Prayer for injured teen sparks atheist outrage
Prayer for injured teen sparks atheist outrage
The injured player was on the ground being tended to by trainers and coaches.
So the Seminole High School football team did what many football teams do. The teenage boys took a knee, bowed their heads and prayed for their injured teammate.
But that simple act of compassion and humanity in Sanford, Florida sparked outrage from the Freedom From Religion Foundation a group of perpetually offended atheists from Wisconsin.
An FFRF attorney fired off a letter to the superintendent of Seminole County Public Schools accusing them of having an adult lead the prayer for the injured child.
It truly takes a special kind of evil to threaten Americans because they prayed over an injured child.
A school district spokesman told me the injured child, who is the son of the teams head coach, has since rejoined the team.
It is our information and understanding that Seminole High School (is) allowing an adult, a local pastor, to act as a volunteer chaplain for the football team, FFRF attorney Andrew Seidel wrote.
The attorney said the school cannot allow a non-school adult access to the children in its charge, and certainly cannot grant that access to a pastor seeking to organize prayer for the students.
The FFRF told the school district to refrain from having a volunteer team chaplain at Seminole High School.
The school district said the prayer was instigated by students and denied that a chaplain prayed with the team. School spokesman Mike Blasewitz told MyNews13.com that the school doesnt even have a team chaplain, contrary to the FFRFs allegations.
There is nothing to cease and desist because our behavior was within the guidelines in the first place, he told television station WFTV. No adults in the photo, no adults participating, no adults leading it.
Seidel told me in a written statement that hes satisfied with the schools response and they now consider the matter closed.
FFRF is very pleased with central Florida's new-found commitment to upholding the First Amendment and protecting the rights of conscience of all students, not just Christians, he said.
Parents, meanwhile, are a bit perturbed with the atheist bullying.
There are a lot more important issues going on in the world than worrying about kids praying at a game, parent Andre Collins told ClickOrlando.com. We live in a country where were free to do what we want to do.
Barbara Frase has a grandson on the football team. She could not believe the atheists would call out the kids for praying.
Come on, lets get real, she told ClickOrlando.com.
Seminole County is not the first school district targeted by these rabid atheists and they wont be the last. Earlier this week, I exposed the Christian cleansing underway in Orange County, Florida public schools.
But it truly takes a special kind of evil to threaten Americans because they prayed over an injured child.
Heaven help us all.
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The Angry Atheists need to take a chill pill and use some common sense.
But it truly takes a special kind of evil to threaten Americans because they prayed over an injured child.
Heaven help us all
Yup...
I agree...
I couldn't agree more. They could be thinking healing and kind thoughts, instead of fueling their outrage over something stupid. No one is forcing them to participate. Sheesh!
Yes, Mike, and it has nothing to do with whether or not there is a God-- and everything to do with compassion and kindness for your fellow human being.
Hal? Please try to understand for a moment.
This has nothing to do with religion. It has everything to do with an injured child. It's not going to hurt the atheists in the group to think healing thoughts and hope that the child is all right. They aren't being forced to participate in calling upon God's help. This is about leaving each other be.
It doesn't bother me, at all, that those that don't believe in God don't wish to participate. We must each travel our own road and make these decisions for ourselves. It is a two-way street, though. I am not forcing anyone to participate or be a part of my faith, nor should they try to prevent me from participating in my faith. There are exceptions to this, and I'm thinking of snake handlers, and those that would commit murder or other crimes in God's name.
You're a great guy, Hal, and I respect your beliefs.
The child was being tended to, wasn't he? 1,000 people couldn't go down there on the field and help. The poor child would die from all that medical attention. They did the only thing that they could-- stay out of the way and hope for the best for the child, while the experts were tending to him.
When I had open heart surgery, I had wonderful doctors to take care of the medical part. AND I certainly appreciated all the prayers winging my way during surgery. I felt comforted by the thought that friends and family cared about me.
FFRF? Hal, you know I don't "do" acronyms well... I am lost in a sea of acronyms at work... I get on here and have no idea what everyone is talking about. Yes, I am likely uninformed and stupid, but I can't keep up. If you tell me what it is, I'll go and look for it.
I believe in separation of church and state, and don't think it is right that a school would promote any religion, or one religion over another. I also don't think it is right for the religious to preach politics-- if they do, they should pay taxes.
We have many similar thoughts, you and I. We are just reaching the same conclusions from different paths.
Thanks for your help about FFRF, and for your understanding!
...
... If people want parochial education for their kids, there are private schools they can go to. And let's not forget the dozens of churches that cover nearly every community in this country. Public school is not the place for this nonsense.
As much as I oppose the evangelical, political right, I also oppose the angry atheist.
The problem, like with the religious political right and the angry atheist, is both sides are actively and deliberately, looking for things that offend them.
I'll pass.
I dislike both.
Thanks, let me look things up!
Me?
I've learned to tolerate many of the nuances of life such as public displays of religious devotion. However annoying it may be, it does not harm me....I just tune it out, never complain. It's a good business posture to take.