In 2007, the Illinois legislature amended a bill that mandated a “brief moment of silence” for reflection or prayer at the beginning of each school day. After Sherman filed suit, a district court judge ruled the Illinois law was unconstitutional, saying it endorsed prayer and religion in schools.
- There is also a video game The Moment of Silence, and a poem 'Moment of Silence'.
A moment of silence in Carinthia, Republic of Austria, wearing the traditional folk costumes by the Gailtal
A moment of silence is a short time when people do not make noise. A moment of silence shows respect for people who have died. Many countries observe a minute of silence after a tragic event. Moments of silence often last one minute, but other amounts of time may be chosen.
On November 11th, many countries observe a two-minute silence to remember those who have died in World Wars. The tradition was started in 1919 exactly one year after the end of World War I. It became an official part of the annual service on Armistice Day.[1][2]
During the moment of silence, people often bow their heads, remove their hats, and do not speak or move. A person in charge of a group will tell everyone when the moment begins and ends. A moment of silence may come before or after other events with symbolic meaning. Examples of these events are the ringing of bells, the release of doves or balloons, or a bugle playing the 'Last Post'.
Moments of silence and the separation of church and state[change | change source]
In the United States, some people say[3] that allowing prayer as part of a moment of silence means that moments of silence can make it hard to keep the separation of church and state (the idea that religion and government should not affect each other).
Moments of silence do not have to be time for prayers. They can be used for other thoughts that are not religious. Many people who want time for prayers in public schools and government meetings use moments of silence so that some people can pray and other people do not have to pray. Because they represent the government, and because the Constitution of the United States says that government cannot force people to do religious things, these people cannot tell other people to pray.
When public schools have a moment of silence, Buddhist students could meditate (relax and think calm thoughts), students with other religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism could pray, and atheist students could think about the day ahead.
Colin Powell, a famous government leader, likes having moments of silence in schools. He has said that a simple moment of silence at the start of each school day is a good idea. He also has said that students could use this time to pray, meditate, think, or study.
Many people believe that prayer is not allowed in United States public schools, but this is not true. The Supreme Court ruled in 1962 that students can pray in school, but teachers and other school leaders cannot lead the prayers. Students can form clubs where they can pray, and they can pray alone, but they cannot lead prayers at school events. The reason prayer is not allowed at those times is because of the First Amendment. The First Amendment says that government cannot force people to do religious things, and public schools are part of the government.
In 1976, the state of Virginia allowed schools to have a moment of silence at the start of the school day. This moment would last one minute. In 1985, the Supreme Court said that a 'moment of silence' law in Alabama would not work with the United States Constitution and could not be used. In 2005, the state of Indiana made a law that said all public schools had to give students time to say the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence every day.
In April 2000, Virginia changed its law to say that all public schools in Virginia had to have a moment of silence (before this change, schools could choose not to have a moment of silence). In October 2000, a judge named Claude M. Hilton said that the 'moment of silence' law was allowed by the United States Constitution. Judge Hilton said that the law has a secular (not religious) purpose, that the law does not make religion more important or less important, and that the law does not make government and religion be too close to each other. Judge Hilton also said, 'Students may think as they wish,' and that this thinking could be religious or not religious. He said that the only thing students had to do because of the law was sit and be quiet.
In March 2008, Illinois followed Virginia and made a compulsory 30 seconds moment of silence, but was lifted in August.
The American Civil Liberties Union thinks that these laws that say public schools should have moments of silence are a bad idea.[4] They think they are a bad idea because the laws are made to give students time to pray, and that makes religion more important than non-religion.
Notes[change | change source]
- ↑The First South African. A P Cartwright. p. 224, and A two-minute silent pause to remember: time From Africa. J.A. Abrahams.
- ↑Adrian Gregory 1994. The silence of memory. pp 9–10.
- ↑'moment of silence - The Skeptic's Dictionary - Skepdic.com'. www.skepdic.com.
- ↑'Virginia Senate OKs Schools' Moment of Silence'. American Civil Liberties Union.
Other websites[change | change source]
- MomentOfSilence.org – a web site that likes the idea of moments of silence
- Nothing Really Matters – an article that talks about 'moments of silence'
Retrieved from 'https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Moment_of_silence&oldid=6524554'
Naples, Italy (July 14, 2005) – Navy Chaplain Dave McBeth, left, leads an informal gathering of personnel aboard Naval Support Activity (NSA) Naples during a Europe-wide coordinated two-minute moment of silence held throughout the in relation to the.A moment of silence (sometimes referred to as a minute's silence or a one-minute silence) is a period of, prayer, reflection,. Similar to flying a flag at, a moment of silence is often a gesture of, particularly in mourning for those who have died recently or as part of a tragic historical event.One minute is a common length of time for the, though organizers may choose other periods of time, normally connected in some way with the event being commemorated (there might be a minute given for every death commemorated, for example). During the moment of silence, participants may typically bow their heads, remove hats, and refrain from speaking or moving for the duration.
