Religious Pluralism Among Holidays
...days is Christmas. The tradition consist of singing Christmas songs, performing in plays, or decorating with symbols, such as Santa clause, reindeers, and green trees. Why don’t we hear about or display in school Ramadah or the Hanukkah beliefs and traditions? This is unjust to the Muslims and the Jews. Students of these religions are excluded and felt upon as abnormal for their non-participation, by other students. How do we solve this problem over non-cultural religion in our school system? First we either uphold our First Amendment right; or educate all students on diversity including holiday celebration with equality and respect. There are some schools who share multicultural education; such as, schools with the majority of enrollment being Mexican Americans celebrate the Day of the Dead Celebration. This involvement includes religious imagery and practices. At a Midwestern school Buddhist monks do prayers at assembly programs. At other schools their students reenact the pilgrimage to Mecca, which is associated by the Islamic faith. Native Americans have promoted their religion in the school system. They call it spirituality that includes prayers, songs, and dances. Their “spirituality” involves dancing around the sacred “circle of life.” Teachers, administrators, and parents should try to promote greater understanding and tolerance among students of different traditions. Religion in schools should be taught as an educational purpose. The children can learn the culture differences among different nations without giving favor to one culture versus another. Holidays, such as Christmas and Good Friday are perfect examples of the Christian religion influencing the government and court decisions. Christmas is a national holiday for all government employees including state, city and county; along with blue and white-collar workers. How does the government justify allowing employees off on this day? According to Judge Susan Dlot, “Christmas can be observed as a federal holiday because Non-Christians also mark the holiday by celebrating the arrival of Santa Clause since non-religious people also observe the holiday, giving federal workers a day off for Christmas does not elevate one religion over another.” However, the high court has ruled, “The government may not erect religious symbols such as a creche or menorah unless it’s part of a “secular” holiday display.” As for Good Friday all government employees are off, and some companies allow their employees off as well. Good Friday is a Christian celebration of the death of Jesus on the cross. However, the Jews and Muslims do not believe in this holiday. In 1999 a Maryland schoolteacher took the Good Friday law to court. Her intention was to abolish its religious content in school. The courts ruling was, “A statute whose primary effect is to advance a secular purpose, rather than a religious one, is still constitutional even if it conveys and incidental benefit to those of a specific religion.“ Therefore, the judicial system does find a loophole in allowing religious holidays to coincide with the government. There are steps school districts can take to educate about religious holidays without legal ramifications. First, develop polices about the treatment of religious holidays in the curriculum and inform parents of these policies; observe the holidays with “secular” basis. Second, Offer pre-service and in-service workshops to assist teachers and administrators in understanding the appropriate place of religious holidays in schools. Thirdly, Become familiar with the nature and needs of religious groups in the school community, and teach the historical values and the origin of the holidays in an objective manner. Lastly, Provide recourses for teaching about religion and...