Jewish Congress Opposes Grace in New Jersey Public Schools

The New Jersey Region of the American Jewish Congress, supported by the Rabbinical Council of New Jersey today urged the State Legislature to defeat a bill which would permit the saying of grace in the public schools of New Jersey.

“The American Jewish Congress declares its unreserved opposition to such legislation, as an invasion of the right of every citizen to exercise his religious beliefs exclusively according to the traditional and exercised practices of the religious group to which he belongs,” the statement declared.

The organization pointed out that there has never been an approved and correct version of grace and that there has been no manual of prayers which has been agreed upon by the authorities of the Catholic, Protestant and Jewish faiths. “The ultimate effect of introducing several sets of non-sectarian prayers into the public school system would create pseudo-religious system of worship and confuse the children with regard to participation and affiliation of their respective sects,” the AJC stated.

“Religious observance is a private matter reserved to the individual, his family and church. We defend the right of every individual to practice his religious belief fully and with no fear of penalty for belonging to any sect. The American Jewish Congress is of the belief that pressure by agencies of government to compel individuals into religious adherence of any kind is a blow against religious freedom. Religiosity is a matter of conviction and belief and not of legislative pressure,” the statement concluded.