New Jersey School Bans Christian Christmas Music

ICC Note: A public school in New Jersey recently announced that they would not be playing “Religious Music” during winter concerts in the elementary school. The decision is one more small example of Christianity slowly being pushed out of the public sphere by a culture in the United States that seems hostile to any type of religious expression in public. In 2011 a pastor was arrested outside of a California Department of Motor Vehicles for reading the Bible in public. Charges were finally dropped against the pastor in August of this year. According to Alliance Defending Freedom, the school’s decision is unconstitutional and several case studies exist demonstrating that schools are fully allowed to have religiously themed music during school productions. 
11/1/2013 Fox News (United States) – The angels will not be allowed to hark their herald nor will the little Lord Jesus sleep on the hay after a New Jersey school district announced a ban on all religious Christmas music.
Constance Bauer, the superintendent of the Bordentown Regional School District, posted a message online stating someone had been questioning recent musical selections for the elementary school Christmas concerts.
Pardon me, the school district calls them “winter” concerts.
My guess is that a perpetually offended left-winger became unglued when they heard that little boys and girls might be pa rum pum pum pum.
“Religious music should not be part of the elementary program(s),” Supt. Scrooge wrote in her anti-Christmas screed.
So songs about Frosty, Rudolph and mommy making out with Santa Claus are fine, but harmonizing about round yon virgin will get you put on the naughty list.
“It remains the District’s mission to celebrate the rich and wonderful diversity of our children and community and hope that the joy shared through our numerous winter programs will continue to be (a) cherished part of your traditions,” she concluded.
Alliance Defending Freedom, a legal firm specializing in religious liberty cases, fired off a letter to the New Jersey grinches – reminding them that it’s perfectly constitutional to sing “Joy to the World.”
“Schools should not have to think twice about whether they can allow students to perform Christmas carols,” said Legal Counsel Matthew Sharp. “Courts have unanimously upheld their inclusion in school productions–even when songs deal with Christian themes that are naturally a part of the holiday.”
The Alliance Defending Freedom letter explains that “every federal court to examine the issue has determined that including Christmas carols and other religious music in school choir programs fully complies with the First Amendment.”
As a result, the First Amendment requires that the district “remains neutral towards religion and refrains from demonstrating an unconstitutional hostility toward songs with religious origins.”
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