Bullard Elementary School, Kennesaw, GA
Outraged parents have been able to get at least some of the Hindu practices related to the practice of yoga out of a Georgia elementary school after they complained about imposing these religious beliefs on children.
The Daily Mail is reporting on the dustup which occurred at Bullard Elementary School in Kennesaw, Georgia when parents complained about instructing students to perform the “Namaste” bow, which means, “I bow to the god within you”, during their yoga classes. (Obviously, they have not yet learned that yoga poses are positions of worship to Hindu gods so this story may not be over yet.)
“No prayer in schools. Some don’t even say the pledge, yet they’re pushing ideology on our students,” said Susan Jaramillo, the mother of a student to 11Alive.com. “Some of those things are religious practices that we don’t want our children doing in our schools.”
Parents also complained about the use of Buddhist-based mindfulness exercises which were being used in the classroom to “de-stress” the children as well as the incorporation of mandala coloring pages during so-called “brain breaks.”
Apparently, these educators are better at giving out homework than doing it themselves because had they done a little research, they might have learned that all of these practices are associated with eastern religions and could pose problems when it comes to keeping public schools “religion free” (or does that just mean Christian free?).
Even more interesting is another complaint about a rampant belief in the healing power of crystals that was found circulating within the school even though administrators claim it was never taught by their teachers.
I’m not sure why this would surprise anyone. If administrators insist upon introducing all of these New Age-friendly techniques into the lives of their students, it only makes sense that kids and staff would introduce more. Providing an environment conducive to this stuff makes it very easy to introduce other practices, whether deliberately or inadvertently.
As a result of the brouhaha, Bullard principle Patrice Moore, has apologized for the practices that “caused many misconceptions” and has made the following promise in a letter to parents:
“ . . . [W]e will pull the following out of our school: When yoga moves are used in classrooms, students will not say the word ‘Namaste’ nor put their hands to heart center. When coloring during ‘brain breaks’, Mandala coloring pages will not be used. Although teachers have never used nor taught about crystals having healing powers during these breaks, we understand it has become a belief. Therefore we will ensure that nothing resembling this will be done in the future.”
Moore is now forming a committee of parents to work with them as they “explore research-based techniques and ideas for the classroom” in order to get input on a variety of topics, “including mindfulness.”
This story is a perfect example of how the New Age is infiltrating not only our schools, but curriculums and physical education programs that introduce our children to non-Christian religions under the guise of “the latest techniques” in teaching.
This article details how public education has gradually morphed into pagan indoctrination over the last few decades, particularly in the areas of health, guidance counseling, gifted programs and sex and drug education programs.
“The use of New Age psychotherapeutic programs is usurping parental authority,” states the author Craig Branch. “The imposition of these harmful techniques and programs violates federal laws and constitutional protections. As well, it can be shown that these techniques actually increase problem behavior.”
Parents who are concerned about the introduction of yoga and other eastern religious practices into their schools should visit this site for valuable information on how to rid their schools of these dangerous influences.
