Compliance to Defiance

On Dec. 15, 2008, the Santa Rosa County School Board, the district’s Superintendent of Schools and the principal of Pace High School (H. Frank Lay) filed an “Admission of Liability” with the U. S. District Court regarding the district-wide constitutional violations detailed in an August 2008 ACLU lawsuit.

It was agreed by all of the named defendants that faculty and staff at Pace High School had misused their positions to promote their own personal religious viewpoints. The district agreed to end the practices and signed a consent decree to settle the lawsuit.

“The [Santa Rosa] School District ultimately did the right thing in admitting and accepting responsibility for its violations of students’ constitutional rights,” said Benjamin Stevenson, principal litigator and staff attorney with the ACLU of Florida’s Northwest Regional office. “We are pleased with [the] decision, and we look forward to working with the defendants and the court to permanently bring the school district in line with the First Amendment.”

So, that’s it, right?

Oh, no, folks –

May 26, 2009, in the auditorium of Pastor Joey Rogers’ Pace Assembly of God church at the “Students’ Rights Rally,” Pace High Principal H. Frank Lay decided to be defiant rather than compliant.

Principal H. Frank Lay

“No way are we going to back down, back off, lay [sic] down or roll over,” Principal Lay said. It may cost him his job, but Principal Lay said he would not sit back and watch students who traditionally speak at commencement ceremonies be denied that right because of the signed Admission of Liability.

“We have to love on (students), and loving on them means standing up for them,” Principal Lay said. “No way am I going to stand by and let two students who have (worked hard) be denied their right to speak.”

Due to the signed admission, only the class valedictorian and salutatorian will be allowed to speak. Because of the consent decree, district officials have decided not to let any student speak at graduation whose election may have been influenced by a teacher or student government. Speakers selected on a neutral basis because of their grade-point average and not their religiosity will be allowed to speak.

There were reportedly around 700 students, current & former faculty and alumni of Pace High School attending this rally. Neither the Superintendent nor any of the School Board Members attended.

You can see how once again Principal Frank Lay, with the help of his Religious Posse, has twisted this ACLU suit into a denial of student’s rights.

You can read the original ACLU lawsuit – it has nothing to do with denying any student the right to speak. The suit addresses the conduct of the Pace High School officials, of which Principal Frank Lay is Top Dog. Mr. Lay, among the other defendants, signed an Admission of Liability – admitting that the on-campus religious activity (i.e., preaching, proselytizing, etc.) that the ACLU filed suit about did occur.

If Principal Frank Lay was so concerned about not backing down, rolling over or lying down, why did he agree to the Admission of Liability?

Could it be that the ACLU lawsuit has uncovered a bunch of Activist Teachers who are willing to sacrifice education on the altar of religion? These religious activists are more interested in the perceived restraint of their individual religious beliefs than with the education of the students in their charge.

True education deals in facts, not mysticism – education is teaching the mind how to think – and part of the thinking process is curiosity, questioning and doubt –

– three things religion stands against.

God Encourages Violation of Court Injunction

Or…ACLU v. Santa Rosa School District, Round 2…

As of May 15, 2009, the Northwest Florida branch of the ACLU wants the Santa Rosa School District held in contempt for violating a January 19, 2009 injunction on religious activities at school and school-related events.

This injunction is detailed in previous blogs. You will note that the sole issue is not “prayer in school” – what the faculty and staff were doing was more akin to preaching and proselytizing. The Principal at Pace (Florida) High School, H. Frank Lay and the Superintendent of Schools for Santa Rosa County, Tim Wyrosdick, admitted that such religious activity had occurred and agreed to prohibit and stop all future religious activity in the public schools of Santa Rosa County.

On January 28, 2009, Pace High held a luncheon where Principal Lay asked the Athletic Director, Robert Freeman, to “bless the food for the adults in attendance.” Mr. Freeman did as he was told and gave “thanks” (prayed) before eating.

Principal Lay commented to the Pensacola News Journal, “We did what we normally do in the South before we eat,” he said. “I wasn’t trying to hurt or offend anybody or cause any consternation.”

(I keep wanting to add, “Awww, shucks!” at the end of that sentence, but I won’t.)

