HE IS HERE

As a school principal and a father of a six year old, I was hit pretty hard by the recent events of the school shooting in Connecticut last week.   There has been no shortage of media coverage, nor has there been a shortage of opinions on why this happened.  It seems that everything is now on the table, gun control, mental health care, and religion.  However, there is one theory that continues to frustrate  and amaze me.  Why is it that people think that our public schools are vast spaces void of spirituality, a place where God is not welcomed, and a place where not even the most powerful of powerful dares shows his presence?

I have been involved in public education for almost 20 years as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and currently a principal.  In all that time I never, not once, considered my place of work as a Godless pit of damnation, where evil was just waiting to raise its ugly head unabated by a higher force.  Now granted, the last 25 years have seen a move away from days where religion was blatantly expressed regardless of whether the student or their parents wanted it directed at them.  Gone are the days when posters of the Ten Commandments adorn the halls. Gone are the days of  prayer being lead by the principal over the intercom, and verses from the Bible being taught daily.  I will be the first to agree that all of those things can certainly enhance ones spirituality.  However, does the absence of a 2 x 4 foot poster with Moses’s face on it or a quick 20 second prayer given by the administration really mean that God has left the building?  Are some people’s faith so weak that they can only see Jesus in a poster, can only hear the words of Christ on the daily announcements,  that the word of God can only be found in daily scripture readings?  Furthermore, do they think that the very God that created the Earth, brought about a great flood, gave his son the power to heal the sick and raise the dead is not mighty enough to make his presence felt at any location he so deems.  Do these people really think that we Christian educators check our spirituality at the door?

No sir, God is more than present in our public schools.  I would argue that at the same time the public schools are respecting the individual beliefs of all of our children and protecting the first amendment rights of our families that we serve, God is working in more ways than people realize.  I don’t need a poster to see him at work.  I see him in our 6th grade math teacher, Bill Monty, every day as he arrives before 7:00 a.m. to tutor our students who need additional support.  I see him in the eyes of another teacher, Sherry Eckhardt, who invites a group of students to her house every Sunday evening to show them how to be “in this world” instead of being “of this world” as Christian leaders among their peers. I see the hands of God in another teacher, Amy Patterson, when she hugs those kids who just need a little extra loving on those bad days that teens often have.

No Sir, God is present in our public schools.  I hear his voice in the Christmas songs that our choir sings during their Winter concert.  Sure,Silent Night sung by forty 6th grade boys isn’t the most holy of sounds, but God can be heard in those squeaky little voices if you listen close enough.  I hear his voice in the words of our counselor, Byron Sparkman, as he deals with a child who is struggling with issues at home.  I hear his voice in my own office as I sit with students and hear the stories of divorce, death of a family member, or financial hardships that often time accompany these kids as they enter into our building. You won’t hear a daily prayer to him over the intercom, but if you just open your ears a little, you might find his voice so loud that it is deafening at times.

Don’t tell me I work in a place void of belief, spirituality  and holiness.  Don’t tell me my cohorts and I have shut God out of our building.  God is here, and I have to believe he is not threatened by the other beliefs that are accepted within our walls.  For God needs no support from any form of government in order for him to be seen or heard.

Yes Sir, he is here indeed!  And I have no doubt that he was present at Sandy Hook Elementary School on that terrible day.