Engel Vs Vitale Case Study
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
A. According to the First Amendment, the enactment of any law establishing a religion is prohibited. Under the supervision of the Constitution, Congress cannot interfere with the freedom of religion; however, the Fourteenth Amendment does not allow the states (or their officials) to limit the basic rights of all citizens.
B. In the case of Engel v. Vitale, the Board of Regents for the State of New York approved a short, voluntary prayer to be recited at the start of school each day. A group of parents whose children attended the School District disagreed with this religious practice and argued that the reading of a nondenominational prayer at the start of the school day violates the "establishment of religion" clause …show more content…
The court case of Engel v. Vitale originated in the state of New York, and was brought to the attention of a New York State Court by the malcontented parents of their children enrolled in the public school system. Reasoning behind the case being sustained within the state of New York rests as it was the place of origin as well as it was, in fact, the School District of New York under inquiry. After the confrontation, the New York Court of Appeals had approved the lower state courts which had supported New York's power to use the daily prayer in public schools so long as the students were not required to join in the …show more content…
There is a profound majority in the case of Engel v. Vitale. The group consists of citizens of New York (the parents of the children attending public schools), a variety of administrative officials, as well as the founding fathers. This majority believes that the prayer authorized by the New York Regents not only violates the First Amendment but was offensive to parents and pupils of other religions. As a concurring opinion, some are under the impression that the prayer was composed as part of a governmental program to further religious beliefs, ("Legal Encyclopedia") and was being forced upon unwilling students.
B. As written by Justice Hugo Black in 1962, "The religious nature of prayer was recognized by Jefferson, and has been concurred in by theological writers, the United States Supreme court, and State courts and administrative officials, including New York's Commissioner of Education. A committee of the New York legislature has agreed" ("Engel v. Vitale"). Proving that the Regents' prayer was plainly religious, the authorization and use of the prayer in public schools was and still is illegal as established by the First Amendment and reinstated by the Fourteenth
A. According to the First Amendment, the enactment of any law establishing a religion is prohibited. Under the supervision of the Constitution, Congress cannot interfere with the freedom of religion; however, the Fourteenth Amendment does not allow the states (or their officials) to limit the basic rights of all citizens.
B. In the case of Engel v. Vitale, the Board of Regents for the State of New York approved a short, voluntary prayer to be recited at the start of school each day. A group of parents whose children attended the School District disagreed with this religious practice and argued that the reading of a nondenominational prayer at the start of the school day violates the "establishment of religion" clause …show more content…
The court case of Engel v. Vitale originated in the state of New York, and was brought to the attention of a New York State Court by the malcontented parents of their children enrolled in the public school system. Reasoning behind the case being sustained within the state of New York rests as it was the place of origin as well as it was, in fact, the School District of New York under inquiry. After the confrontation, the New York Court of Appeals had approved the lower state courts which had supported New York's power to use the daily prayer in public schools so long as the students were not required to join in the …show more content…
There is a profound majority in the case of Engel v. Vitale. The group consists of citizens of New York (the parents of the children attending public schools), a variety of administrative officials, as well as the founding fathers. This majority believes that the prayer authorized by the New York Regents not only violates the First Amendment but was offensive to parents and pupils of other religions. As a concurring opinion, some are under the impression that the prayer was composed as part of a governmental program to further religious beliefs, ("Legal Encyclopedia") and was being forced upon unwilling students.
B. As written by Justice Hugo Black in 1962, "The religious nature of prayer was recognized by Jefferson, and has been concurred in by theological writers, the United States Supreme court, and State courts and administrative officials, including New York's Commissioner of Education. A committee of the New York legislature has agreed" ("Engel v. Vitale"). Proving that the Regents' prayer was plainly religious, the authorization and use of the prayer in public schools was and still is illegal as established by the First Amendment and reinstated by the Fourteenth