Zanzer76

I saw a flyer today that advertised a "dramatization" at the local high school gymnasium that is about Heaven & Hell. This is obviously another revivial type event that seems to happen about every 3 or 4 months at this same high school. I think I might attend out of curiousity, but I was wondering if this was even legal as far as state/church seperation was concerned.

I considered calling my local ACLU chapter to ask them about it, but I thought I'd see if anyone here might be able to clear it up for me first. I don't want to bother the already busy ACLU about what might be perfectly acceptable under fair use laws.

And if anyone is interested, I can start a thread in another forum about what I see when I go to the event.

Ab_Normal

Here's my (laypersons) opinion:

As far I can tell, if it's a group renting the auditorium for an event after school hours, it's okay. Even if it's a student group using the auditorium, if they get the same access as all other student groups, including secular ones, it's okay too. Now, if it's during school hours and students have to attend, it's all bad, and complaining to the school district is called for.

Zanzer76

Thanks for the reply.
I thought the event was probably legal. And schedule permitting, I'll get to see the show.

hezekiah jones

Originally posted by Zanzer76
I saw a flyer today that advertised a "dramatization" at the local high school gymnasium that is about Heaven & Hell.

If they're using real flames, they might burn the school down. If so, you could have a successful constitutional challenge to the Court's proscription against shouting "fire" in a crowded theater.

simian

Heck, if you are gutsy, I would suggest trying to get a student group to do the a "dramatization" of effects on the US would be if a fundamentalist group took over. You could call it something like "Sharia and Sharia Alike - The Potential Effects of Christian Fundamentalist Values on the United States." I may have misspelled sharia - Islamic laws. If you found a student group willing to put this on and the school turned it down, you would be able to keep them from doing the Christian revivals in the future (or so I would think). If you got to hold it, so much the better. There are lots of skeletons in the fundamentalists closets.

Simian

SLD

Zanzer,

What time is this revival? If it is during school hours it is not legal. After school it is legal, only as far as the school allows other types of activities. I would apply for an "Atheist Rally" or something of that nature, where people can come and learn about freethought, sign up for IIDB, subscribe to Skeptical Inquirer and have a guest speaker on free thought or from the local ACLU to talk about church state separation issues. Legally the school cannot on the one hand allow the "revival" and on the other deny application for the atheist rally. If they give you a hard time, the ACLU would be glad to sue for you.

Of course, if you live around here in Bible Belt Central, you may not live through your rally. Perhaps a more appropriate name that "Atheist Rally" would be better.

Good luck,

SLDER

American Agnostic

As I understand it (and believe myself) they can do whatever they want as long as attendence is volentary. It;s only unconstitutional when they've got a captive audience like at an all-school assembly.

SLD

Not exactly. Revivals cannot be held on school grounds and during school hours - even if attendance is "voluntary." The key point being that revivals on school grounds during school hours are not going to be voluntary if everyone has to go.

SLDER

Zanzer76

Thanks for all the replies to my message.

The program seems to be legitimate: it's not officially endorsed by the school, it's after school hours, & attendence is voluntary.

If memory serves, the second presentation of the program is tonight. I think I might attend out of curiosity. My infidel nature not being common knowledge in my small town, I should blend in nicely.

As tempting as a counter-rally may be, I'm afraid the support in my area is virtually nonexistant. And living in a rural, highly religious area, any public demonstrations like that would be social & financial suicide for those involved. So, it's the occasional letter to the editor & debates over coffee for me.

On a related Church/State subject, there is thinly veiled religious monument on the town square in my town. About a year ago there were a few serious auto accidents involving high school age kids. A couple of families raised some money and lobbied the city council to allow a monument to the victims of these accidents.

The monument is about 9 feet tall and is of an angel holding a rose across upturned palms with a Bible verse inscribed at the base.

Officially, it is a tribute to the tragic deaths of children, but from what I've heard from supporters of the monument, God allowed these tragedies to serve as a wake up call for our town to turn back to Him. And the stone angel is a way to let God know the town got the message.

To my knowledge, all but one of the accidents involved alcohol.

Autonemesis

How come monuments like this do not survive from the last century, or even half century? Didn't people feel grief and loss in the 1950's? 1930's? 1890's? You'd think by now that every small town with more than a hundred years' history would be littered with monuments to past accident victims.