Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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r" \c>v~ ' i?^4 I use 1 r\ _ M ^ f Flannel tsoxeia ^ |. $9" . ^ I use ^Sj t I Tri-fold Wallet J | $9.99 \g Cm J' } -? * vy f Chrome f1 Ball Pen PZ | with free IV refill i $10.99 P----? -> \ DON'T D " X j cm i ^ $2.00 off ^ ! Children's | ^ Clothing J * i \ ^ r < X I \ ' ^ Vfc,9 -w r $1 o.oo off 7 Jackets / Steeled styles) I \ I gswk \ I ! Special ^ 1 Purchase Christmas j \ Cards in Decorative j \ Tin only )f $7.99 j il MM ' fmmm mmm All Brunes j i| of Boston j ' 3 Picture Frames I I $7.99 j Jt-.-.-. ) i ^o-ooo^y r? / i ren ; & Pencil Sets i i DRIVE Understanc to reconci IS ? religion, ? From staff reports ( Years ago, school districts ? began renaming their holiday 1 breaks to avoid potential con- r troversies: Christmas break ? is now winter break; Easter I break is now spring break. t Nonetheless, during 1 December, schools deck their halls and adorn their wall s signs that Christmas is com- i ing. From wreaths to trees to c Santa Claus costumes, there t is abundant evidence of the i waives a uncut uumieuiiuii 1 between secular decoration at t school and the deeper Christ- I ian meaning of Christmas, Pigford said that's OK 1 "Some can move from the c spirit of Christmas to the g image of Christ, but that is c the jump students must s make, as opposed to the c school making it for him," she g said. i Ginsberg teaches courses c involving the legal aspects of ? approaching (Jhristams holi- i day. " How do public schools han- ? die the apparent inconsistan- T cy? Where do they draw the t line between advocating reli- r gious observances and pre- ^ venting it? r Common sense and respect for others should take prece- ( dence over emotion and zeal- , ousness in matters where r church and state collide, say y two USC authorities on the , subject. ^ Aretha Pigford and Rick Ginsberg, professors in USC's ^ department of educational leadership and policies, agree that celebrations are welcome as long as they do not become sermons. j "You will find many classrooms still have Christmas c decortions,"said Pigford, who has served as associate ? superentindent of elementary schools for Richland District 1 1. "The difference is that they 1 are secular decorations. They ? tend to celebrate the Christ- I mas spirit, which can include * qualities such as love, kind- 1 ness and generosity, without including images of Christ." 1 As for the student who * 1 ~ J: i. i.-__ \ ling vital ling :hool iducation, including churchstate relations as they pernin fn fViP niihlir srhnnls rhe courts, he said, are constantly striving to find a comiromise between constitu;ional stipulations and luman nature. "The courts have had to itike a fine balance between naintaining separations of :hurch and state on one hand ind, on the other hand, keepng in mind that we are a eligious people," he said. * Generally, the courts allow schools to do things that are eligious but don't allow them ,o proselytize. This is the lotion that government is diking religon out of schools. rhat's nonsense." "As an example of accomolations," he said. "We don't illow people to read the Bible is part of a religious exercise, >ut we can read it as part of m historical or cultural exer:ise." As a teacher in New York Uity, Pigford has been nvolved closely with much nore difficult'situations, ones hat have reached confrontaional stages. She maintains, lowever, that open communi:ation can serve to eliminate nost potential controversaries. ?11.. 1? U Ajryiuanjr, peupie aieu 1/ su nflexible that they can't each some compromise," she laid. "If a parent has a com- (. )laint, the principal will lisen; rarely does it have to be in either-or situation. "Having open, honest comnunication typically will tllow you to solve problems. Nhen you can't have that, hat is when you have the >roblem." Some large school districts lave attempted to accomolate, rather than ban altogether, religious observances * >f all kind, Pigford said. The ichool puts itself in a precari >us position when it does so, ;he said, but it is merely a eaction to the desire by stuients and parents to have a religious flavor" present.