"Student's 'Jesus' shirt sparks feud with school"

[Sunstone]

Glad that's settled. Now we can move on to the War on Christmas. Or is it too early yet?

 

[tempter]

"A Christian student suspended from a high school in Nova Scotia for sporting a T-shirt with the slogan "Life is wasted without Jesus" vows to wear it when he returns to class next week.
So, what do you think? To me it looks too much like proselytizing, and should be stopped.​

I would like to see other Tshirts saying "life with Jesus is wasted" personally. If Christians are OK with him wearing the pro Jesus shirt, they should be OK with the anti Jesus shirt. But we all know they won't be.​

 

[CynthiaCypher]

I think this kid will probably not have a date for the prom. He is reacting. it's obvious he wants attention

 

[Falvlun]

It can be more than just self-esteem though. We are talking about kids who often don't think the most clearly. I know I didn't in high school. It is a shirt that can offend and upset others. Just like any other form of bullying, it has the very real potential of starting a fight, or at the least, distracting others from their school work.

If a kid starts a fight b/c of the t-shirt, then he needs to learn how to appropriately handle becoming offended, and yes, I think that is a part of the educational process.

As for distracting, it's far less distracting than 50 billion other things happening in your average highschool. Kids are going to be distracted by leaves blowing by windows too.

School is not the place to make statements like this kid is making. School is hardly the place to really make any political or religious statements at all. It is a learning institution, and such political and religious statements are just a distraction. Especially when they are narrow-minded, and intolerant.

I disagree. Schools are just as much about social education as academic. And personally, I wouldn't mind kids being more cognizant of religious and political realities in the "real world". I'd seriously prefer a discussion about religion than one about Snooki or the other inane, gross-out things I heard while playing frisbee with my highschooler cousin and his friends today.

 

[Me Myself]

I personally believe he has every right to use the t-shirt, but I can understand the gray area.

 

[Me Myself]

I would like to see other Tshirts saying "life with Jesus is wasted" personally. If Christians are OK with him wearing the pro Jesus shirt, they should be OK with the anti Jesus shirt. But we all know they won't be.

I agree with this 100%.

I said he has a right to use that t-shirt, but I also believe "Life with Jesus is wasted" has the same right.

That said, I would guess (and it´s just a guess) that the guy with an anti christian t shirt would suffer serious bullying troubles even if the school itself let him be.

 

[fallingblood]

If a kid starts a fight b/c of the t-shirt, then he needs to learn how to appropriately handle becoming offended, and yes, I think that is a part of the educational process.

As for distracting, it's far less distracting than 50 billion other things happening in your average highschool. Kids are going to be distracted by leaves blowing by windows too.

I agree that kids have a lot of distractions in school. However, that is no reason to allow additional distractions, especially ones that can hit serious nerves. Students are still developing emotionally, they are stressed out about other things in life, and many are dealing with issues of self-worth. They don't need some intolerant student coming to school and spreading the idea that they are worthless if they are "others."

It isn't teaching them how to properly handle being offended.

I disagree. Schools are just as much about social education as academic. And personally, I wouldn't mind kids being more cognizant of religious and political realities in the "real world". I'd seriously prefer a discussion about religion than one about Snooki or the other inane, gross-out things I heard while playing frisbee with my highschooler cousin and his friends today.

I agree that a level of social education is needed. However, I don't think we should allow the blind to lead the blind. This kid is proselytizing, or what I would deem close enough. It is the same basic tactic that many evangelical Christians use in order to "witness" to others. I don't think that belongs in school. Especially not when it becomes offensive, and borders on bullying.

Bullying is a major problem in school. It should be something that has no place in school. A message such as the one that this student is promoting, really is a form of bullying. He's stating that other's lives are worthless. Now, if, while in high school, I went up to someone and stated that their life was worthless unless they believed like I did, that would either be proselytizing, or bullying. Neither one belongs in school.

Now, I wouldn't mind if students were more aware of political and religious ideal in the real world, but generally, unless they are taught otherwise (and religion and modern politics generally are not taught in many schools), the conversations are inane. And much of this has to do with them simply not having studied religion nor modern politics, and instead repeating nonsense that they either got off of crummy websites, or the like. There are obviously exceptions, but from my experience, students are severely lacking in those two departments.

 

[waitasec]

Suppose they'd allow . . . .

?
​

why wouldn't they?

 

[tempter]

I agree with this 100%.

I said he has a right to use that t-shirt, but I also believe "Life with Jesus is wasted" has the same right.

That said, I would guess (and it´s just a guess) that the guy with an anti christian t shirt would suffer serious bullying troubles even if the school itself let him be.

Most likely

 

[Vinayaka]

Tomorrow could be an interesting day. Glad I'm not a teacher in that school.

 

[Songbird]

Tough call, but I'm going to side with the principal and teachers on this one. If they deem the T-shirt disruptive, then making those calls is their job.

Agreed. My sentiments are the same here as in the recent thread where a student was forbidden from wearing a shirt stating a stance on homosexuality (I forgot what it said exactly). This isn't about rights or freedom of speech. School is a place to learn, and disruptions should be minimized.

After years of working on daily homework and projects with my kids, I can say I care more about them getting an education than about them being able to wear controversial slogans. If they whine about it, I'll put em in private school and make em wear uniforms! It's a tough economy, kid, study yer damn math!

 

[Me Myself]

I would go with a "Life without spagethi monster is wasted" t-shirt if he was determined with the Jesus one.

