Valedictory

Hmm... Religion and the school system, an interesting combination at any level. My issue with this young lady's speech is her use of specific Christian ideology. I'm sure, as others have stated, if Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, or Scientologists were to have spoken for a considerable amount of time about their specific beliefs Christians would probably be upset. She was wrong in the mention a specific God. This country was founded on the free worship of any God or no God at all not on Christian fundamentals. It was founded on the principle of acceptance. It is why the colonies were founded. They ran from persecution. From RELIGIOUS persecution. It seems many have forgotten this. The word God means many things to many people. Remember that and go peacefully, friends.

As a Christian myself, I can certainly identify with her motives. Her motives and intentions were clearly nothing but good. If we believe that there is truly no hope apart from Jesus Christ than it would be wrong and unloving NOT to share those things...
HOWEVER
As Christians we are called to build relationships with people in order to EARN the PRIVILEGE to share the gospel with them. We do so lovingly and freely once the situation is right. We do not force or try to make a sales pitch. Personally, just because one earns the right to make a graduation speech to a large crowd does not mean he or she has earned the right to preach to them.

I'm a local resident of Jacksonville. And having lived here my entire life, I am thoroughly disappointed that someone would use such a universal moment to preach Christian gospel. I fully support Freedom of Speech. However, there is a time and place for everything. If I'm defending someone else's right to speak, I should be able to defend my own right to speak back. Though the girl was surely moved and felt compelled on that most accomplished of days to expel the feelings in her heart; they could've been much more effective, flattering and acceptable in a suitable setting. In my experience and personal opinion, it's situations like this and attitudes like the Valedictorian's, that perpetually hold this city back. And it seems that will continue with the new breed of up and coming. In the end, it seems like preaching fire and brimstone to a bunch of graduating teenagers would be futile. How many teens do you think were worried about repenting at the graduation after parties?

To Spock:

What debunks Christianity? LOL!!! Science debunks Christianity. I read the Bible and I can point to many inconsistencies and outright untruths about the existence of life and human existence.

Number 1: The Genesis story has absolutely no scientific principles behind it. Scientists have proven by radio-carbon testing that the Earth is billions of years old and therefore directly debunks the Bible's "6,000 year" age for the earth.

Number 2: The Tower of Babel story has been debunked by science. In this case anthropologists. Human migration patterns have shown that languages just like life EVOLVES. All human languages evolved. There was not one language and then all of sudden some God decided to change all languages instantly. Only and idiot believes in this story.

Number 3: Adam and Eve also part of the Genesis story. If there is no evolution then why aren't humans one race??? Evolution played a big part in differentiating the races on earth. This type of evolution or differentation would have taken thousands of generations therefore this also debunks the "6,000 year age" of the Earth.

And there isn't enough space for me to list all Biblical points that have been debunked.

Rrr-ight on, S: and ALL OF "THE OTHER" resurrection stories are MYTHS.
(wink, wink)

Oh, well, uh there you have it ! ;-)

Do you know what kind of cheese it was, by any chance ?

Have you risen from the dead or been an eyewitness to a resurrection, perhaps ?

Excuse me, I believe it was the "image of Jesus" ON a grilled cheese sandwich.

YES, that truly was a blessing and a miracle.

I watch Benny Hinn every day to see how many are truly healed in the NAME of Our Lord.

All praise be to Jesus.

Great questions, incredulous.

In addition, "the bible" says creation took place what like 6000 to 8000 years ago, yet science suggests the planet is millions or billions of years old.

Where are all the miracles ? Could it be that myths and religions were the best that ancient man could do to explain things that are now rationally and logically known ?

If they were happening then, why are they not happening now ?

Could it all just be a matter of Ancient/Flat Earth thinking vs Modern science and technology ?

(Except, of course, for the "healings" on an evangelical TV show, or jesus on a grilled cheese sandwich ?)

(I personally would rather try and figure things out for myself than believe a 2000 year old story which was copied from even older stories without question).

