Irish atheist student says school forced him to attend prayer meeting

Sionnachfionn, thanks for your kind input. Even though my own forefather on my mother's Quinn side came to America in the 1820's because he had to leave having married a protestant (not sure if that meant that he also became a protestant), I still have an affection for the Irish, and Phaenius, the supposed pagan who invented the Aleph Beth for the language of the people of Canaan he ruled, was one of my supposed protoPhoenician ancestors and that of many of the Irish. I am Baptist, and my folk have been th victim of religious discrimination by Catholic and Protestant alike, but it was an English Baptist by the name of Leonard Busher having to leave England from time to time because of the Anglican persecutions of dissidents wrote a book pleading with King James to bring in LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE and FREEDOM OF THE PRESS for all sides to write or dispute without being sanctioned, even, in his words, "the Papists, for why should we learn (sic) the Turks to persecute those because of religion or names?" When Catholics came to America, and were very reluctantly accepted because of memory of persecution, they caught on to the concept of Liberty of Conscience and soon found they could prosper as well under this system, so that except for other reasons dealing with personal choices, our American Catholics are the best in the world, even being as zealous of our Protestant and Baptist pressed Liberties as the other non-Catholics...to which I offer the handshake of a fellow citizen. It is tough to see some of them recently being overcome by the socialism from Europe creeping into our institutions today.

Christians and even Muslims will adapt to a multi-faith, secular world sooner or later. All that's left is the shouting. Some of you no doubt consider this young man to be pushy or arrogant and should just "go along" with the majority, but the principle of non-coercion in matters of faith, religion or personal philosophy that this school principal would like to ignore is not going away, not now and not in the future.

Sometimes we all have to do thing we don't want to. In the grand realm of things, you get on with it. I don't go to church, but I go to christenings,weddings and funerals in church. I have never thought it important enough to stand on principle on such occasions. Pick your battles!

As a young recruit in the Irish Army in the late 1970s, everyone was mustered for church parade n holy days of obligation regardless of religious persuasion. Given that most churches in most military barracks around the Irish state were Roman Catholic, the few Protestants in the Army were obliged to attend. I personally witnessed this happen.

Phaenius, 90% of the schools in Ireland are run by the Catholic Church and funded fully by the taxpayer. They are the equivalent of your state schools. The other 10% are non-denominational schools and these exist mostly in Dublin. There are no secular schools in Ireland. Most parents in rural areas do not have a choice about where to send their children, but in accordance with our constitution, DO have a right to ensure their children are not indoctrinated with religion if they so choose. Perhaps people might be a little more sympathetic to the cause if Nathan was a Catholic but the only school in the area was a state funded Islamic school? Imagine having the wrong god forced upon you. Marint, calling atheism a religion is like calling not playing football a sport. If reality based education over faith based education seems illogical to you, then send your children to a church to learn and save the space in the school for the children who want facts as a basis for their knowledge. Save religion for where it belongs...the church.

Commanding a young person to kneel down and pray is likely the most effective way to produce an atheist.

Inter-denominational prayer meetings are garbage....there is one true religiion, Catholicism, and to ask our children to prayer with other groups is wrong... that being said, I would not force an atheist to pray at all as long as it is o.k. with his parents...of course, if this school is a Catholic school as we have in America, they are free to throw his ass out if he doesn't comport himself as a good young Catholic......

I don't have "faith" in his claim. I am atheistic about this charge.

OPPS - I guess god did not proof read my prior note. I made a slight typo. "Just recall, the 14 yr old in Pakistan who was shot because she wanted religion." The word "Religion" should have been EDUCATION. But, as they who wounded her must have felt - education makes one realize that religion is merely a foolish lie, and they felt they needed to stop her from becoming aware of the stupidity caused by those foolish beliefs.

jamthecat you explained it exactly as it is. Religion is the major cause of violence and inequality across the world throughout history. The whole culture of our ancestry is a result of the 'religious' fervor from the nation just east our homeland and is the reason for the violence of the north. Even those who write in disagreement over the issue are only able to do that because religion is not the major control of Western culture. Just ask any Internet/Chatroom user in Saudi Arabia about sending forth messages to one and all? wonder if any of those people who disagree are female? If so, they could be severely injured aka maimed for 'talking' to unrelated men. Just recall, the 14 yr old in Pakistan who was shot because she wanted religion. HUMMM, they needed to stop the degeneracy that would happen and does not follow their belief in their religion of women being held very subservent to men. Whether the bible (Holocaust), kojiki (Pearl Harbor), or koran (9/11) is considered thrush, those 'outside' are faced usually with discrimination and often violence. AMEN

He and his family should go back to the british terror state - the source of the modern materialist degeneracy he worships.

I am not familiar with the Irish school systems, but if this in not a government school, the kid has no say...he should indeed go to the school system that supports his belief...many times this is regretably a public school system. The biggest state/religion scandel there is in America is government usurpation in the people's responsibility to educate their own children on their own dime or through support of private societies or charity and this is basically government entanglement in religion. However I am not entirely aware of the level of slavery or rescue Ireland is concerning the understood general tendency of socialism in Europe. Though I have given the correct concept concerning government and education I can barely say a thing when our OWN socialist government run schools exist in America. Public Education, having abandoned the original concept of teaching the children the true Biblical basis for their government, has become a failed experiment...and I understood while education was encouraged, the original government founded after 1776 did not have a government public school system.

I notice that the few folk who agree with this unfortunate boy and his religion hating Dad, are all for teaching the religion of Atheism !!! They want us all to run on "logic"!! Whose logic I wonder??

The Principal of the school should kick the little prat out ,and let him seek out an organisation which allows him to dictate to his superiors !The arrogance of this git is unbelieveable ,everybody else to subjugate themselves to his agenda !

All that religious mumbo jumbo been foisted on the clear thinking minority atheist. If you need a religion to to teach you the bleeding obvious of love and respect you have a problem.