The implication is that those Yankees Up Nawwth don’t pray before they eat – and those dad-burn ACLU lawh-yers don’t neether!

Hey, Principal Lay – there are a lot of things you may have done “normally…in the South” – most of which, thank God, have been done away with. No thanks to Southern Tradition, but to those Damn Yankees from up North.

It was revealed in a series of internal memos that Principal Lay was “at the date of this incident (1/28/09) aware of the court injunction and aware that this type of action is not permissible under the injunction.” And yet, Principal Lay proceeded, compelled by Southern Heritage rather than obedience to the law.

The second incident in violation of the U.S. District Court injunction took place at a banquet for “Non-Instructional Employee of the Year” on February 20, 2009.

Michelle Winkler, a clerical assistant at the Santa Rosa School District’s Berryhill Administrative Complex, was asked to give…

“…the thought for the day. Say things about our hard working employees, remembering the theme of ‘Santa Rosa’s Most Wanted.’ Please keep your comments fairly short, 2 or 3 minutes or so. When you conclude, ask everyone to stand for a moment of silence. After 20 – 30 seconds, simply say, ‘Thank you, you may be seated’ and depart the stage.”

But that isn’t what Michelle Winkler did.  Oh no.

You see she had received a prayer from God. That’s right – directly from God Himself.

Michelle Winkler’s first inclination was to withdraw, but she stated, “we are in a battle and there are diverse ways to fight it. So I will accept.”

Again, Michelle Winkler was told, no prayer – no devotion – no invocation. Winkler then asked for “off the record” permission to pray her God-given prayer.

“We can have a ‘thought for the day’ which cannot be religious” she was told – again.

Ms. Winkler’s response, dated January 26, 2009, was – well, strange – and why the school district didn’t pull the plug on this nut is beyond me.

“This is the prayer God gave me – if it cannot be prayed in its entirety, I would prefer someone else be selected to give the prayer. I simply cannot compromise my LORD. Like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, I simply won’t bow down to another god.”

The night of the banquet instead of being brave and praying herself (i.e., Daniel, Hananiah, Mishel, et.al.) she chickens out and asks her husband (not a school board employee) to pray.

Winkler thought she had out-smarted the injunction, but, no – the ACLU filed a motion for the federal court to issue an order for Ms. Winkler to show cause or explain herself.

Time to be brave, Ms. Winkler.

Don’t send your husband.

The Minutiae of Christian Recruitment

Maybe it’s just me, but I find these Bob Jones University “Extension Worksheets” to be – well – just plain weird.

You all have probably heard that the ways of God are mysterious – well, someone in the BJU Ministerial School Administration came up with a way of recording and documenting the complex and mysterious dealings of the Holy Spirit with fallen Man in an attempt to remove the shroud of mystery from God and…

…determine a BJU Bible student’s grade.

Ignore most of the sheet – it’s just attendance taking, etc.

Look at the highlighted sections – which I have detailed for you.

From the highlighted left portion above.

 Top Left: “No. Dealt With” = Number Dealt With – this means the number of people you counseled about the destiny of their eternal soul.  The object is to get the Holy Spirit to “deal with” them and convict them of their sin.

Top Right: “No. Saved” = Number Saved – the number you actually converted.  Those souls became “born again” or “saved” from eternal damnation in Hell.

Middle Left: “Rededications” – these were professed Christians who had drifted away from the Faith or become “back-slidden” and “rededicated” their lives back to Jesus.

Middle Right: “Other Decisions” – to become missionaries, preachers, evangelists or to attend a good Christian university…like BJU, for example.

Bottom Left: “Services” – number of services held where the Word of God was preached.  This could be anywhere – church, rest home, house, street corner, etc.

Bottom Right: “Tracts” – those little pamphlets you sometimes see in the bathroom, under your wiper, near your tip after a meal, given to you as you walk past, etc. – those are “tracts.”  They usually contain a “Plan of Salvation.”  Follow the steps and, voila, you’re saved.

From the highlighted right portion.

 

This is the “Excuse” section of the worksheet.  Darken the circle completely!  Were you sick?  You had better be checked into the infirmary!  Car trouble?  Did car trouble stop Peter? Or Paul?  Get a ride!  What’s wrong with you!  (This is where the “Office Use Only” section over-rules your so-called “excuse.”)

