What Would the Prayer Amendment Permit?
The text of the proposed federal amendment (as of January, 1995) reads: “Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to prohibit individual or group prayer in public schools or other public institutions. No person shall be required by the United States or by any State to participate in prayer. Neither the United States or any State shall compose the words of any prayer to be said in public schools.” Since the right to “individual prayer” already exists, the real motive is to instill “group prayer.” No wording in this amendment would prevent the government from selecting the prayer, or the particular version of the bible it should be taken from. Nothing restricts prayers to “nondenominational” or “nonsectarian” (not that such a restriction would make it acceptable). Nothing would prevent a school from selecting the Lord’s Prayer or other prayers to Jesus, and blasting it over the intercom. For that matter, nothing would prevent the school from sponsoring prayers to Allah or Zoroaste
