Jimmy and Raymond at School
Originally published in
The Christian Informer
July, 1998

Jimmy Peters is only six years old, but authorities in a California school district have more than their hands full because of his behavior.  Jimmy is "fearsome."  He bites and kicks his teachers and classmates.  He is a walking "nightmare" according to the superintendent who had Jimmy removed from school.

But not for long.  A federal judge ordered Jimmy back in.  The district says it spent $5,000 to train elementary staff how to handle Jimmy when school started. Federal laws have cost the district $30,000 in legal defenses, and it will owe perhaps $100,000 in plaintiff attorney's fees.  Jimmy can now do whatever he wants to do in his elementary school.  And with the blessings of the federal government.

Raymond Raines is a 10-year old student in the Missouri school system.  He is well mannered, quiet, and studious.  Raymond has one "problem."  He prays silently and privately over his lunch at school.  School administrators and teachers have separated Raymond from his classmates and subjected him to ridicule and scorn.

On at least three separate occasions, and in full view of all other students in the lunchroom, Raymond was forcibly removed from his seat to the principal's office -- simply because he bowed his head and prayed silently over his lunch in the school cafeteria.

Unlike Jimmy, Raymond doesn't have the blessings of the federal government to back him up in his behavior.  The liberals in government fear Christians as walking nightmares.  Raymond was traumatized, stigmatized, and ridiculed by his peers.  His mother had to take her son out of school.

The ACLU is ready to go to court to make sure that Raymond isn't allowed back in any school to "disrupt" the learning environment.

Jimmy and Raymond have one thing in common.  Both will face a federal district court judge because of their "offensive" behavior at school.  The same people who brought our schools to this warped sense of right and wrong will decide their fate.  Is this insanity or what?

Via The Pathfinder -- Submitted by Don Rowland

May we add that recently we read that -- A group was prohibited by park officials in Georgia to use the park.  They would not give them a permit for a religious event in the public park even though no one else wanted to use the park at the time.

A child in Kentucky was told by the administration that he cannot pray or even mention God at school.

A student who graduated from a private religious school in Arkansas scored a 99 percentile on the ACT but was told that she could not enter a state University because her high school diploma did not come from a public school.

Mall officials in Tennessee had a man arrested for talking to people about the Bible on the sidewalks outside the mall.

In Connecticut law enforcement officers told a man that if they can prove that he gave some religious tracts to a student, he will be charged with corrupting the morals of a minor.

In Vermont, a kindergarten boy was told that talking about God was not allowed. The boy had been talking to two classmates about the fact that God is not dead when his teacher told him that was not allowed at school.

Some people bent on getting rid of religion in America altogether have confused others about the laws concerning "separation of church and state."  The truth is that the laws say that we are free to express our belief and show our convictions anywhere.  If, however, we are placed in certain official positions (teacher, counselor, etc.) the law places certain limitations on us.  In the case of student-initiated prayers in schools, these have been upheld by the courts.  Simply because an atheist sees that you are praying, or overhears you in religious conversation with someone else is not an infringement on their "civil rights."  Infringement or not, you know that "all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (2 Tim. 3:17).  The question then is -- are you willing to live godly and suffer, or do you prefer being a comfortable anonymous "Christian"?  It seems that in the apostle Paul's day they must have sung a hymn with words which said, "If we suffer, we shall also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us" (2 Tim 2:12).

Just recently we have been exposed by television to some terrible, terrible slaughters by certain troubled students who have carried guns to school and shot and killed classmates and teachers.  In most instances it seems they were probably seeking revenge of some sort, maybe on an ex-girlfriend or on others who had ridiculed and made them miserable.  There has been a rash of these tragic incidents in various states in the past few months.  We have noticed media focusing closely on the emotional instability of each perpetrator.  They speculate that a variety of forces and factors may have pushed them toward their ultimate crimes.  They have suspected that these shooting sprees may have been triggered by a diet of violent garbage that they watched on TV; their parents may have been abusive; their parents gave them target practice and free access to guns; possibly their parents were ardent admirers of self-defense, and aggressive in settling disputes, possibly they have been involved in a group of Satan worshipers who carried out violent acts on animals, and on, and on.

But, amazingly, there is one of these instances in which the news people have backed off and become comparatively silent about reasons for the offender's act.  The one that they immediately dropped their motive speculations about was the attack on a group of classmates who were praying together before school. Why?  Why haven't the news people continued to pursue the motives of this confused child?  Well, we think the answer is obvious.  Many people in the media probably hold the same views as the young murderer about such religious fanatics who would pray at school, and to some degree, sympathize with him. Why don't the God-haters around the country all stand up and say, "Here, here, young man, good for you"?  No, but they might tell him, "Wait now, don't do that; we understand your frustration with such people, but just wait a few years, wait until you're all older, and then do whatever you have to."  But what about this boy's parents?  We haven't heard much lately.  You know that if the hatred of Christianity (whatever the form) is so intense in the hearts of some that they publicly demand a stop to innocent little school children offering thanks for their food in the lunchroom, there is absolutely no telling what vicious venom they put into their offspring when they talk in private.  As we say, we have not heard this discussed by "main-stream" media.  If you have, let us know.      -- R.N.