 

[Oryonder]

Besides being a Christian I'm also a red blooded American. You're damn right I would tell my Christian brethren to suck it up in the name of freedom. I look at this debate similar to the one regarding flag burning. As sickening as such an action is, making it illegal would profane "Old Glory" far more

Freedom of speech does not extend to a high school environment. The kids can not say anything they like to a teacher the way you can in safeway. Obviously if students were allowed to speak up and say anything they wanted anytime they wanted it would disrupt the process of learning.

If the parents or pastor wants the lad to be able to express himself at all times then he should try home-schooling.

I certainly do not want my 9 yr old daughter exposed to profane things such as "a life is wasted without alcohol and anal sex" .. or " beastiality is best" ..during regular attenence at school. This is not appropriate for a high school environment where discipline needs be enforced.

As I would be offended by my daughter seeing these things .. I will also concede that folks who find religion offensive should not have their children subjected to it.

Just as I do not want my 9 yr old daughter coming home and asking me what anal sex and bestiality is .. there are many that do not want their 9 yr old daughter comming home and asking them "is my life really wasted without Jesus" ?

 

[Songbird]

It's silly that this kind of thing makes the news. Every year there's something about how some kid was suspended or prohibited from wearing a shirt with something provocative on it. If it distracts from the purpose of school, then schools have the right to not allow it. Sometimes things are allowed, sometimes the same things are not, based on how much disruption it caused.

Whether a minor has the "right" to wear it is completely beside the point. Minors have so few rights that focusing on this one is ridiculous. Most schools don't allow kids to choose junk food for lunch, wear hats, or swear. And getting a quality education is crucial. It's not the side dish to learning how to speak your views. It's the MAIN goal. Since everyone's whining about Americans' test scores, I'm very surprised anyone cares about an issue which saps attention from education. (Although this isn't an American case, much of the debate is from Americans.)

And maybe it's because after volunteering in my kids' schools I've got little compassion for people prioritizing their views over their education in an educational setting. I don't mind reiterating how crucial quality education is. I want my kids performing well on math, science, and literature scores. They can voice their views on sexuality and religion and anything they want in ways that don't detract from that.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

I think self-esteem of kids is more reliant upon the fact that their clothes are from K-mart and the cool kids wear Abercrombie, or that they are wearing sneakers from last year, or that they didn't make the Cheerleading squad, or they are too nerdy, or not smart enough, or they have no friends, or the other kids are spreading rumors about them, or they are fat, etc.

I really have my doubts that a t-shirt expressing the wearer's belief that Jesus is necessary for a meaningful life would actually make kids who didn't believe that Christianity were true to suddenly think that their lives were worthless. From a teenagers' perspective, they have much more important things to worry about.

A start of the year assembly about the fact that different people believe different things and that's okay (among acceptance about other differences) probably would be more useful than sheltering teenagers from things they probably have read on billboards anyway, and has the added bonus of not restricting freedom of speech.

I don't think it's so much a matter of making other kids unhappy about not having Jesus; I see a danger in deliberately setting up any in-group/out-group dynamic in a school. Whether the other kids believe the shirt or not, I think the implicit message that it communicates to non-Christians is "I consider you outsiders." That's why I don't think it's appropriate.

 

[HerDotness]

I don't think it's so much a matter of making other kids unhappy about not having Jesus;...

I must say you have a peculiar interpretation of "Life without Jesus is wasted" if you don't think that says something quite ugly about non-Christians.

 

[Gomeza]

I must say you have a peculiar interpretation of "Life without Jesus is wasted" if you don't think that says something quite ugly about non-Christians.

My take on the message itself is that it is just another example of smug condescension towards anyone not buying into a specific set of religious constructs. Effectively implying that anyone not a member of a Jesus fan club is wasting their lives. Excuse me for referring to these types of obscure Christian sects, as a "Jesus fan club" but I cannot think of a better way to describe it.

 

[blackout]

The problem is, schools can use the "it's a disruption" excuse for anything they want,
even if the thing REALLY is not a disruption at all.

In some cases this can infringe on a student's BASIC rights
even outside of school.

I really am thankful to be raising my kids in a liberal area,
where people aren't quite so easily 'disrupted'.

 

[Vinayaka]

My take on the message itself is that it is just another example of smug condescension towards anyone not buying into a specific set of religious constructs. Effectively implying that anyone not a member of a Jesus fan club is wasting their lives. Excuse me for referring to these types of obscure Christian sects, as a "Jesus fan club" but I cannot think of a better way to describe it.

In some schools, these 'Jesus fan clubs' get downright annoying for the others, marching in the hallways, making sure everyone prays to Jesus before athletic contests, and more. If its a private Christian school, fine. But in a publicly funded school that my taxes support, it shouldn't be there at all. Take it to over the church for an after school private club.

 

[Gomeza]

In some schools, these 'Jesus fan clubs' get downright annoying for the others, marching in the hallways, making sure everyone prays to Jesus before athletic contests, and more. If its a private Christian school, fine. But in a publicly funded school that my taxes support, it shouldn't be there at all. Take it to over the church for an after school private club.

Those are my sentiments as well. One thing I could add from being familiar with the area where this took place is that truly considering the beliefs of others and the rights of others to those beliefs is not in any measurable way on the public radar. This is Canadian hillbilly country where racial prejudices and ongoing social pressures calling for religious conformity are still alive and well.

Persons born in this area have 2 choices to have any kind of future in life: fish (for lobster) or move. Anyone who does not move from the area is faced with a society firmly entrenched in a religious mindset of intolerance that is a distinct throwback to the past. Most defiant demonstrations of this nature are rooted to some degree in this longstanding religious intolerance.