverage by going to a political party to get their ideas into school, not accepting that America is a country with separation of church and state. The private schools are a place where religion in school is possible, but public schools should represent America, as they do today. With freedom of expression, whatever faith you believe in.

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