Watering America’s Religious Roots: The Case for Religious Pluralism in American Public Schools

Abstract

The longest lasting and most intimate interaction with government for most Americans takes place in US public schools. The Court’s choice to enter into the national religious debate intensified the rhetoric and polarized many Americans into opponents and proponents of increasing religious instruction in public schools. This work narrates the positions of Christian Americanists, pluralists, and secularists in this debate. It argues that court-originated policy governing religion in schools is a failure. A return to Constitutional Pluralism would benefit all people in the United States.