Federal Court Victory for Christmas Songs, Nativity & Thanksgiving Blessing in Public Schools

 

Last night we received the opinion for the Court in a case out of Wilson County, Tennessee.  A lawsuit was brought on behalf of a group of individuals to have declared unconstitutional what they termed to be religious activities in the public schools.  ACLJ Senior Counsel Larry Crain represented school officials in this critical case involving discussions about religion in public schools. 

 

The complaint focused upon a Thanksgiving class assignment, which included discussions about the religious beliefs of the Pilgrims as well as prayers of thanksgiving similar to those given by the Pilgrims.  The School Boards policy on religious beliefs, customs and holidays permits teachers to recognize holidays that have both a religious and secular basis.  The policy also provides that the historical and contemporary values and the origin of religious holidays may be explained in an unbiased and objective manner without sectarian indoctrination[.]  The Court noted that Thanksgiving is a legal public holiday.  The Court wrote:  It commemorates American heritage, including the Pilgrims arrival on the continent and the relationship with the American Indians. 

 

The plaintiffs in the case alleged that the study unit on Thanksgiving culminated in a Thanksgiving meal, which included a generic blessing prayer as a type of prayer the Pilgrims might have said before the first Thanksgiving meal.  The plaintiffs alleged that the rendering of this generic prayer as part of a lesson on the religious beliefs of the Pilgrims was unconstitutional.  The Court disagreed:

 

            The use of this generic blessing prayer in the context of a class lesson explaining the historical origins of Thanksgiving, which was done in an unbiased and objective manner without sectarian indoctrination, did not offend school district policy or the Constitution. 

 

The Court went on to note that it is generally understood that the custom of giving thanks for our provisions and welfare is the basis for our Thanksgiving holiday.  Learning about a typical generic prayer which may have been said by the early Pilgrims has both historic and religious overtones.  The Court concluded that the prayer and the discussion about the religious faith of the Pilgrims was not a violation of the Establishment Clause.

 

There was also a challenge to the schools Christmas program.  The schools policy permits the celebration of Christmas at Lakeview because the holiday has both a religious and secular basis.  The policy allows the use of [m]usic, art, literature and drama having religious themes . . . as part of the curriculum for school sponsored activities and programs if presented in a prudent and objective manner and as a traditional part of the cultural and religious heritage of the particular holiday.  The policy also provides that the use of religious symbols that are part of a religious holiday are permitted as a teaching aid or resource, provided such symbols are displayed as an example of the cultural and religious heritage of the holiday and are temporary in nature.  As is similar with the Thanksgiving policy, the Christmas policy permits the origin of the religious holidays to be explained in an unbiased and objective manner without sectarian indoctrination.

 

At issue in the case was the inclusion of a brief, two-minute nativity scene at the end of a 22-minute Christmas program put on at a school by the kindergarten students after school hours following a PTA meeting.  The main program included students dressed in secular dress and costumes, secular Christmas carols, literature and drama.  The Court noted that [a]t the end of the secular program, students dressed as Mary, Joseph, and angels stepped out of the chorus group of students to stand near a crib to portray the nativity scene and the audience and students sang two religious Christmas carols.  These two songs included Away in a Manager and Silent Night. 

 

In concluding that the nativity scene and the two Christmas songs with religious themes were constitutional, the Court noted that [t]he nativity scene included at the end of the Christmas program was an example of the religious heritage of the holiday and was very limited in duration as compared to the balance of the program.  The Court then concluded that the nativity scene was presented in a prudent, unbiased, and objective manner to present the traditional historical, cultural, and religious meaning of the holiday in America.  The Court further noted that Christmas is a national religious holiday, celebrated on December 25.  To Christians, the holiday commemorates the birth of a man named Jesus, who was also called Christ, from which the holiday derives its name.  The Biblical account of Jesus birth is that he was born in a crib or manger to mother Mary and father Joseph.  This is represented by the nativity scene.  This is a recorded historical event, but the birth of Jesus also is the center of the religious faith of Christians.  The Court concluded that the brief nativity scene lasted only two minutes, which was less than 10% of the program.  In ruling in our favor, the Court held that

[t]aken as a whole, the inclusion of the nativity scene as a part of the program did not offend the Constitution. 

 

We do not yet know if the plaintiffs will appeal these portions of the ruling but will keep you posted.