EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. -- A veteran central New Jersey high school football coach has resigned after being told by school officials he could no longer lead his team in pregame prayer.
East Brunswick coach Marcus Borden was told last Friday by Schools Superintendent Jo Ann Magistro that some parents had complained about prayers Borden initiated at pregame meals and before the games.
After being told he would have to stop leading or taking part in the prayers, Borden stepped down from his position, just hours before his team's 21-0 loss to Sayreville that evening.
"I'm very disappointed," Borden said in an interview with News 12 New Jersey Tuesday. "Do I feel we were violating someone's rights? I don't think so."
But East Brunswick school officials think differently. According to school officials, the prayers violated the separation between church and state in public schools.
A spokeswoman for the district, Trish LaDuca, said students have the right to pray on school property during school events, but the prayer must be initiated by the students; otherwise it violates the law.
"A representative of the school district cannot constitutionally initiate prayer, encourage it or lead it," LaDuca told the Home News Tribune of East Brunswick. "Representatives of the school cannot participate in the student-initiated prayer."
During the television interview, aired Tuesday, Borden said what he was doing was not uncommon, and coaches across the state lead similar prayers as part of sporting events.
"I'm not out preaching, I'm not a preacher," said Borden, who has led the football program for 23 years. He has a 116-100-1 career record, and his team won the Central Jersey Group IV championship in 2004.
He is the founder of the Snapple Bowl, a charity all-star football game that has raised more than $150,000 for physically and mentally impaired children.
His resignation has divided the school community, with many students and parents supporting the coach.
On Saturday, a group of more than 50 members of the football team and some of their parents traveled to Borden's home and asked the coach to return.
Nancy Halupka, president of the school's football booster club, said she sympathizes with Borden and said the prayer tradition started long before he arrived at the school.
But school officials, who emphasized that they did not force Borden to resign, said some students felt uncomfortable with the prayer and their concerns should be treated with respect.
Magistro, the district's superintendent, said Borden's resignation won't become official until the school board meets on Oct. 20. She said the former coach can rescind his resignation at any time before the meeting, something Borden said was not likely.
"I believe that I made the right decision," said Borden, a Catholic. "I believe I made a decision based on principle. I believe that's who I am."
Borden could not immediately be reached for comment by The Associated Press Tuesday evening. There is no telephone listing in his name.
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In all seriousness, this is why Bush needs to put a real conservative judge on the bench. Get rid of all these wackos. It still amazes me how a coupld of kids on a large football team can ruin something for everyone else. What the heck happened to letting the majority rule?
Looking at constitutionality, the founders intended to avoid state sponsored religion such as the old English setup. If they intended for religion to be out of everything they would not have mentioned God in almost every important document of the day. What's next...taking "In God We Trust" off of money?
Posts: 259 | Location: Florida | Registered: March 28, 2005
Completely unrelated but I'll be up in East Brunswick this thanksgiving. I have family in Spotswood that I'll be visiting. I only mention it because I noticed that is where this story is from.
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Originally posted by msaJeff: In all seriousness, this is why Bush needs to put a real conservative judge on the bench.
Why?
quote:
Get rid of all these wackos.
Which wackos?
quote:
It still amazes me how a coupld of kids on a large football team can ruin something for everyone else.
No prayer before the game?! The sky is falling!
quote:
What the heck happened to letting the majority rule?
Unfamiliar with the legal system are we?
quote:
Looking at constitutionality, the founders intended to avoid state sponsored religion such as the old English setup. If they intended for religion to be out of everything they would not have mentioned God in almost every important document of the day. What's next...taking "In God We Trust" off of money?
Riiight.
I'll chime in with my two cents because I always have spare change on me. 1) This is stupid. Who really cares if the guy leads the team in prayer? If you don't like it, don't do it. That said, a good coach would find a way so that every player on the team was included and none had problems with such a situation. My high school soccer coach led us in prayer before each game, but the prayer was to no one specific. In the circle of players you had Christians, Muslims, Hindus, a Buddhist, and one other small religion I can't recall. But there was never a problem, because there was no mention of a religion-specific diety
2) I'm in favor of continuing to avoid a sponsorship of religion, but this is far from it based on that article. Some people are just too sensitive nowdays.
3) "They" didn't get rid of him, he voluntarily resigned.
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Posts: 520 | Location: Chicago, IL | Registered: September 19, 2004
Originally posted by msaJeff: Looking at constitutionality, the founders intended to avoid state sponsored religion such as the old English setup. If they intended for religion to be out of everything they would not have mentioned God in almost every important document of the day. What's next...taking "In God We Trust" off of money?
As for the coach, he decided to leave...he wasn't fired. He can go coach at a Catholic school if this is really important to him...where a pregame pray is most likely required.
I do not think he resigned on his own free will. I am 99% sure it was one of those "resign or we'll fire you" type things.
