Our Schools Promote the "Zero Religion"

When I grew up, I was taught that our constitution prohibited any official religion in the USA. No religion was to be favored by government policy. Sadly, this is no longer the case. While we prohibit activities based on the Christian, Jewish, Moslem, Buddhist, Hindu and other organized religions in our schools, we have given full official support and aid to the "Zero Religion."

If one looks back in history we see societies that were hamstrung and limited in their development by lack of one simple piece of knowledge. Our Roman predecessors developed a civilization which was able to conquer and rule a large part of the world around the Mediterranean, their mare nostrum. Then progress was hampered and ultimately limited by an important factor, their number system. They did not realize there should be a number for nothing!

Around the tenth century, another competing number system began to be used, the Arabic system we now use. This had a tremendous advantage. It recognized that there should be something to represent nothing, the number zero! With this breakthrough, our modern number system was able to evolve. It was the keystone in the development of scientific knowledge and our ability to calculate. This leap forward in man's knowledge, the recognition that zero was something, set free man's mind in science and in many other areas. It helped trigger the Renaissance.

What has this to do with religion and our schools? Is it not true that if zero is a number, then no religion is really a form of religion? Is not atheism the "Zero Religion?" Should we not recognize that we are fostering in our schools and in our society this "Zero Religion" when we refuse to allow the mention of God or religious holidays in our classrooms? Are we not violating out Constitution when we promote the "Zero Religion?"

We live in a society where the rights of criminals are considered more important than the rights of victims. We live in a society where rights of individuals and minority groups are more important than their obligations to society. We ignore the rights of majority groups. Our School administrators claim their role is to educate, not celebrate. They forbid the mention of God or religious holidays, the saying of a prayer acceptable to all religious denominations, and Christmas or other religious decorations in the classroom. They forget that our morality is founded in our religious beliefs. Don't we, every day, hear or read about the results of "zero moral values" that have been taught because of the "Zero Religion?"

Are we not a society that is as badly hurt by these policies that fail to recognize the "Zero Religion" is a form of religion as the Romans were by their number system? Our founding forefathers, clearly forbidding government advocacy of any specific religion, did frequently mention God. They were wise enough to realize that we would survive only if we were "one nation under God." They would be horrified with the way their words are being interpreted. Our judicial system, through its decisions, is depriving us of rights to which we are entitled under the constitution. Our courts need to be reminded that the "Zero Religion" is a religion.

June 1994

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