West Virginia Middle School Instructs Children To Write Out Their
Submission To Allah, by Robert Spencer, 5/18/18,
Then when administrators are confronted, they claim it was
all just an educational exercise, not proselytizing.
We
see this again and again: schoolchildren have to make the Islamic profession of
faith or affirm Islam as fact, in public schools.
Then
when administrators are confronted, they claim it was all just an educational
exercise, not proselytizing.
But
we never, ever see Judaism or Christianity or Hinduism or Buddhism taught as
fact in public schools, or schoolchildren being forced to make professions of
faith in those religions.
For
some reason, this form of educational exercise is only ever used regarding
Islam. Now, why is that?
“Christian
Parent Furious After School Instructs Children To Write Out Their Submission To
Allah,” by Joshua Gill, Daily Caller News Foundation,
May 17, 2018 (thanks to the Geller Report):
A West Virginia school has come under
fire for instructing junior high students to write the Islamic profession of
faith ostensibly to practice calligraphy.
Rich Penkoski, a Christian parent and
founder of online ministry Warriors for Christ,
raised alarms over a packet on Islam his daughter’s seventh grade social
studies teacher issued to students, according to Christian Post.
The packet, edited from the full version of a world religions workbook, instructed students to practice
writing the Shahada, or Islamic profession of faith, in Arabic calligraphy — an
assignment that, if left undone, would result in detention, according to
Penkoski’s daughter.
The Shahada states: “There is no god but
Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
[Shahada Calligraphy assignment from ‘Exploring World
Beliefs: Islam’ (Screenshot/Teacher Created Resources)
Penkoski called Mountain Ridge Middle School Principal Ron
Branch and objected to the packet, saying it disturbed him and had
misinformation about the history of calligraphy
“I saw the assignment of writing the Shahada in Arabic.
Their excuse was calligraphy,” Penkoski told The Christian Post. “I was like,
‘Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!’ First of all, calligraphy was invented in China 3,000 years
prior to Muhammad. The fact that they were trying to get my daughter to write
that disturbed me.”“I said, ‘That is not happening. My daughter is not doing
that.’ My daughter told me that if she didn’t do the assignment, then she was
going to get a [detention] slip,”
Penkoski added….There were two different calligraphy
assignments — one involving the Shahada and another instructing students to
practice writing English letters in calligraphy, Branch told Christian Post.
Hinson “told the students that they could do these activities if they wanted,”
Branch claimed.“The teacher has told her class several
times that this is a study of world religions and that she is not trying to
advocate for any religion over another. She has told her class that if they had
questions about religious beliefs, that those conversations should take place
with their parents,” Branch added.Penkoski claimed the teacher sent students
home with the same packet the day after he lodged a complaint — this time, with
certain sections crossed out but still including the Shahada assignment.
Penkoksi called the principal again and confronted Hinson over the phone.“I
said, ‘This is not OK in asking my kid to write down the Shahada.’ The teacher
happened to walk-in and said she made it an option and that the kids didn’t
have to do it. My daughter conflicted that story and said, ‘No, that is not
what was said.’ What was said was, ‘Do the assignment; and if you want to learn
more about the Quran, ask your parents,’”
Penkoski told Christian Post.Each religion studied in the
class, including Christianity and Judaism, received “equitable treatment,”
Branch also told Christian Post. He said the class spent a week and a half on
Christianity and Judaism — other religions took one week — and discussed each
religion’s beliefs, history and practices.
During the section on Christianity, “Jesus was taught,”
Branch claimed. “The students read the chapter in our textbook that
discusses Christianity’s belief that Jesus is the Son of God, and salvation.
They also discussed the Sermon on the Mount, the Last Supper and Jesus’
Betrayal, the Trinity, and the Lord’s Prayer, among other topics,”
Branch said. Penkoski and his daughter, Brielle, contested
Branch’s claims. The Lord’s Prayer was not taught, and very little time was
spent teaching about Jesus, they told Christian Post. “We did [the unit on
Christianity] over a week and two days. We watched two different videos. We
didn’t finish them. They taught a little bit about Moses and the Ten Commandments,
Peter and Paul,” Brielle explained. “We learned about the Israelites and how
they are being persecuted by the Romans. We were told about the Jews and told a
little bit about Jesus.”Penkoski also shared with Christian Post the packets on
Christianity and Judaism passed out in class and allegedly modified from the
original full version.
While the packet on Islam contained verses from the Koran,
the packets for those religions did not contain scripture and did not encourage
students to write prayers or faith statements, he said.“Notice no Bible verses,
no reciting the Ten Commandments or the Lord’s Prayer,” he said.“[There’s] no
practicing writing in Hebrew as compared to the Islamic packet,” he added….
Article posted with permission from Robert Spencer
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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