Why did the US Supreme Court ban prayer from public school?

Answer 1

No single case banned organized prayer and Bible-reading in public schools; this was accomplished through a number of Supreme Court cases, beginning with Engel v. Vitale, (1962), that tested the limits of the First Amendment Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses.

In Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962), the Supreme Court held it was unconstitutional for a public school to require students to recite a prayer.

The specific challenge involved the New York Reagents' Prayer, which a group of parents protested violated their religious practices:

"Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our country. Amen."

In a 6-1 decision authored by Justice Hugo Black, the Court held that the prayer violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment because it promoted a religious belief regardless of the actual words being ambiguous as to which religion was being endorsed. The Court held that the Establishment Clause prohibited the government from endorsing a class of religions that recognized an Almighty God.

Other landmark cases banning prayer and Bible-reading in public schools include:

Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 US 203 (1963)

Chamberlin v. Dade County Board, 377 US 402 (1964)

Wallace v. Jaffre, 472 US 38 (1985)

Lee v. Weisman, 505 US 577 (1992)

Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe, 530 US 290 (2000)

It's worth remembering, however, that no case or series of cases have "banned" prayer in schools. The Court has ruled that the government (in the person of public school teachers or other public school officials) can't endorse a religion by requiring students to pray or participate in bible study; that doesn't mean students themselves are prohibited from praying. The private exercise of religion is not prohibited in public schools.

For more information, see Related Questions, below.

Answer 2

The US Supreme Court doesn't ban all prayer in schools; it only bans organized prayer in public schools. Individuals are free to pray privately, but not to impose their religious beliefs or the exercise of any religion on others.

The Supreme Court made their position clearer in Capitol Square Review & Advisory Bd. v. Pinette, 515 U.S. 753, 760 (1995) when they wrote: "...private religious speech, far from being a First Amendment orphan, is as fully protected under the Free Speech Clause as secular private expression." The key word in this statement is private.

Further, the Court supported exercise of First Amendment rights in public schools in their decision in Tinker v. Des Moines,393 U.S. 503 (1969), "First Amendment rights, applied in light of the special characteristics of the school environment, are available to teachers and students. It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate."

Religion and religious teaching was common in public schools until the second half of the 20th century, when people began to challenge the practice of indoctrinating all students, regardless of their beliefs, into the school-sanctioned version of Christianity. Because not all Christians hold the same beliefs; not all people of faith are Christian; and not everyone believes in God or in organized religion, enforced religious teaching or prayer is considered coercion and a violation of those people's right to the free exercise of their religion (or lack thereof) without fear of persecution.

The Supreme Court also reconsidered the First Amendment Establishment Clause, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion," in light of the fact that the Constitution was deliberately constructed as a secular document, and decided the Framers did not intend for the government to involve itself in promoting any form of religion. If the state and federal government provide funding to public schools, and the schools engage in organized prayer, the school is promoting the establishment of religion as is, by extension, any body providing funding.

Note that this rule only applies to public schools, not to schools chartered and supported by religious organizations.

Amendment I

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

The Founding Fathers

Thomas Jefferson, primary author of the Declaration of Independence, a Founding Father, and third President of the United States, expressed the Framers' intent in the First Amendment in the following quotes:

Thomas Jefferson, Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom:

"...no citizen shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever..." and that to "compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of [religious] opinions which he disbelieves is sinful and tyrannical."

Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Baptists of Danbury Church, 1802:

"I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law 'respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between church and state."

James Madison, author of the First Amendment:

"[I]t is proper to take alarm at the first experiment on our liberties. . . . Who does not see that the same authority which can establish Christianity, in exclusion of all other Religions, may establish with the same ease any particular sect of Christians, in exclusion of all other Sects? That the same authority which can force a citizen to contribute three pence only of his property for the support of any one establishment may force him to conform to any other establishment in all cases whatsoever?"

For more information about the Supreme Court and school prayer, see Related Questions, below

Answer 3

Several cases have addressed the issue of organized prayer in public schools. The issue first arose in Engel v. Vitale,(1962), and has been refined by a number of subsequent cases.


Engel v. Vitale, 370 US 421 (1962)
By a vote of 6-1, held school-wide, non-denominational prayer at the start of the public school day violates the "Establishment of Religion" clause of the First Amendment (Justices White and Frankfurter took no part in the decision).

Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 US 203 (1963)
By of vote of 8-1, held that requiring public school students to participate in religious exercises in a public school violates the religious freedom of students as protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments, regardless of rule allowing parents to exempt students from participation on individual basis.

Chamberlin v. Dade County Board, 377 US 402 (1964)
In a per curiam decision, held that requiring devotional Bible reading, as required by state statute, and reciting prayers in Florida public schools is unconstitutional, per the precedent set in Abington v. Schempp, (1963). Per curiamdecisions are unsigned and can't be cited as precedent in future cases.

Wallace v. Jaffre, 472 US 38 (1985)
By a vote of 6-3, held an Alabama law allowing public school teachers to initiate prayer and teach religion in class was a violation of the First Amendment Establishment Clause. Ruling overturned Alabama law.

Lee v. Weisman, 505 US 577 (1992)
By a vote of 5-4, held allowing clergy to offer prayers at official public school functions is a violation of the First Amendment Establishment Clause.

Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe, 530 US 290 (2000)
By a vote of 6-3, held the Santa Fe's policy of allowing student-led, student-initiated prayer at football games violates the First Amendment Establishment Clause.


There are other cases that touch on various aspects of the practice of religion in public school.

For more information about the Supreme Court's position on prayer in the public schools, see Related Questions, below.

Answer 4

Because public schools are government actors, they are bound by the restrictions of the First Amendment regarding freedom of religion and religious expression. The United States Supreme Court has held that a public school (or public school official) may not require students to pray, even if the specific type of prayer is not specified by the school. On the other hand, the school may not stop a student from praying, provided that the student's prayer does not disrupt the educational process. For example, a student may certainly offer a silent prayer before beginning an exam, but may not pray out loud for divine intervention in the middle of the exam.

For more information about the Supreme Court's view on prayer in public schools, see Related Questions, below.