One of my favorite courses in college was a religious studies class. Fascinating subject, too bad the leaders screw it up so often.

 

My freshman year of high school, our religion class was about other religions (Muslim, Hindu, etc). It opened up a facination with the religious influence on historical events that I have yet to quench. I think that's why I hated American History, but loved European history, and still have a fascination with the medival history.

One of my favorite courses in college was a religious studies class. Fascinating subject, too bad the leaders screw it up so often.

 

My favorite class for my undergrad was definitely my Introduction to Religion class. I feel sad that some parents would want to keep their children from learning about the variety of religions in the world.

My freshman year of high school, our religion class was about other religions (Muslim, Hindu, etc). It opened up a facination with the religious influence on historical events that I have yet to quench. I think that's why I hated American History, but loved European history, and still have a fascination with the medival history.

Read a " A Distant Mirror " by Barbara Tuchman .

I just think this is different because it's attempting to expose the children to something that most probably wouldn't be getting exposure to in an educational way. Tennessee is the same state that held the 'Scopes Monkey Trial', to be fair.

 

I'm guessing that for the majority of the students, a field trip to a Baptist Church wouldn't have provided the same type of opportunities to expand on what they previously knew considering that most of them had probably either been to one or were familiar with it. I'd honestly feel the same way if it were a group of Muslim students who hadn't seen the inside of a traditional Baptist, "Bible Belt" church and were taken on a field trip there to let them have the experience of learning about one.

 

As far as some of the comments on the separation of church and state go, I just feel this is a different situation than things like posting the 10 Commandments, having prayer before sporting events, etc. because there is more of a history of church being more influential in schools than our Founding Fathers intended when they wrote the Constitution. I just think it's somewhat different when comparing the effects of letting a firmly established majority being held to the same standards as a small minority. Apples to oranges to me. I can understand why some would think it's a double-standard, it's just that I think it's an acceptable double-standard given the circumstances.

 

As someone who grew up in Eastern Kentucky and had plenty of Baptist/"Christian" type teachers, that some try to act as though what we think of as the traditional "Bible Belt" church fundamentals are under attack or are suffering egregious disenfranchisements.

When I was in High School a field trip to a Baptist or Holy Roller church to learn their ideas about worship would have been both enlightening and instructive and at least amusing .

As for those saying that since the kids are in TN and already know about Christianity, I beg to differ. It is 2013 and not everyone goes to church and dont know God or even how to be saved. It would be just as enlightening to take the kids to a Christian church as it would be to another type of church.

As for those saying that since the kids are in TN and already know about Christianity, I beg to differ. It is 2013 and not everyone goes to church and dont know God or even how to be saved. It would be just as enlightening to take the kids to a Christian church as it would be to another type of church.

 

I don't think it's the business of the schools to teach anyone how to "know God or how to be saved", but if you think people in the Bible Belt are as familiar with Muslim traditions (in an educational sense) as they are with the Baptist faith (even if they aren't kids who are raised in church, I'm sure they are much more familiar with it than they are other churches), then there's no point in even continuing this discussion as far as I'm concerned.

 

The purpose of the trip was to educate children about religious sects they weren't familiar with, not to convert them to Muslims.