En France, dans les écoles publiques, les signes religieux ne sont pas acceptés (ex: le port du foulard islamique en cours est interdit) et j'aimerais savoir si vous avez comme nous , une loi qui interdit de montrer à l'école tout signe d'appartenance à une quelconque religion.

Generally, it is forbidden for a public school to teach religious beliefs in a persuasive manner. For example, a teacher cannot say that any one religion is right or wrong. Students are allowed to wear crosses, stars of David, or other signs of their religion, but are not permitted to forcetheir beliefs on others. The rules are much more flexible in private high schools. For example, a private Catholic high school might include a prayer as part of their morning announcements. I have never attended private school, so I'm not exactly sure of all the rules and regulations there.

dans les ecoles privées catholiques Françaises , une heure est consacrée al'enseignement de la religion mais elle n'est pas forcément obligatoire

Do you think it is wrong that people are not allowed to wear their religion?

I see no problem with people wearing religious symbols, it doesn't affect me in any way.

Would you be offended if someone brought up their religious beliefs in a class about philosophy? literature? politics? science? If the context of the comment is more important than the comment itself, what does that say about the assumptions that people made when responding to this situation?

American students were more likely to have a positive/negative opinion of the person than French students who were more likely to say that they are neutral or would respect the person. Does this mean that American schools have a more religiously charged atmosphere? What role does religion play in French schools? Do you talk about it?

-Alex

Au départ, je pense que les signes distinctifs de religion ont été interdit à l'école pour éviter les conflits et pour mettre une limite entre la vie privée et la vie d'étudiant et de citoyen français!Ca ne me dérange absolument pas qu'un étudiant parle sa religion, c'est même très interressant!!Mais je pense que le contexte doit s'y prêter, que la personne ne doit pas parler de religion en cours à tort et à travers!!!

En ce qui concerne les signes distinctifs ce n'est pas que ça me dérange mais c'est vrai que quand je vois une fille porter le voile en cours, ça me surprends toujours!!(le voile est interdit au lycée, collège et école primaire mais pas à l'université)

The US Constitution states:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof"

Therefore, a law that prohibits religious symbols on a person in school or anywhere for that matter would be considered unconstitutional. Such a law would be prohibiting the free exercise of religion. This one line has been interpreted to require a strict line between the church and the state. In the rare instances where religious symbols are allowed to be displayed by the state, they must be accompanied by symbols of other religions and have some historical or educational context. However, the citizens who use those public services, be it a school, a courthouse, or a post office, are free to be "religious" in whatever manner they wish - that is, as long as it does not interfere with the rights of others (an important point).

(an interesting note of irony, the US Congress opens every session with a prayer to God)

In France, I understand the rights concerning religion to provide a freedom "from" religion, instead of the American ideal, freedom "of" religion. In general, these two words (of and from) both translate to "de." But it seems to me that the French idea implies that latter. Am I correct in this analysis? Is it true that the French are more likely to protect religion by prohibiting it in all forms in public places rather than the American approach of not letting the state interfere at all?

In France, is there any contention between those who believe firmly in evolution and those who believe a greater power created humanity?

In the US, this is a hot-spot of debate. There are certain groups who are (successfully in some cases) pushing for intelligent design to be taught along with evolution. In one school system in my home state, the local school board mandated that all biology books be branded with a sticker that said "Evolution is just a theory." Opponents of these efforts call it state-sponsored religion. Proponent insist that the majority of people believe in intelligent design and there's no proof against it.

What do the French think of such ideas?

Je n'ai parlé de créationisme et d'évolutionisme qu'en cours d'anglais. Ce n'est pas un débat qui peut avoir autant d'importance qu'aux Etats-Unis. C'est une question propre à ce pays et pour moi elle n'a pas vraiment d'importance. Je pense que nous ne connaissons pas assez de choses sur ces théories.

Je pense que les Français et les Européens en général sont plus cartésiens. Nous croyons beaucoup en la science. Cependant, j'aimerais bien que tu nous en dise plus sur ce phénomème car je n'avais jamais entendu parler de ça avant.

merci,

François

En France, on a séparé l'Eglise et l'Etat depuis un bon bout de temps et ce n'est pas plus mal. Il ne faut pas oublier que beaucoup de guerres ont eu lieu et ont malheureusement encore lieu à cause de la religion. C'est pourquoi la France est un Etat laïque: les signes ostentatoires de croyance religieuse sont prohibés. C'est un bon choix et je pense qu'on ne peut pas revenir sur cela.

Aux Etats Unis, vous êtes très impliqués dans la religion ( In God we trust par exemple sur le $). Y-a-t'il des problèmes dûs à la religion?

Par ailleurs, l'impression de "In God we trust " sur le dollar ne vous choque-t-elle pas? Le christianisme est une religion qui souhaite le bonheur et l'égalité de ses fidèles aux yeux de Dieu. Comment peut-on écrire une telle phrase sur un billet; symbole d'argent et chose la plus mal répartie entre les individus?

I agree with you that having a phrase such as "In God We Trust" on the $1 doesn't show a seperation of church and state. An interesting fact that I'm sure most Americans don't realize is there is also a Latin phrase on the $1 (Annuit Coeptis) which roughly translates to "God has favored our undertaking". I believe that the reason that people tolerate these religious symbols on money and even on Government buildings, is because they are symbols of the past, and this country's religious (Christian) history. At this point, I think that most people ignore these subtle Christian symbols. I am not a religious person at all, and I think that seperation of church and state is something that isn't enforced enough, especially in the Southeastern and Midwest (Bible Belt) parts of the country. I don't think that these symbols are harming anybody and the backlash from religious groups would be huge, so for me, this isn't a big enough issue of church and state to get upset about. Hope I helped, if not feel free to ask again!

--Eli