Illegal? And....

[kadee79]

Darn good thing I'm not a parent of any of those students.  They would NOT like me coming down on them with everything I could muster under the law!

Students at a West Virginia high school were set to walk out Wednesday morning after they were sent to an evangelical Christian revival assembly during school hours.



The walkout will happen during the homeroom period at Huntington High School. The protesting students said they were forced to attend an event held by the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes, according to the Associated Press. At the assembly, students heard a sermon by 25-year-old preacher Nik Walker of Nik Walker Ministries.



Under the Constitution's First Amendment, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion," often interpreted as separating church and state. This separation extends to public schools, which can legally hold religious activities if they are held within noninstructional hours. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes assembly was held during such hours, although student attendance at such events is normally voluntary.



During the assembly, students were encouraged to attend services at the nearby Christ Temple Church, where over 200 students were baptized. But some students said that one message heard during the event was that all nonbelievers would go to hell and that they needed to give their lives to God for salvation, according to the AP. Some students who expressed discomfort with the messaging were prohibited from leaving the sermon until it ended.

www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/students-walk-out-after-teachers-sent-them-to-christian-event-during-class/ar-AATEFQZ

[wvugurl26]

Had it been my high school, the administration would have been in need of saving itself from my stepmother. These things must be optional and outside of school hours.

I looked it up and it smacks of a mega church. They've got a multi week revival going on and there are classes for new members.

[Opti]

Wow. I actually was in FCA many years ago in HS. It never ever met during school hours. That's not cool. 

[haapai]

WTF?!  How does anyone who graduated from a US high school possibly think that this is okay?  There's this little thing called the first amendment.  It's part of the bill of rights. 

I had to put up with this nonsense when I was in fifth grade and in an international school outside of the US but there is no excuse for it still happening stateside within school hours, with attendance mandatory.  That is just so, so, no-no.