This was sent to me by a friend:

“This is a statement that was read over the PA system at the football game at Roane County High School, Kingston, Tennessee, by school Principal, Jody McLeod”

The whole statement is here http://tinyurl.com/29patw but the essence of it is that Principal McLeod was frustrated by a court ruling on prayer in schools. He gives an angry sounding rant about the many things he can talk about in school, even though he finds them morally unacceptable, then contrasts them with the benign act of praying to God which is not allowed.

I can sympathize with Principal MacLeod’s frustration (I’ve felt dismissed and excluded on the basis of my Christian faith too). As I’ve said before I wish schools would look for ways to honor all religious speech (and speech about religious matters) equally rather than simply exclude it.

Despite that, I can’t agree with his approach. The unacceptable behaviors he lashes out are: homosexuality (which he characterizes as a “sexual perversion”), condom distribution programs (which he says “condone sexual promiscuity”), abortion (which he says is promoted as a “viable form of birth control”), Earth Day (which he associates with pagan goddess worship) and the use of teaching materials which depicts Christians as "simple minded" and "ignorant".

To take these in order:

1) Homosexuality is an orientation one is born with rather than a choice. To issue a blanket condemnation of all gays is ignorant and cruel. (That’s something I’ve found to be true of blanket condemnations as a whole.) Ignorant and cruel aren’t what we should be about as Christians.

2) Advocates say that condom distribution programs prevent STDs and unwanted pregnancies. Critics say they send a message to young people that casual sex is okay. While the use of condoms is certainly healthier than unprotected sex the jury seems to be out on how such programs influence the sexual behavior of young people. I’ve found NIH articles that tie programs to a rise in sexual activity http://tinyurl.com/yopdyb and others that say that the rise in sexual activity happens in schools whether they have the programs or not http://tinyurl.com/2hs4wo. I’ve seen quite a bit of material that suggests that the abstinence programs many Christian groups support have very a limited impact on young people’s sexual activity http://tinyurl.com/yvfvtw. In other words, people have a lot of theories about how to handle teen sexuality but we have limited information about what works and what doesn’t. (I’m holding out hope for values-based sex ed. Curricula like my denomination’s Our Whole Lives curriculum http://tinyurl.com/274c2g (developed with the UU church). Programs like this push abstinence while offering honest and comprehensive education rather than the scare tactics of abstinence-only programs).

All of that is a long-winded way of saying that, though approaches differ widely, no one is trying to promote promiscuous teen sex and it’s irresponsible to claim that is the hidden motive behind condom distribution programs.

3) I’m not aware of anyone who teaches the virtues of abortion as a form of birth control. Like Principal McLeod, I’d like live in a world where abortion was almost unheard of. I think I differ from him in believing that, for abortion to be rare, it must also be legal and safe. Banning abortion doesn’t get rid of it. It only stigmatizes and endangers pregnant women. Our efforts are better spent working on things like adoption laws and teaching young people to make responsible decisions about sexual involvement.

4) Environmentalism is not an anti-Christian value. Mainline churches have been involved in caring for creation for decades. Now a growing number of Evangelical churches are coming to realize that the stewardship of creation is a call from God. It is true that the protection of the environment is something that Pagans care about too, but there’s nothing wrong I can see in having a common cause, especially when it’s a good one.

5) I do agree with Principal McLeod that teachers and classroom materials shouldn’t mock or insult Christians. I think that contempt for people based on religion should be as unacceptable as contempt based on race, nationality, age, economic situation, gender, or any of the other pretexts we use. That cuts both ways. It is just as unacceptable for Christians to offer contempt to people who they perceive as different.

That brings me back to my real problem with Principal McLeod’s rant. In defending his right to pray as a Christian he engages in some un-Christian attitudes. You can’t claim to be defending the Gospel when the good news is buried under angry rhetoric. You can’t complain about people seeing Christians as ignorant and small-minded when your own arguments are so intolerant and uninformed.

That’s not how Jesus teaches us to act. Rather than getting indignant about our rights, Christians are supposed to “…Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person.” (Luke 6:27-28)

This isn’t all about us and our rights after all. It’s about being authentic to our faith. We’re to be motivated by the love of Christ and as another favorite scripture reminds us…

“Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Cor 13:4-7)

Words to live by.