See also:The first recorded instance of an official moment of silence dedicated to a person's death took place in Portugal on February 13, 1912. The Portuguese Senate dedicated 10 minutes of silence to, baron of, Brazil, and Minister of the Exterior of the Brazilian government, who had died three days earlier on February 10. This moment of silence was registered in the Senate's records of that day.
In the same year, large parts of the US kept a ceremonial silence to honour the dead of the and the. Examples of recurring moments of silence Many people in the observe the at 11:00am on November 11 each year to remember sacrifices of members of the armed forces and of civilians in times of war.
First Lady and President return to the White House after leading a moment of silence for the victims of the.The ruled in 1962 that official organization, sponsorship, or endorsement of in public schools is forbidden by the. Teachers and school officials may not lead classes in prayer, but prayer is permitted at voluntary religious clubs, and students are not prohibited from praying themselves. Other rulings have forbidden public, organized prayer at school assemblies, sporting events, and similar school-sponsored activities.Public moments of silence in the United States both arise from and contribute to this debate over prayer and the.
A moment of silence lacks any specific religious formulation, and therefore it has been presented as a way of creating reflection and respect without endorsing any particular religion.President was a supporter of a moment of silence in American schools. In 1981 Reagan formally permitting organized prayer in public schools. In his 1984 state of the union address, Reagan asked Congress, who begin their day with an invocation: 'If you can begin your day with a member of the clergy standing right here leading you in prayer, then why can't freedom to acknowledge God be enjoyed again by children in every schoolroom across this land?'
, a longtime advocate, has recommended a simple moment of silence at the start of each school day. Further, he states that students could use this interval to pray, meditate, contemplate or study.However, critics often view the moment of silence as publicly endorsing prayer 'in disguise'. This issue has been especially raised by groups and advocates, who argue that no non-religious purpose is served by designating an official moment of silence.
Moments of silence point to the tension in the U.S. Constitution and society between accommodation and endorsement. Accommodation of religion is to ensure an environment where a person or student can practice their religion.
A question with 'moments of silence' laws is whether accommodation was already achieved by the fact that a student can pray or meditate on his/her own without an official moment of silence. Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State said, on a 'moment of silence' case, 'Students were already allowed to pray, meditate, or reflect under the statute before it was amended. The addition of the word 'pray' where it wasn't needed clearly shows that legislators intended to promote religion, and that's not their job.'
Courts have stated on these moments of silence cases that a secular purpose is necessary and according to Wallace v. Jaffree, a 'statute must be invalidated if it is entirely motivated by a purpose to advance religion.' Although since 1976 the state law permitted school districts to implement 60 seconds of silence at the start of each school day, in 1985, the ruled that an 'moment of silence or voluntary prayer' law was unconstitutional, in the case. In April 2000, a new law came into being; requiring all Virginian public school students to observe a moment of silence. Also, in 2005, a law was passed in requiring all public schools to give students a chance to say the and observe a moment of silence every day.
In October 2007, Illinois enacted legislation to require public schools to provide students with a moment of silence at the start of the school day, a statute that is currently being challenged in Illinois state courts. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia also require such moments of quiet in the classroom. In more than 20 other states, teachers are allowed to decide whether they want such a classroom time-out.In October 2000, the U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton ruled that the 'moment of silence' law was constitutional. Judge Hilton stated, 'The court finds that the Commonwealth's daily observance of one minute of silence act is constitutional. The act was enacted for a secular purpose, does not advance or inhibit religion, nor is there excessive entanglement with religion.
Students may think as they wish – and this thinking can be purely religious in nature or purely secular in nature. All that is required is that they sit silently.' His ruling was upheld in the.
Others argued that the law was not enacted for a secular purpose, pointing to statements made by supporters of the legislation. State Senator Charles R. Hawkins (R-Pennsylvania) stated the moment of silence is 'a very small measure to address a very large problem.'
He also said, 'Prayer is not a bad word in my vocabulary.' Kent Willis, Executive Director of the ACLU of Virginia, stated lawmakers are 'at the very least placing Virginia law right on the line of separation of church and state or they are crossing it. The state is playing with fire here.' The was opposed to a proposed constitutional amendment by in the early 1990s which would have set aside a voluntary moment of prayer during the school day, which was later independently described by President as a 'moment of silence'.See also.References.