Tag: separation

WHEREAS the Rabbinical Assembly has consistently sought to uphold the separation of religion and state in the United States; and

WHEREAS prayers recited over public address systems at public school sporting events such as football games have been prohibited by law, most recently by the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the case of Doe vs. Santa Fe Independent School District: and

WHEREAS nothing prevents students and athletes form engaging in private, voluntary prayers for their respective groups either before, during or after their games; and

Background:
We, members of the Rabbinical Assembly, are heirs to traditions that ingrain in us an “aggressive attitude toward improving life,” exemplified in Pirkei Avot 2:20-1 “Rabbi Tarfon taught: The day is short, the task is great. You are not obliged to finish the task, but neither are you free to neglect it.”* Over the years the Rabbinical Assembly has adopted stances via resolutions passed at annual conventions on a wide variety of social issues.