That's just it, it's a subjective choice that was orignally accepted at the point of a sword and forced upon our ancestors. (and just became like the default way of thinking).

But, you are absolutely correct: NO ONE KNOWS FOR SURE.

how about whether a book written, compiled, and edited, by men with an agenda could possibly be the "word of god" ?

how about the destruction of conflicting "STORIES" and one solid theology going forward from nicea ?

(that "creed" thing sure is a nice little tidy tying up of a FLAWED theology, isn't it !)

how about whether anything like a "virgin birth", "death and resurrection", "water into wine" ETC ETC ETC ever really happened or is just copied from PRE-EXISTING mythology and UTTER NONSENSE ?

(THERE ARE A LOT OF THESE THINGS IN MYTHOLOGY, why should anyone LOGICALLY believe they are real IN ANY CASE ?)

how about whether jesus ever existed or (what jews think) is a combination of several false messiahs from 50 bce to 80 ce ?

(there is NO independent historical verification. NO NOT Pliny, NOT Tacitus, NOT Josephus. NONE !)

i could care less about proving or disproving god or gods (it could be either or none). NO ONE KNOWS FOR SURE.

religions are THEORIES, not absolute truths.

lakester53 - Great Post- Note though they are trying to turn this country into a Socialistic Country, so that is why they do it, if you listen to any of the Libs running for president, they sound like Chavez they talk about Goverment knows better, I have never heard one of them say Liberty or Personal life.

But now on the substance of your comment, What debunks Christianity? There is nothing, every time some Progressive Secularist tries they are proven wrong. Because first of all you can not debunk a Faith or God.

curious why abc limits free speech ???

and deletes almost all posts which debunk christianity as the myth that IT IS ???

(but ALLOWS defenses "of the faith", even when rambling, irrelevant and off topic ???)

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm !!!

Well... just remember freedom of speech goes both ways. If the next speaker wishes to talk about allah or satan, or budha,... then we should expect all people to sit and be as patient at this crowd was. Hopefully it won't ruin your child's graduation experience as this did.

there are many spelling errors i kno, thank God for spell check, i would seem extra dumb with out it. be sure you read my first then my second, then my last one or it wont make any sense. im done i promise

Once again forgive for not proof reading, if their are mistakes im sure that you can at least get the just what im saying. I just copied and pasted them from a different blog so no biggie. I wanted to add that that i speak of the youth of this nation because i am one. I am graduate this year as well, i did not graduate even close to top of my class, i am a former jock( i hung up my cleats after the football season was over), i was nothing special on the field just like to play the game. i was at best a B+ or A- student, no AP's or IB's. I am just exercising my freedom of speech and im sure many of you will disagree on many points but i hope that i gave a good arguement to not being so crtical of a person that is giving her opinion. please dont take me to be the political type, i have no interest in pursueing that field, i barely made my way into college and i am son to some old fashioned hard working blue collar parents that are doing the best they can to get their boys through college to better themselves and this world. I will be glad to take critisims and then write back because i find this alot of fun. its way late and i must hit the sack because just like the majority of you, i got work in the morning. I truly hope that God blesses your day tomarra!

sry i did not proof read my last comment, there is point where i was spelling nation instead of "antion" and there maybe some other minor errors. I need spell check. I ran out of room and did not get to finish my point. If everbody becomes the same then we we'll be no better than a communist or fascist government. This nation's history is filled with strong figures that through their individuality and putting their strong character traits to work they rose up and formed the greatest nation and world power in defiantly recent history and argueably all of history. I cannot say that we have to agree on every single point, but i will say that we must agree on one paticular thing. Which shannon if you listened to her speech made a special effort to point this out. people can say this nation was not found on biblical principles but if you read it the christian overtones are over powering. Our constitution was written with this in mind I assure you. we are born with certain unalienable rights that cannot be taken away by any man. these rights spoken of come from God, and it is of utmost importance that I stress that because God, even if it is not the Christian one, is unchanging. Man is constantly changing his mind where God is a constant, the importance of this is that if our rights are gien to us by God then they can never be taken away. where as man changes his mind on a whim and because of that if the constition is not based on God then the very rights that sepaerate this country from the world can be taken away. let me point out this is why we should keep "under God" in our pledge as well. Being an individual is of great importance but do not try to cahnge the youth of this great nation to be the same as each other because the way i see it, we maybe the laziest generation in this countries history. i urge, no i pleed for our government to keep "God" in this nation, even if you dont beleive in him, but with out him we are sure to fall just as every other nation in history.

