School prayer in its common usage refers to state-sanctioned and/or mandatory prayer by students in public schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, state-sponsored prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited. Countries which prohibit school prayer often differ in their reasons for doing so: In the United States, school prayer is proscribed in accordance with the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (which provides the foundation for the separation of church and state). In Canada, school prayer is disallowed under the concept of Freedom of conscience as outlined in the Canadian Charter on Rights & Fundamental Freedoms. Simultaneously, school prayer is disallowed in France as a byproduct of its status as a laïcist (religiously neutral) nation. Countries that allow school and/or state-sponsored prayer include Greece, Iran, Australia, Italy and the United Kingdom.
Famous quotes containing the words school and/or prayer:
“The scope of modern government in what it can and ought to accomplish for its people has been widened far beyond the principles laid down by the old “laissez faire” school of political rights, and the widening has met popular approval.”
—William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
“The man who says his evening prayer is a captain posting his sentinels. He can sleep.”
—Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867)