Apr 06 2008
Student Sues ‘Anti-Christian’ Teacher Over Remarks in Class
[Fox News]
A student and his family have filed a federal lawsuit demanding that a popular European history teacher at California’s Capistrano Valley High School be fired for what they say were anti-Christian remarks he made in the classroom.
Chad Farnan, a 16-year-old sophomore, says the teacher, James Corbett, told his students that “Jesus glasses” obscure the truth and suggested that Christians are more likely than other people to commit rape and murder.
Farnan recorded his teacher telling students in class: “What country has the highest murder rate? The South! What part of the country has the highest rape rate? The South! What part of the country has the highest rate of church attendance? The South!” Farnan said he took the tape recorder to class to supplement his class notes.
Corbett’s attorney, Dan Spradlin, says his client has been teaching at Capistrano Valley High for 15 years and is in no way anti-Christian. According to Spradlin, Corbett was not trying to offend anyone but to inspire his students to think.
“The purpose is not to indoctrinate, but simply to provide a basic starting point to provoke discussion,” Spradlin said
The Farnans say that if the school agrees to put Corbett through sensitivity training and requires him to apologize to the students he offended, then the family would consider dropping their lawsuit. The school district has yet to comment on the offer.
Read about it here.
[From me]
Sounds like this man has been hurt by a Christian or the church in the past. This kind of talk by anyone is sad. Christian teachers shouldn’t be trashing other religions either. I think the family is right here. They sound like they just want an apology and the teacher to change his ways. Hopefully this can end with a peaceful solution.
What do you think?
One response so far
I think it’s hard for us to know if the teacher was really trying to engender discussion or if he was really intending to discredit Christianity. For example, we didn’t hear the tone of the statements and we don’t know if making scandalous statements is a typical technique this teacher uses to get students to think. It’s even harder for us to know if his motive was revenge for being hurt by Christians in the past.
If the teacher was simply discrediting Christianity, then I think that was out of line and he should apologize and be grateful that the parents are willing to drop charges. On the other hand, if there really was no malice behind it, then I think it’s a reasonable teaching technique.