Prayer returns to the public schools

After decades of a secular educational system, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey is pushing to increase the number of religious classes, lowering the starting age of religious classes from 9 to 6, teaching religious values to pre-school children, and ending the school ritual in which students pledged allegiance to secular principles.

President Erdogan, elected by popular vote, said he got the idea to increase religious training and prayer from American evangelicals.  He said, “Although a majority of people favor teaching the values of Islam, we have been stymied by a minority of godless people.”  He thought that a return to prayer in the schools would make children not only more religious, but also more obedient and better citizens.  Erdogan said, “Those American Christians have been an inspiration.”