A Majority of Americans Agree That Prayer Should Be Allowed at Public School Athletic Events
A recent poll found that the vast majority of respondents approved of prayer being said before high school and college athletic games.
After a Supreme Court decision earlier this summer, in which a narrow majority (6-3) sided with Washington state high school football coach Joe Kennedy in allowing him to pray on the field during games, the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research issued their study. Kennedy and the Bremerton School District were in court for seven years due to his practice of praying on the football field after each game.
Faithwire reports that 54% of respondents to the survey backed the Supreme Court’s judgment, while 22% opposed and 23% were ambivalent.
It has been reported by the Associated Press that a majority of people believe that public high school athletics should permit “a coach leading a team in prayer” (60%), “a player leading a team in prayer” (64%), and “a coach praying on the field without asking the players to join in” (71%).
An further 23% of participants admitted praying for a particular team or player to win or lose a game. Among sports enthusiasts, 35% of evangelicals and 21% of non-evangelicals shared this sentiment. Fifteen percent of atheists and agnostics said they prayed for their team to succeed.
About one-third of U.S. people, according to the poll, think God “plays a part” in athletic events and that prayers “may play a role” in the outcome.
Around 88% of American people in a 2016 Lifeway Research survey said that God doesn’t care whether team wins the Super Bowl. Christians (89%) and those of other religions (79% overall) were almost unanimous in their agreement.
The majority of Americans believe that God cares about their daily choices, according to the head of Lifeway Research. However, the results of this poll suggest that few Americans believe God follows Major League Baseball.
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