Coach Banned From Joining Student Prayers

Federal Court Rules Kneeling And Head-Bowing Is Endorsement Of Religion, Not Free Speech

(AP)  A New Jersey school board was within its rights to tell a football coach he cannot kneel and bow his head as members of his team have a student-led pre-game prayer, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The ruling from the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia reversed a lower-court ruling made almost two years ago.

All members of the three-judge panel wrote their own opinion on the issue, which pits the right to free speech against the freedom from official establishment of a religion.

The judges agreed that the East Brunswick Board of Education's policy barring school staff from joining in student-led prayer was constitutional.

But the judges differed on what exactly a coach should do when his team prays.

From the time Marcus Borden became the Bears' coach in 1983, he was deeply involved in team prayers; for a time, he even led them.

In 2005, school officials received complaints that he was leading prayers and asked him to stop participating.

He sued the school board seeking to be allowed to bow his head and kneel when students led their own prayers. A lower-court judge found that should be allowed.

But Judge D. Michael Fisher wrote in the lead opinion Tuesday that Borden's past action of leading the prayers made his head-bowing seem inappropriate: "A reasonable observer would conclude that he is continuing to endorse religion when he bows his head during the pre-meal grace and takes a knee with his team in the locker room while they pray."

Meanwhile, Judge Theodore McKee wrote that kneeling or head-bowing would look like an endorsement of religion even to someone who did not know the coach had led prayers in the past.

And the third judge, Maryann Trump Barry, wondered what a coach should do in Borden's position. "Surely he would not be required to keep his head erect or turn his back or stand and walk away," she wrote. "Any such requirement would evidence a hostility to religion that no one would intend."

Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which represented the East Brunswick Board of Education in the case, said the Borden case shows that school employees should avoid looking like they're endorsing religion in any way.

"Extreme care needs to be given to any involvement by school personnel even with student-led religious activities because it's very easy to cross the line and find yourself over the constitutional cliff," Lynn said.

Borden's lawyer, Ronald Riccio, said he would ask the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the case to clarify what he says is murky law - especially given Tuesday's decision - about student-led prayer.

"As the matter now stands, some coaches can bow their head and take a knee," Riccio said.

[libsrweak]

Posted by honestabe8 at 09:59 AM : Apr 17, 2008
+ report abuse


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athiest normaly would act as stupid as they can in public to show they are not pious

[honestabe8]

BlackYowe: If you don''t pray in public, how will anyone else know how pious you are?

[keithle1]

"I pray that we kick the other team''s a s s. Thank you, Jee-zus."

Take prayer & religion out of school. Period. What, you don''t have enough time to pray or worship in private? It has to be done in school? Get rid of it.

Christians love to assume that everyone else is Christian.

[blackyowe]

I am Christian but I draw the line. This public prayer at sport events is really weird and should be stopped. Pray on your own and in private. Jesus says that is how it should be done not made into a dog and pony show! UGH!

[michellem99-2009]

Nancy Dear HOW rude of ye..I am 53 and legally blind. For yer info I was barred from school til age 10, MOVED from home to home in Maine''s foster home system..Teachers failed me by refusing to teach me,lady..I was 51 when got a computer..Dear go learn about us blind.

[taddles-2009]

"This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

Posted by ACMilan1899 at 11:26 AM : Apr 16, 2008"


You need to read the article too, and you might want to ask your kids to show you how this website works, I''m sure they won''t have any trouble informing you...on pretty much anything.

[taddles-2009]

"That violates Freedom of Religion, the goverment has no say wether someone can pray or not.

Posted by LadyoAmerica at 11:16 AM : Apr 16, 2008"


Yea, why not go back and read the article again, you miss a whole lot when you just read the headline.

[michellem99-2009]

I have read every one''s say here..Wow..So we have this again..I was 10 when I entered school - sp ed. What do we do atfer rollwd was called and we say here to our name being read. Stand as a class yep face the flag and dutiful place our right paw over the heart..the pledge..every day..Mum/Dad said a verion different from what I learnt..that one nation under God was not said when they were little.It was not in there. I would rather we come toghter as a nation and be a nation..I still have my high shcool program that was given that night.. They said prayers..So what..That was 74..Well it is sad that this once great nation can''t so much as let each live and let live...

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[mrmazerati]

Publish button. Just hit it once. It works. I swear.

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[mrmazerati]

Hit the publish button once. If you don''t see your comment, refresh the page.

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to a Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[acmilan1899-2009]

This is why I love sending my kids to our Catholic school. The kids, teachers, and coaches can pray whenever and where ever they want.

[ladyoamerica]

apparently someone got offended by the coach bowing his head and bending his knee and praying silently along with a student led prayer. They took it to court and won their case by getting him banned from praying. That violates Freedom of Religion, the goverment has no say wether someone can pray or not.

[mrmazerati]

Look, this is all completely ridiculous. Locker room or field sideline prayers are a tradition. To most people, they mean diddly squat. To some, they mean more. If coach-led prayers go against the constitution, well, big deal. Lots of people think personal firearms go against the constitution, too. But our culture and traditions overcome these arguments and render them unenforceable most of the time. The constitution is a great document and church-state separation is a good thing. But when it runs counter to something most people consider harmless and some people are fervent about, it becomes really tough to care about the letter of the law. Sure, we say prayers before football games. We also engage in symbolic pagan worship on Halloween. Neither one means a heck of a lot to most, but hey, it''s what we do in the good ole USA. The ACLU and the religious right both need to lighten the heck up. Cheez whiz.

[ladyoamerica]

When is it going to stop? When are they going to stop invovling the state in the church? It''s called seperation of chruch and state for a reason, it started with coaches leading the prayers, a long tradition that was put to an end by a law, fine, thats fine, it doesn''t have to be coach led. But what about when there was a case where a father was offended that someone bowed their head and prayed a silent prayer in front of his son and he sued. What is it coming to! He didn''t win ofcourse but a case like that might one day win if we keep on this course. It would be like me suing a stranger for saying "f**k you" to me or something, sure I get offended so I can sue right? NOT! Now they are to the point, saying that a coach can not bow his head, not saying anything bear in mind, and pray along with a student led prayer. That is violating Freedom of Religion.

[bobpcoll--2008]

praying in public is not the issue, her.....the issue is that a "teacher" may not support or hinder the expression of a religious belief while engaged in a school activity (public).