______________________________ It's stay away from Malaysia for fear of vampires year!
"The word Fascism has now no meaning except insofar as it signifies 'something not desirable'." -- George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language," 1946
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Every coach i had from pop-warner to highschool to college led the team in prayer before games. It's more of a football tradition than a religious thing.
Originally posted by Coriolanus: I do not think he resigned on his own free will. I am 99% sure it was one of those "resign or we'll fire you" type things.
I must have missed that part of the story.
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Posts: 1798 | Location: Hollywood, CA USA | Registered: September 16, 2003
Looking at constitutionality, the founders intended to avoid state sponsored religion such as the old English setup. If they intended for religion to be out of everything they would not have mentioned God in almost every important document of the day. What's next...taking "In God We Trust" off of money?
The Supreme Court has determined that because a Public School is supported by the state (i.e. funding comes from taxes collected by the state for salary and buildings, etc) that it is in fact a State Institution and therefore cannot subject anyone to one specific religion.
As much as I disagree with this situation, I understand and respect the "legal" decisions made.
Posts: 100 | Location: Austin Texas, Home of the National Champion Longhorns Football Team! | Registered: August 29, 2005
Yeah, well now I'm offended. I'm not religious, I don't go to church more than two or three times a year, but I have specific spiritual views.
Prayer never hurt anyone. I feel it is a form of meditation. It's not for me, but it fills an important role for many. I respect their beliefs and it has no detrimental effect on me.
But, it makes me nuts when someone who is "offended" can take the right away from the majority who want to pray.
Our country was NOT founded on the rights of the minority. Protecting one groups rights does not mean trampling another groups rights.
This country has been knocked off course by liberal judges who are obsessed with interjecting their misguided personal beliefs instead of upholding the Constitution or the will of the majority.
JC
"Only those who attempt the absurd achieve the impossible"
Posts: 435 | Location: Buffalo, NY | Registered: January 19, 2005
Originally posted by Cavphoto: Prayer never hurt anyone.
Just playing devil's advocate, but technically as some religions claim they are the one true religion, an individual make be offended of hurt if a prayer is said to another diety.
quote:
Our country was NOT founded on the rights of the minority.
Eh...
quote:
Protecting one groups rights does not mean trampling another groups rights.
You can't please all of the people all of the time.
quote:
This country has been knocked off course by liberal judges who are obsessed with interjecting their misguided personal beliefs instead of upholding the Constitution or the will of the majority.
Did I miss the part of the story where a judge acted liberally? Technically a public school cannot act to further or sponsor religious beliefs, and saying a prayer, depending on how it's done, might constitute such an act. I'm not saying I agree with this, but it's far from liberal judges injecting their personal beliefs.
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Posts: 520 | Location: Chicago, IL | Registered: September 19, 2004
Yeah, well now I'm offended. I'm not religious, I don't go to church more than two or three times a year, but I have specific spiritual views.
Prayer never hurt anyone. I feel it is a form of meditation. It's not for me, but it fills an important role for many. I respect their beliefs and it has no detrimental effect on me.
But, it makes me nuts when someone who is "offended" can take the right away from the majority who want to pray.
Our country was NOT founded on the rights of the minority. Protecting one groups rights does not mean trampling another groups rights.
This country has been knocked off course by liberal judges who are obsessed with interjecting their misguided personal beliefs instead of upholding the Constitution or the will of the majority.
JC
I agree.
Posts: 1346 | Location: Back in Cigar City | Registered: April 30, 2004
Yeah, well now I'm offended. I'm not religious, I don't go to church more than two or three times a year, but I have specific spiritual views.
Prayer never hurt anyone. I feel it is a form of meditation. It's not for me, but it fills an important role for many. I respect their beliefs and it has no detrimental effect on me.
But, it makes me nuts when someone who is "offended" can take the right away from the majority who want to pray.
Our country was NOT founded on the rights of the minority. Protecting one groups rights does not mean trampling another groups rights.
This country has been knocked off course by liberal judges who are obsessed with interjecting their misguided personal beliefs instead of upholding the Constitution or the will of the majority.
JC
That's what I meant. I would wager that %80 of the team would want to pray. I see my son saying short prayers on the starting line before each race. I never forced it on him , but I did expose him to it. How could you be offended if someone wants to pray?
Did I miss the part of the story where a judge acted liberally?
Chicago,
My point was not specific to this case but to the gradual shift over the last thirty years to rule for the rights of the minority over the rights of the majority. How many rights and privileges have we had taken away because someone was offended?
We have "accepted" them since they were not taken away in one big move, but slowly eroded away a little bit at a time. This is simply a classic example.
JC
"Only those who attempt the absurd achieve the impossible"
Posts: 435 | Location: Buffalo, NY | Registered: January 19, 2005
