Fifty years ago most children received some exposure to the Judeo-Christian faith tradition in the tax-supported public schools. My faintest recollection is that my school had opening exercises with the pledge to the flag, some Bible verses and a prayer. But there has been so much heaped upon that memory bank, including the long debates about prayer in the public schools, that maybe it is only my imagination. Occasionally there was an assembly program with religious overtones, especially at Christmas, and non-Christians were able to remain in the classroom. The children of the '50s, their parents and grandparents and society in general would not have questioned the practice.
If there were religious exercises, it is questionable whether this writer is any better for them. If there were not, he probably is none worse for the absence. The religious training which he received was primarily in the family circle and in the church.
In Virginia in the mid-50s there were religious education classes offered by the Virginia Council of Churches. Not every locality participated. In 1955-56 there were 21 counties and five cities offering classes and 29 counties and eight cities which were not including religious education within their school program. It was found that “about 40,000 Virginia school students, mostly Protestants, are being taught religion in public school buildings by church teachers, mostly Protestants … chosen by religious bodies.”
The Baptist General Association of Virginia appointed a Religious Liberty Study Commission to consider the public school issue as well as other possible violations of the principle of separation of church and state. Nine prominent Virginia Baptist ministers and laypersons were named to the committee.
The commission examined existing laws and found that the Virginia Bill of Rights of 1776, with its reference to religious liberty, as well as Jefferson's Virginia Statute for Religious Liberty of 1785 remained a part of Virginia law. They quoted Patrick Henry: “Virginia was the first state in the history of the world to proclaim the decree of absolute divorce between church and state.”
Everyone on the commission knew the Virginia Baptist track record: they had been among the despised minorities in the time of a state church; some had endured severe ridicule, persecution and imprisonment for their faith; they championed uncompromised freedom of conscience and untainted separation of church and state.
The commission made an exhaustive study, sending survey forms to all the school districts. They found that the religious classes were conducted during regular hours and, with one exception, on school property. They found that for those not enrolled in the classes, “something is found to occupy the time.”
It was found that, without exception, there were non-Christian homes represented within the school enrollment. Already the Protestant majority had placed themselves in a position for other faith groups to demand equal time. In terms of paying teachers and other expenses, it was found that “Baptists are participating but not all of the Baptist churches in communities [with instruction] are supporting the program.”
The bottom line was that the commission believed “that Virginia Baptists, collectively and individually, [should] reaffirm our time-honored position with reference to religious freedom by zealously practicing those things to which we subscribe.” The commission recommended and the BGAV messengers approved a statement that the General Association was “opposed to religious instruction in the free public schools.”
Of course, the BGAV cannot mandate anything and wouldn't if it could. Like the resolutions passed today, the statement was just the reflection of the opinion of the body at a given time. Fifty years later, the situation has changed dramatically. Diversity in 1955 might have meant that you had Presbyterians as well as Baptists and Methodists in your school or maybe just that there were some Jewish students. Today our population is composed of a far larger array of faith groups competing in the marketplace of ideas.
Another recommendation was made by the commission and approved. It recommended that a standing committee be appointed to continue the study of religious liberty. For the last half-century the BGAV has maintained a Religious Liberty Committee which has studied, watched, warned and educated the Virginia Baptist family on matters of church and state. It has helped us see the difference between the schoolhouse and the church house.
Fred Anderson may be contacted at P.O. Box 34, University of Richmond, VA 23173.