A conservative Supreme Court passing right-wing laws, what freedoms will we lose next? We are nervously waiting.
After repealing Roe v. Wade, what devious judicial stunt will they come up with? Police peeking in our windows, citizens deputized to turn in their neighbors? It’s the Paranoid States of America.
The separation of church and state is being chopped away. School prayer is coming soon. Schools are probably buying up Bibles as we speak.
Right there’s the rub. Why does everyone assume that school prayer is Christian? Muslims, Jews and Buddhists like to pray too. They get equal time, it’s only fair.
But now we have Coach Pew of the Riverdale High football team. After every touchdown he gathers the team of the Riverdale Disciples on the 50 yard line and they all kneel down in prayer.
It stops the whole game. People in the stands cheer and boo. according to their political views. The cheerleaders start up, “Jesus, Jesus he’s our man, make a touchdown if you can!”
But wait, one of the team members is a Muslim, his turn to pray. After herding the Christians out of the coliseum, 20 Muslims file down onto the field, lay out their prayer rugs and start bowing to Mecca.
After that, the Riverdale right guard is a Buddhist, so 40 Buddhists line up at the end zone and get down in the Lotus position and meditate for 10 minutes.
The quarterback is a traditional Hawaiian so he chants a pule on the field.
One of the Disciples is Jewish so they get their big moment. A line of Jews comes out wearing yamakas. They place a 10-foot Menorah on the field and light each candle one by one, and then recite the Old Testament.
By this time everyone in the stands is throwing popcorn or heading to their cars.
But they’ll miss the best show of all, the Hindus. The half-back of the Disciples is a Hindu so a crowd of Hare Krishnas in saffron robes comes dancing onto the field waving tambourines and chanting, “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna!”
At this point the referees stop the game. Christians grab their Bibles, Muslims roll up their prayer rugs and everyone goes home.
The next day school starts with a Christian prayer, then a Buddhist chant, and more. African Americans discuss Kwanzaa, Hawaiians talk story and The Jews kvetch for 5 minutes.
After school prayers there is only 3 minutes left in class. No time for education so they all run out the door.
Maybe they should skip the prayers and go to school to learn something.
I pray they will never have school prayer.
Dennis Gregory writes a bi-monthly column for West Hawaii Today and welcomes your comments at makewavess@yahoo.com
