SECULAR HUMANISM

Q: Is secular humanism a religion, and are public schools teaching secular humanism?

A: I have often challenged public school critics to provide the name of even one public school or one public school teacher in America that is "teaching" secular humanism. It should be clearly understood that public schools may teach about all of the various religions or philosophies of the world. There may be a public school somewhere in America which provides a course in comparative religions as part of its educational program. Nevertheless, public schools are not church schools. It is not the business of public schools to teach any particular religion to the exclusion of any other, not even secular humanism which can be defined, according to Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary,, as a philosophy that usually rejects supernaturalism, that is, rejects the existence of any supernatural being or reality.

In regard to religion, government institutions at all levels, including public schools, are to remain completely neutral. Therefore, what is taught in public schools is civic pride and civil responsibility, not theism or atheism. America is a nation based upon obedience to the laws made through representatives whom we all elect to legislative office by majority vote. It is the supremacy of law to which we, as Americans, commit ourselves and to which we yield our allegiance through a process called democracy--the right of every citizen eighteen years and older to vote. The Constitution (First Amendment) commands that government institutions shall make no law even respecting an establishment of religion.

If religion can be defined as whatever it is in life for which a person really lives, then Americaâs real religion is democracy. As such, democracy has nothing to do with theism, atheism, or the supernatural. Public schools deal with the natural world. Religion schools deal with the theory of a supernatural being. American democracy has to do with the way we behave ourselves in our constitutional social order. Through a democratic vote Americaâs ethical code of conduct is established in Americaâs laws. Morality among Americaâs citizens is determined by the level of obedience to the laws of the land--the supreme law of which is the Constitution for the United States of America.

Americans pledge themselves to the republic which the Constitution provides--one nation, under law, regardless of the theistic or atheistic opinions of the republic's citizens. Concepts of theism or atheism are matters for individuals and church organizations and are not the business of government or its institutions. However, the way we conduct ourselves in terms of behavior and responsibility toward each other as Americans is the business of government and is what the Constitution is all about--a constitutional nation in which "no religious test shall ever be required," not even in the public schools.

The politically pandering politicians in Congress who during the 1950's, through a congressional resolution, injected "under God" into the pledge of allegiance were wrong in their understanding of what America is all about. The congressional word God should be challenged in court and stricken from the pledge as a violation of Article 6., Section 3., of the Constitution. Wording of the pledge should be changed to conform to the Constitution: under law, not under God. Telling any American what to believe or not believe about the theory of a supernatural God is none of the business of government and is not the business of Americaâs public schools.

In Abington School District v. Schempp (1963), the Supreme Court said: "In the relationship between man and religion, the State is firmly committed to a position of neutrality" (374 U.S. at 226). In a concurring opinion, Justice Brennan wrote: "It is implicit in the history and character of American public education that the public schools serve a uniquely public function: the training of American citizens in an atmosphere free of parochial, divisive, or separatist influence of any sort--an atmosphere in which children may assimilate a heritage common to all American groups and religions. This is a heritage neither theistic nor atheistic, but simply civic and patriotic." (374 U.S. at 241-242).