April 2026 - Teen Quest Newsletter

THE PRAYER KIDS WERE FORBIDDEN

by Mark Witt

In 1962, the Herricks School District in Long Island, New York opened the school day with a short positive prayer recited by students in their classrooms. The prayer had been approved by the New York Board of Regents as a brief, nondenominational prayer that was not tied to any specific religion or denomination and was intended to encourage moral reflection and dependence upon God. The prayer read:

It was a simple prayer. The prayer asked God to bless students, parents, teachers, and the nation.

During the 1960s, however, a major shift began. A small but influential minority wanted to remove God from the public square.

The Supreme Court Ruled

On June 25, 1962, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that this prayer could not be recited in public schools. A prayer the parents initiated, but judges with a secular worldview, expanded and escalated the issue into the Supreme Court case Engel v. Vitale.

Prayer Was Common for 100 Years

For more than 100 years before this decision, prayers like this were common in public schools across America and the vast majority of Americans supported them. The fabric of American education had long been intertwined with faith and moral instruction. One of the most widely used educational tools was the McGuffey Reader, first published in 1836. Over a century these textbooks taught reading, character, and moral values from a dominant Biblical worldview and were used in public schools well into the 1960s.

As secularism took hold in public education, crime rates began to rise significantly in the decades following 1962. At the same time, schools increasingly intimidated students by telling them they were not allowed to pray or even read their Bibles on school property, while other non-religious groups were permitted to meet.

This discrimination became so widespread that Congress passed the Equal Access Act on August 11, 1984, affirming that if public schools allow non-curricular clubs, they must also allow student-led Bible clubs and prayer groups.

Public opinion has shifted dramatically. In the early 1960s, according to Gallup, nearly 80 percent of Americans supported a simple prayer in public schools. Today, that number has dropped below 60 percent. In fact, some Christians have bought into the "Separation of Church and State" propaganda believing God has no place in public life.

Persecution Today

Even after the Equal Access Act, schools across America continue to challenge students' religious freedom. Here are a few examples of many:

• In Florida in 2014, a student was told he could not read his Bible during free reading time.
• In Everett, Washington, in 2025, a release-time Bible education program called LifeWise filed a lawsuit after students were told they had to hide their Bibles in paper bags while on school property.
• In Texas in 2024, a school district removed Bibles from school libraries, claiming they contained sexually explicit content.
• In Tennessee, a high school coach was placed on leave for praying with students after a football game.

The Founding Fathers Supported Prayer in Public

For more than a century, God and the Bible were present in classrooms and no one was harmed. Instead, respect for Scripture had a positive effect on the nation. America's Founding Fathers would not have supported the radical removal of a simple, nondenominational prayer from public schools.

• In Fact, Thomas Jefferson attended church services held in the U.S. Capitol every Sunday and wrote, "It becomes us humbly to approach the throne of Almighty God with gratitude and praise."
• Benjamin Franklin said, "The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth that God governs in the affairs of men."
• George Washington wrote in his Farewell Address, "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports."

Secularists feared that acknowledging God in the classroom might influence children to believe in God. They sought to replace God with the religion of humanism and today we are seeing the results. History is being re-written so young people no longer know the faith of the Founding Fathers.

Recently, a U.S. senator publicly stated that "our rights come from the government, not from God." That belief did not come from America's founding principles. It came from humanistic teachings that dominate public education today.

When God is removed from public life, moral clarity erodes. We see the consequences in riots, lawlessness, vulgarity, destruction of property, and open hostility toward faith. Recently, radicals disrupted a church service shouting accusations that included telling children their parents are Nazi's and showing complete contempt for worship. A former CNN Anchor, Don Lemon participated in the riot and was arrested.

We also see cultural movements demanding affirmation rather than tolerance. Tolerance once meant, "I disagree with you, but I respect your right to believe differently." Today, tolerance is defined as full agreement, affirmation, and celebration . . . or else one is labeled hateful.

The Supreme Court has made grave errors before. On March 6, 1857, in Dred Scott v Sandford, the Court ruled that African Americans could not be citizens. That decision was wrong then just as I believe the 1962 prayer decision was wrong.

Conclusion

Those of us who believe the Bible know God loves all people, including rioters, gays, transgenders, abortionists and those who reject Him. The founding fathers, who were mostly Bible believers, did not want a theocracy but a country based on Godly principles that would allow anyone to live in America.

From 1776 until today, our strength has come from our dependence on God. As America approaches our 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we remember our nation's long dependence on God.

On May 17, 1776, the Continental Congress called for a national day of humiliation, fasting, and prayer, asking God for forgiveness, His help in the war with Britain and mercy to prevent further bloodshed.