The Three Theologies of Murray v. Curlett: Atheism, Constitutionalism, and Christianity in American Postwar Culture
Murray v. Curlett, decided in conjunction with School District of Abington Township v. Schempp, removed the Lord’s Prayer and Bible reading from public schools in 1963. The prevailing national discourse that emerged during the following school year represented a relatively united organization agains...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2024
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| In: |
Journal of religion & society. Supplement
Year: 2024, Volume: 25, Pages: 5-24 |
| Further subjects: | B
Atheism
B Education B Race B Supreme Court B Communism B Madalyn Murray |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | Murray v. Curlett, decided in conjunction with School District of Abington Township v. Schempp, removed the Lord’s Prayer and Bible reading from public schools in 1963. The prevailing national discourse that emerged during the following school year represented a relatively united organization against the ruling, based primarily on moral, rather than legal, grounds. The Supreme Court’s verdict became a target of public outrage, the narrative opposing the Court’s Murray decision creating its own theology, one that tied religious faith to a civic and patriotic idealism disconnected from the teachings of the leader in whose name they so often prayed. In the process, pundits posed American constitutionalism as its own form of theological dogma, one with similar flawed readings of the text upon which the improvised faith tradition was based. Those dogmas were posed against atheism, presented as its own theology, one that also came incumbent with a secular governmental corollary in the form of communism. The battle between atheism, constitutionalism, and Christianity would shape the narrative that would continue to influence public opinion and policy through the rest of the century. |
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| ISSN: | 1941-8450 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of religion & society. Supplement
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