Samantha Edmonds

Professor George
English 1010
8 December 2015
Religion in Schools
Believing in a higher source or creator, and worshiping that god is the definition of
religion. A popular discussion going on right now is whetherif religion should be taught in
school, and if so, what religions? This is a touchy subject especially in the state of Utah. Most of
the population is LDS or Mormon, so in most Utah schools, The Bible is read and there is also a
seminary class. Not many Utahans are open to learning about different religions, and think very
highly of the LDS church. A while back, I saw a post on Facebook written by an LDS womaen
saying how upset she was that her sons school was teaching about Hinduism. She received lots
of feedback about onthe matter of the subject, everyone either agreeing or not. My question is,
what makes it okay for her beliefs to be taught in school and not those of others? I believe- that
religion should not be taught in school, but if it is, then we should cover the basics of the top
religions.
According to estimates, there are roughly 4,200 different religions practiced around
the world. The major five, however, include Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, and
New Age. Hinduism is worshiping infinite representations of gods and goddesses. Hindus
believe in multiple lives, and that everything in this life is based on their previous prior livesfe.
For instance, if they suffer lots of hardships it was because of evil behaviors in their previous

life. The overall goal of Hinduism is to be free from the law of karma, or continuous
reincarnations, to be free of rebirths, and be at rest.
Many people believe that Buddhists woarship Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama),
however, they do not worship any god. Buddhists look up to Buddha because they want to
attain what he has, spiritual enlightenment and freedom from the continuous cycle of life and
death. Buddhists believe that in order to end the cycle of rebirth, you must reach a state of
enlightenment by purifying your heart, and letting go of sensual desires and the illusion of
dualism. Buddhists have a strict set of principles to follow, and if done correctly, they reach
Nirvana- putting out the flame of desire.
Muslims believe in one almighty God named Allah. Allah is viewed as the creator of
everything and the source of all good and evil. He is very powerful and judging of his
followers, but very forgiving towards religiously devoted followers. A Muslims relationship
with Allah is as a servant to him. Though a Muslim honors several prophets, Muhammad is
considered the last prophet and his words and lifestyle are that person's authority. To be a
Muslim, one has to follow five religious duties: 1. Repeat a creed about Allah and
Muhammad; 2. Recite certain prayers in Arabic five times a day; 3. Give to the needy; 4.
One month each year, fast from food, drink, sex and smoking from sunrise to sunset; 5.
Pilgrimage once in one's lifetime to worship at a shrine in Mecca. At death -- based on one's
faithfulness to these duties -- a Muslim hopes to enter Paradise. If not, they will be eternally
punished in hell. (Adamson)
Christians believe in Jesus Christ, who is loving, and believe in the trinity of God,
the Spirit and the Holy Ghost. Christians enjoy their relationship with God. Jesus was viewed
as God in human form, he performed miracles and forgave people of their sins. He stated, I am

the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the
light of life. The Bible is viewed as a message from God, it reveals his personality, love, and
how to have a relationship with him. The Bible teaches Christians to lean on God in hardships.
New Age believes that we, ourselves, are god. God is a higher consciousness within
oneself, not a transcendent God who created everything. Everything in his or her life is
considered divine, what they see, hear, feel or imagine. Highly electric, New Age presents
itself as a collection of ancient spiritual traditions. It acknowledges many gods and
goddesses, as in Hinduism. The Earth is viewed as the source of all spirituality, and has its
own intelligence, emotions and deity. But superseding all is self. Self is the originator,
controller and God of all. There is no reality outside of what the person determines.
Anything negative a person experiences (failures, sadness, anger, selfishness, hurt) is
considered an illusion. Believing themselves to be completely sovereign over their life, nothing
about their life is wrong, negative or painful. Eventually a person develops spiritually to the
degree that there is no objective, external reality. A person, becoming a god, creates their own
reality. (Adamson)
While reading more into this topic, I found a picture on Facebook saying So, you
think that religion should be taught in schools? Would that be all religions? Or just yours?
This picture has over 1,800 comments but one stuck out to me; a man commented My single
best experience at college was taking a religion course where we covered five religions. The
professor argued each one like he had been a lifelong adherent. At the end of the course
none of us had any clue which one (if any) he actually believed in/ followed. THAT is how
its done. Teach, do not indoctrinate. I completely agree with this man.

Unfortunately teachers like this are hard to come by. When it comes to religion there is
a fine line between educating by fact basedbased on facts, and by based on personal belief.
That is why religion should not be taught in schools. Leave faith and other personal point of
views at home.
If religion is going to be mixed in with education, it should be an optional course in
college once, when students are old enough to fully understand the pros and consdifferent
aspects of every religion. Religion is a huge part of society and transgressions against humanity.
Many wars have been created fought over differences in religious beliefs, including the most
recent events of terrorism. Americans are blaming all Muslims for the terrorist attacks, which is
why if religion is going to be taught, then we should learn the basic understanding of the Muslim
Religion.
The U.S. Constitution states that church and state have to be separate, but anyone
has the freedom to practice religious beliefs and the pursuit of happiness. Some people feel
like because of this matter, homeschooling is the only option. Many religions teach their
followers not to question their faith, which unfortunately, leads to closed mindedness, making it
pointless to be taught in school. Religion should be taught at home and not at school to students,
who dont care for the subject matter.

Works Cited
Adamson, Marilyn. "Connecting with the Devine." Everystudent.com. 2015. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.