A group of Florida public high school football players was baptized on their school grounds last month, sparking a debate over First Amendment rights to religion and separation of church and state.
Brevard Public Schools said the baptism took place July 18 at Astronaut High School in Titusville after an offseason football training session. Florida Today reportedTitusville is located just under an hour east of Orlando and a few miles west of the John F. Kennedy Space Center.
“I couldn’t be more proud that 25 young people have given their lives to Christ and the kingdom is growing. … The community is overjoyed with these young people and God is going to use it for good.”
video In one baptism scene, the player sits in a metal tank filled with water. A man tells the player that he is baptized “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The man then submerges the player’s head backwards into the water, then pulls the head out again, telling the player to “rise to new life.” The crowd around the tank applauds.
The caption of the Instagram post with the video said 25 players had been baptized. The post also garnered numerous comments, with one commenter wondering, “Why is religion invading our school? This is not a religious school…ugh I don’t like this,” while another declared, “Amazing. Praise God!”
Brevard Public Schools did not know about the baptism until Monday, Florida Today reported, citing district spokeswoman Janet Murnaghan.
“This event was not a school-sponsored activity,” Murnaghan said, “and it is my understanding that it was student-led.”
The caption for the post also read: brevard school board The baptism ceremony was held at the church of club president Megan Wright, and 25 players were baptized.
Wright did not respond to a request for comment, but Florida Today reported that she said on her personal Facebook page that she had “no involvement” in the baptism but that the moment was a happy one.
Megan WrightImage source: Brevard (FL) Board of Education website
“I couldn’t be more proud that 25 young people have given their lives to Christ and the kingdom is growing,” Wright wrote, according to the paper. “…The community is overjoyed with these young people! God is going to use it for good!”
Astronaut High School athletic director Matthew Earlstead declined to comment, Florida Today reported.
More from Florida Today:
Students, teachers and other staff at the school are permitted to engage in private religious expression within the school premises. According to the U.S. Department of EducationBut according to the U.S. Supreme Court, public school officials cannot lead activities such as prayer or religious services, nor can they persuade students to participate or not participate in religious activities.
Meanwhile, students can participate in religious activities with their peers and persuade other students to join as well.
Florida Law It is generally consistent with federal law and allows students to organize religious activities. School personnel may participate in student-initiated religious activities on school grounds, either before or after school hours, as long as the activities are voluntary and do not conflict with the responsibilities of school personnel. School districts are also required to provide religious organizations with the same access to facilities as they provide to secular organizations, without discrimination on the basis of the organization’s religion.
Anything else?
The July baptism was not the first time something like this had happened.
- When two student athletes were baptized on the football field of a Tennessee public high school in August 2019, “concerned local residents” contacted the Freedom From Religion Foundation, which responded by saying, letter It called on school districts to “cease to promote and encourage religion to students.”
- A few months ago, FFRF took issue with the release of a video that appeared to show “several football players” being baptized on the grounds of an Alabama public school.
- In September 2015, the FFRF won a lawsuit after a Georgia school district found that an event in which more than a dozen football players were baptized on public school grounds violated official policy.
(H/T: Out kick)
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