it seems to be that the only time the aclu comes into play is went it is a christian standing up for what he believes in, the salutatorian at my school gave a long speech which included buddha and it was a speech of the persuasive type just as shannons. there seems to be a great misconception that there are not radical buddhist or hindus around the world, that enforce their religions on "unbelievers", islam is not the only religion that uses the sword to enforce their relgios beliefs on others. christianity is one that in modern times is not forcing itself on others but yet i would argue that it is the most scrutinized agaisnt in this country and possibly the world. the christians are the ones in this world that are going out and stepping outside their means to help this antion and the rest of the world. we so easily forget katrina, 9-11, and other major world tragedies that many times the christians are the first to go and volunteer. i think it is possible that the reason shannon was attacked so harshly was because she signified her individuality. just as its okay for people to flaunt their paticular sexual or moral beliefs, "aclu forbid" that a christian stand up and exercise their freedom of speech which maybe offensive but if i am a conservative that finds certain peoples sexual preferences offensive then why is this so called "liberty union" not representing me or bashing others for what i find offensive. i get called a legalist or bigot because i dont think somethings right. this nation is beginning to put down a person that has individuality, and trying to make everybody the same, an example of this would be my little brother attends a public elementary. He would be considered gifted intellectually and instead of the teacher commending him and using him to push the rest of the class, they point out the kid that possibly the reason for disrupting the class and pulling others down yet they point out him when he does okay and shows maybe, some improvement.

What's amazing is that "sprituality" is really a private matter.

There are an infinite number of theories, religions, myths, gods. NONE can really claim to be the absolute truth. So, to believe one way or another is nothing more than a SUBJECTIVE CHOICE, usually based on cultural upbringing.

I really don't understand how one can call a book wriiten by MEN "the word of god".

Or look at the claims of virgin births or miracles or death and resurrection and NOT realize they are just metaphors from the distant past.

THERE IS NOTHING ORIGINAL ABOUT CHRISTIANITY. It all comes from pre-existing PAGAN MYTHOLOGY.

Is there a more brainwashed group than christians or moslems ?

(If there is a god, she gave you that gray matter between your ears TO THINK with and not be such a dupe).

I went to school was Shannon and was at graduation sitting listening to her speech and I felt belittled. I don’t believe in Jesus but I believe in only G-D being a Jew I have always had things said to me about going to hell because I don’t believe in Jesus when I was in 5th grade. Now that we have graduated from high school I really thought all that was over but Shannon had to bring it up yet again. Our graduation wasn’t the time or place for Shannon to FORCE her beliefs on her fellow classmates. I blame the school for not reading her speech before hand but also I blame Shannon because she lied to the school saying it wasn’t finished and she needed more time because she only found out that week that she was our Valedictorian which isn’t true everyone in our whole school knew at middle of May when we left. She needs to understand that she hurt and offended many and made our graduation experience less. My mom wanted to walk out of graduation but she also wanted to see her youngest child graduation with honors. Many people weren’t clapping for Shannon they wanted her off stage and we thought that if we clapped she would get the hint but it didn’t work. Many us wanted to leave but we knew we couldn’t because we wouldn’t be able to walk across that stage and have our parents watch us complete this last year something they have wanted for 13 long years to do.

L Rosa there is also a thing called separation of church and state which she totally crossed the line