Nancy Moore is one of the plaintiffs in the ACLU's court case to end prayer at high school graduation ceremonies. In this article, she outlines her reasons why.

The right to freedom of speech is a treasured liberty to most Americans, but it is not without its limitations. Healthy and lasting freedom of expression is possible only if people understand it, respect the freedom of others, and restrain some of their own wishes. This requires maturity, sensitivity to others, and an understanding of the law.

The adage, "The right of a person to swing his fist ends where his neighbor's nose begins" is a good metaphor. But knowing where our neighbor's nose begins is the problem. This is when we must rely on receiving input from two sources:

1. the people in general, including diverse minorities, and;
2. the law, so we can understand people's basic rights. Input is now being received regarding the prayer issue from both sources, and it is essential and valuable because it should help determine the best direction to go.

Prayer as an Act of Worship

In understanding our liberties we must make a distinction between Freedom of Speech, and an Act of Religious Worship. Prayer, according to definition, falls into the latter category, and in conformity with our civil laws, the practice should not have government endorsement in public schools. The Utah State Constitution, Article 1, Section 4 is very explicit regarding the separation of church and state:

There shall be no union of Church and State, nor shall any church dominate the Stare or interfere with its functions. No public money or property shall be approprated for or applied to any religious worship, exercise or instruction, or for the support of any ecclesiastical establishment.

Even from the Mormon theological point of view this separation is clear, for it states in the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 134, Verse 9:

We do not believe it is just to mingle religious influence with civil government, whereby one religious society is fostered and another proscribed in its spiritual privileges, and the individual rights of its members, as citizens, denied.

So we see that from both perspectives, civil and church laws are in agreement regarding the mingling of church and state. Therefore, state sanctioned denominational prayers given in a public setting are not a basic right because prayers are an act of worship and delivering them in a public school setting crosses over a delicate line into the personal space of others. It becomes an invasion of another's spiritual privacy because prayer imposes a particular viewpoint or religious belief on others, especially when the same religion delivers the prayers over extended periods of time.

We should be particularly careful with our children and youth when it comes to sectarian practices in the schools, because their vulnerable minds are so susceptible to inducement from those in authority over them, and they lack the maturity and savvy to understand when they are being imposed upon.

--Nancy Moore