Those poor guys (girls are not allowed to preach) who received an “F” or an “Incomplete” in Bible had to outline the Sunday Sermons!  Cruel & unusual punishment for sure!

Bob Jones University Artifact – “Extension”

This bit of Bob Jones University-ism needs some explaining…

“Extension” was a catch-all phrase used at BJU describing the efforts of the Bob Jones University students reaching out (hence, “extension”) to the local community, the surrounding counties and even near-by states.

Some Extensions were not overtly ministries – volunteering to clean the yard of an elderly couple or fixing their house for nothing, etc. – more physical labor than spiritual guidance.

There were other Extensions that were quasi-ministerial – working with elderly and the “shut-ins” in rest homes and, while there, holding church services for them – just one example.  (This is the one I participated in – occasionally.)

And then there were some Extensions that were just training exercises for future preachers – jail ministries, juvenile detention ministries, church camps, street preaching, door-to-door “witnessing” and preaching in small churches that couldn’t afford a full-time pastor – these Extensions were more “hard core” – only those “called” and “on-fire” tackled these.

Now, as a rule, participation in an Extension was not a requirement at BJU – it was optional.

But if you were so foolish to announce or publish your non-participation in Extension(s) – you were targeted as one of those students that needed to be watched and spiritually dealt with. There was such a thing as “Spiritual Probation” and failing Spiritual Probation could get you expelled just as easily (if not more easily) than Academic Probation.

So, instead of Extension, you chose to rock climb near Traveler’s Rest (making sure to stop at the F Mart on the way back), hike in the South Carolina mountains, do some outdoor photography or even study in your free time, you kept quiet about it. Letting the wrong people know you were enjoying your free time would get you on “Spiritual Pro.”

Keeping quiet didn’t guarantee you a trouble-free flight under the spiritual radar – oh no. There were little forms that you had to fill out just to let the University know how they could improve their Extension ministries…

Remember, Extension was optional – not a credited part of any class – but filling out one of these little forms truthfully could put you on the Spiritual Probation List…

Note top right question– an “APC” is Assistant Prayer Captain.  “PC” is Prayer Captain.  Each dorm room had an APC, the room’s “spiritual leader.”  Every fourth room had a PC, the spiritual leader of the APC’s and the four rooms.  Every hallway had a Hall Monitor, the spiritual leader of the hall — there were two Hall Monitor’s per hallway.  If you were a PC or an APC and you did not participate in Extension, you were demoted and put on Spiritual Probation.

Note question #5 — “witness” can be roughly translated as, pestering or persuading your boss, co-workers & customers to become Christians – Christians in the independent fundamental sense (i.e., protestant, non-Catholic.)

Bob Jones University Artifact – “Discipline Committee List”

At Bob Jones University, the “Discipline Committee” met once a week in the Alumni Building to either forgive, moderate or dispense “demerits” to individual students.  Members of the “DC” rotated — there was always a member of the administration present (a Dean), a faculty member and an upper classman/student body representative (usually a toady of the Administration) — these members sat behind a long table with the current computer generated “DC List” in front of them.  It reminded me of traffic court.

The Guilty were called in one at a time.  You gave them your name.  The offense was announced.  You were allowed a defense that may or may not moderate the charges.  After hearing the defense, punishment or “discipline” was doled out.

Small offenses were no big deal, such as being late to class — just 1 demerit.  But some offenses carried huge penalties — skipping or missing class without an excuse could get you 25 demerits and 50 demerits for a second offense.

However, repeating the same minor offense on a regular basis would cause the demerits to “multiply” — 1 demerit the first time, 2 the next, 4 the following, 8… — you get the picture.

Social infractions — kissing, hugging or just touching — earned you an instant 50 demerits and you usually were “Socialed” — meaning you could no longer “date.”

If you received a cumulative total of 75 demerits in any one semester, you were “Permanently Campused” — not allowed to leave the BJU campus for any reason.

If you received 150 demerits or more — it was over.  You were expelled.

