Religion & American Law

Teacher with Bible Divides Ohio Town

In a small Ohio town, where most people would describe themselves as devoutly Christian, a trial involving a middle school science teacher has been compared to the Scopes trial of 1925 has created a rift between citizens.

According to a New York Times article, John Freshwater, an eighth-grade public school science teacher in Mount Vernon, Ohio is accused of burning a cross on the arms of at least two students and teaching creationism in his classes. Home to about 15,000 people, 30 churches and an evangelical university, the town remains split. “To some, Mr. Freshwater is a hero unfairly punished for standing up for his Christian beliefs. To others, he is a zealot who pushed those beliefs onto students.” In my opinion, Mr. Freshwater is trying to push his own beliefs onto his students, going against the separation of church and state that has existed within this country for hundreds of years. I agree with the school systems’ lawyer who argued that this is “a basic issue about students having a constitutional right to be free from religious indoctrination in public schools.”

Public schools are much different from private, religious based schools. The funds they receive are from taxpayers of all races, ethnicities, and religions. Students in public schools deserve to receive a secular education, one that is not influenced by a specific religion. According to the article, a number of Mr. Freshwater’s colleagues found his teachings to go against this ideal. One teacher testified that Mr. Freshwater advised students to refer to the Bible for additional science research. “School officials said that Mr. Freshwater’s science classroom was adorned with at least four copies of the Ten Commandments and several other posters that included verses from Scripture.” It is clear that Mr. Freshwater has moved faith from the private sphere, in homes and churches, into the public sphere, where it does not necessarily belong. His practices in his classroom have created a place where religion is pushed upon students who may not share the same beliefs that their teacher believes.

However, some do not feel the same way. Mr. Freshwater’s pastor believes that the criticism was part of a larger trend toward bigotry against Christians. “If he had a Koran on his desk, he’d be fine and no one would say a word to him. If he had ‘Origin of Species’ on his desk, they would celebrate that.” Even students have taken the side of Mr. Freshwater, holding a “bring your Bible to school” day, and wearing t-shirts that read “I support Mr. Freshwater- God” on the front. However, rules are rules. The United States is a secular nation, one where laws have been enacted preventing the teaching of religion in public schools. It will be interesting to read court cases later this semester involving these issues, however, without these examples, it is evident that Mr. Freshwater is violating the fundamental separation of church and state.

It is hard to imagine myself sitting in Mr. Freshwater’s classroom. As someone who does not share the same religious views as this teacher, it would be uncomfortable to hear his teachings. In the upcoming court case it will be interesting to see how Mr. Freshwater is judged and if the separation of church and state will be upheld.

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