5.07.2008
Won't Anyone Think of the Children?
It is sometimes easy to forget that struggles over religion aren't just being fought in the military, our prisons, and the public square, but in our schools as well. After all, aren't our public schools supposed to be safe and secular institutions? The truth is that religious minorities are often ostracized, and can face intimidation and harassment in school settings, especially when local Christians feel threatened.
"Many Mount Vernon Middle School students have been vocal in their support of science teacher John Freshwater in his claims to a First Amendment right to display a Bible on his desk. But are those students willing to grant someone else equal rights to remain neutral or to disagree? Several comments from students and parents indicate that acceptance and religious tolerance is a one-way street for many concerned."
It seems that Christian children aren't very "big tent" in their support of a Christian science teacher, a man who has allegedly done some seriously controversial things in the classroom.
"My daughter Arie told me about a Jewish child who brought his Torah to school when other students brought Bibles in support of Freshwater ... He thought he was supporting freedom of religious expression, and the other kids just ripped him apart. 'What are you doing?' they asked. 'You can't support Mr. Freshwater, you're Jewish' ... I don't think people realize the depth of what's going on between the students. It's a mob mentality right now. It's peer pressure. To not wear a T-shirt and to not bring your Bible when they say bring your Bible and wear a T-shirt, you're asking for trouble ... one of Arie's friends wore a T-shirt to school that read, 'I don't need to wear a special T-shirt to be a Christian.' That individual was reportedly pushed into the lockers and called a 'stupid atheist b****.'"
Perhaps the parents supporting Freshwater don't mind a little "collateral damage" among the student body so long as it is in the name of their "religious freedom". Of course that fierce sense of religious freedom often disappears when non-Christian faiths are involved.
"Several people, [Beth] Murdoch [Arie's daughter] said, have asked what the response would be if a teacher had a Wiccan book or a Koran on the desk. 'Would the students be supporting a teacher under those circumstances?' she asked. 'I don't think so. I understand [Freshwater] wants to protect his rights, I so understand that. But you have to be compassionate to other people, too.'"
When battles like this erupt, those who suffer the most are often the students who don't toe the popular line. Freshwater's supporters have created an "all or nothing" atmosphere, and while the school board has asked him to put his bible away during school hours, and is investigating claims of proselytizing, the matter most likely won't calm down for children during the school year. Creating an unsafe learning environment for religious minorities and Christians who won't participate in activism supporting Freshwater.
If a public school can't provide a safe learning environment for children of all faiths (or of none) then they have failed as a learning institution, and a house-cleaning needs to take place, regardless of the political blow-back the school board may face.
Labels: Christianity, John Freshwater, Religion, Religious Freedom, schools
2.25.2008
Bonewits Teaming With Witch School to Build "Real Magic School"
Author, Archdruid Emeritus of the ADF, and "polytheologian" Isaac Bonewits is opening his own online school on February 29th. The new online learning institution, Real Magic School, claims to offer "certain answers to a mysterious subject."
"Real Magic School, named after Bonewits first groundbreaking book, begins with a purposeful program of study that offers a pathway to an Associates degree in Magic. Further, the school begins immediately the process to seek academic accreditation, a process that is both difficult and demanding but according to the school founders, worthwhile. P.E. Isaac Bonewits has chosen to take his degree, his lifetime of experience, and his driving energy to create an academy that is truly a benefit to its students and future alumni. This will be a life changing experience for everyone who gets involved."
The new school has been built for Bonewits by Witch School, one of the oldest and largest (and some might say controversial) online schools aimed at teaching magic. Real Magic School isn't the first online magic school to be built around a charismatic Pagan "headmaster", Oberon Zell-Ravenheart's Grey School of Wizardry comes immediately to mind, though it does seem to be aiming for a more academic feel while trying to avoid Harry Potter comparisons.
"While the Harry Potter Phenomenon swept the world and has offered a fictional view of a Magical Academy, Isaac is not Dumbledore and Real Magic School is not Hogwarts. Real Magic School is definitely real world and has a truly academic and educational philosophy unmatched in today's world. Isaac Bonewits is a serious teacher, along with Phaedra, with lifelong experience, and is one of the most respected voices in the Pagan world today calling for academic truth and excellence in the study of magic and thaumaturgy, history, and Paganism."
It should be interesting to see where this goes. Does an online school with only two teachers (so far) have a real shot at gaining academic accreditation? If they did gain some form of educational accreditation would any mainstream college or institution accept transfer credits from Real Magic School? Real Magic School's web site doesn't have any course information up yet, so we will just have to wait and see what sort of curriculum is planned.
Labels: Grey School of Wizardry, Isaac Bonewits, Magic, Paganism, Real Magic School, schools, Witch School
2.17.2008
Are Pagan Holidays a Very Good Reason?
The Telegraph reports on what seems to be a rather minor matter, a Pagan parent removing her child from school to attend a religious celebration.
"A primary school allowed a mother to take her child out of lessons to attend a summer festival because the family say they are pagans. Newington Green Primary, in the north London borough of Islington, gave permission for the three-day absence last June after the mother of the six-year-old argued that the child should be allowed to attend the celebrations because of her faith ... The family visited the solstice festival that is held each year in Avebury, Wiltshire, near Stonehenge."
But now a school officials says they are "clamping down" on absences, and hinting that Pagan holidays may not make the grade any longer.
"'The three days were put down as authorised absence, but we have subsequently explained to all parents that they will not be given authorised holidays within term time unless there is a very good reason for it,' she said."
A spokesman from the Campaign for Real Education goes quite a bit farther than a hint.
"Nick Seaton, the chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, said: 'This is the kind of situation we get into by bending over backwards to try to please everybody. One of the main duties of parents is to ensure that children miss out on as little school as possible and, on balance, I don't think they should be missing school for this.'"
Which brings us to the question: are Pagan holidays a "very good reason" to miss school for a few days? If not, why not, and if schools are going to start denying excused absences to Pagan children will they start doing the same to Catholic, Muslim, or Jewish children? One can only imagine the uproar if a Jewish child was denied an excused absence for Yom Kippur because it wasn't a "very good reason".
With there being around 40,000 Pagans in the UK (making it the 8th-largest faith grouping, so long as you don't count the Jedi), it seems completely strange that schools would suddenly have a problem making religious exemptions for a Pagan holiday. Perhaps schools should adopt a "cultural flextime" policy as the British civil service has done. That way we can avoid arbitrary judgment on which holidays are worthy enough to merit a day off.
Labels: cultural flexitime, holidays, Paganism, schools, UK