An actual BJU "DC List"

Bob Jones University Artifact – “10 Things…”

In each dormitory – men’s or women’s – on the back of each dorm room door there was a white 4×6 card with Dr. Bob Jones, Sr.’s “Ten Things to Remember” printed on it.  We weren’t required to read it or memorize it, but it was there – staring you in the face when you closed your door.

Of all the “Ten Things to Remember” it was Number 11 that was emphasized the most – “Griping Not Tolerated.”

“Griping” was defined by the administration.  I remember students being severly punished for “griping.”

All this did, of course, was drive the “griping” underground.  I have many a happy memory of underground “gripe sessions” held in various spots across campus.  My favorite: the upstairs dressing rooms in the Concert Center (now called Stratton Hall, I believe).

Bob Jones University Artifact – “No interracial dating”

Bob Jones University Artifact – “Textbook Disclaimer”

The Official BJU "Book Disclaimer" -- all books had them, unless the book was written & published by the University.

 

This small 2″ by 3″ bit of paper was found pasted in the front of various textbooks at Bob Jones University.

 

I stuck one in the front of my Bible — the “Disclaimer” is still there.

 

Bob Jones University Artifact – “Demerit Slip”

 

The famous BJU Demerit Slip

 

Column #1 - note that each demerit has its own 2-digit code

 

Column #2 - Some of these demerits were very minor (1 to 5 demerits) others would get you "shipped" (expelled).

 

Column #3 - The numbers had to be written in blocks so BJU's optical readers could read the codes and "Discipline Committee" lists could be generated via the University's computer system.

 

Column #4 - Love the "Other" and "Use the reverse" - just in case they missed one.

The Man the Bible Calls “Righteous”

“Do right.”

Strangely enough the first time this simple directive appears in the Bible it is an imperfect man uttering these two words while questioning the morality and judgment of God.

Look it up yourself – Genesis 18:25.

The man is Abraham.

The situation – Abraham is interceding for the cities of Sodom & Gomorrah – much like a criminal defense attorney pleading with a judge for leniency, Abraham is trying to broker a deal for his very guilty client(s).

25) That be far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked – that be far from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?

Why would Abraham argue the defense of Sodom & Gomorrah before the ultimate Judge?

It wasn’t the first time Abraham defended Sodom & Gomorrah. Earlier, in Genesis 14 we are told the story of Abraham physically rescuing the leaders, the people and the goods of Sodom & Gomorrah. Abraham risked his life and the lives of his men to re-establish these two “wicked” cities.

Oh yeah – did I mention that one of Sodom’s city leaders was Abraham’s nephew Lot?

This guy, Lot, sure received a lot (sorry) of very special attention.

But what did he do to deserve it?

It must have been Lot’s strong conservative moral stance in the face of Sodom & Gomorrah’s moral bankruptcy.

Let’s look.

1) Lot offers his home as shelter and protection for two “angels” that enter the city of Sodom. [That’s good. Okay, so far.]

2) Lot offers his two virgin daughters to be raped by the townspeople gathered outside his front door. [What?!! Does “Focus on the Family” know about this?]

3) To his extended family, Lot appears to be jesting when he speaks seriously of God’s impending judgment. [Probably because Lot left all of those Richard Dawkins, Dan Barker and Sam Harris books lying about the house.]

4) Lot hesitates, protests and ultimately delays the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah – the two angels have to physically drag Lot out of the city. [I can see Lot standing with a garden hose ready to save his house.]

5) Lot loses his wife on the way out – she is “left behind” and dies. [Ever notice in the Bible that most of the wives mentioned are bad influences on the men?]

6) After finding a cave to hide in, Lot becomes drunk and impregnates two of his daughters – he fathers his own grandkids, Moab and Ben-ammi. [This is sick – but not unprecedented – after all, where did Cain find another woman…?]

And yet, the Apostle Peter refers to Lot as “righteous” –

2 Peter 2: 7 & 8 – “…and if He rescued righteous Lot…for by what he [Lot] saw and heard that righteous man…felt his righteous soul tormented day after day with their [inhabitants of Sodom & Gomorrah] lawless deeds.”

Either there was a lot more to Lot than is mentioned in scripture, or –

– morality is a bit over-rated.