Introduction
School-based gun violence has become a widespread occurrence in the United States. Importantly, numerous factors such as bullying, easily accessible weaponry, and a lack of conscientiousness regarding students’ mental health contribute to its growth. Prayer, as a moral guiding compass and an act of self-reflective mediation, could help school children achieve a connection with themselves, as well as an influencing relationship with a higher power, which may reduce students’ deflection to gun violence.
Discussion
The act of prayer allows believing people of faith to connect to God through the teachings of a religion or spiritual practice. Prayer could help steer pupils to calm, peaceful conduct by positively guiding them. Students can reflect and seek an enlightening experience during this personal moment with their God. Author Joel Spring (2018) gives a historical example of dual religious and academic education in the 19th century as resulting in successful moral instruction. Prayer is a technique that “reduces the extent to which individuals are willing to express that violence against others is justified” (Wright, 2016, p. 173). Most documented religions denounce violence and even indicate consequences for those who harm or take the lives of other humans unjustly. Thus, students may attain morals, which forbid acts of killing, during conscious acts of internal prayer and dialogue.
Furthermore, prayer reduces the amount of stress experienced by those who believe in God. If Christian teachers benefit from prayer as an act of stress-reduction, then students could likewise achieve a better grasp of their emotions (LaBarbera & Hetzel, 2016). The agenda is not to convert students to a particular faith, but by demonstrating belief in God, teachers may be able to compel students to choose a theology that righteously aligns with their principles. This would provide a better outlet as opposed to deflecting their frustration on their peers by bullying, verbal confrontations, or the topic at hand, gun violence. Encouraging students’ mental health and positive emotions is an acute part of achieving less vicious animosity between them. That would mean more support from the staff and counselors when red flags are apparent. As it has been mentioned, bullying could be a way for students to release their frustrations or insecurities. The aggressors and the victims are both being harmed in this case. Harming others, whether it be emotionally or physically, could very well be a cry for help. Students who are bullied and those who are the ones bullying should be assessed for trauma and evaluated to determine their mental state.
As has been noted previously, using prayer as a positive reinforcement in schools could assist students in gaining new morals by expanding their spirituality, which could result in inner peace. Pupils communicate with themselves by using a method referred to as self-talk, and recognizing detrimental thoughts and behaviors is possible through self-reflection while engaging in prayer. This could potentially expose students to character-building techniques. In addition to spiritual prayer, Meditation as a type of training could “increase self-control and decrease delinquency” in students (Bushman et al., 2016, p. 26). As stated above, the goal is not to convert students to a religion, but in fact, to give them a better outlet when under stress or in need of intervention to prevent violence. Meditation and prayer are very similar, which makes both great options for the administration, staff, and students. Through discipline, self-control, and self-regulation schoolchildren may overpower violent tendencies themselves, with only guidance from adults (Billias, 2017). Also, when students are educated about themselves and are in full control of their behavior, they may become less violent participants within their communities.
In addition, prayer as a tool in schools could produce peace within the surrounding communities. Mindful and morally instructed students could be less prone to using violent means or lashing out in their neighborhoods, seeking other paths of communication instead.
A civilization that does not instill people with a sense of their surroundings being against them furthers the social adaptation of all its participants instead (Wright, 2016).
The establishment of positive contacts through a sense of community could stimulate students’ intrapersonal relationships and reduce their violent tendencies (Cremin & Bevington, 2017) With as little as beginning the school day with a prayer will travel a long way within many communities. Prayer does not have to be opposed to pupils who do not agree but will be extended to those who are in favor of it. Having a sense of peace from a higher power can give students the confidence they need to be able to deal with certain pressures of their community. All communities do not suffer from gun violence but can suffer from various struggles such as suicide, bullying, and school shootings. Prayer can be a coping mechanism for students who struggle with violence on a day-to-day basis.
Further Points
The creation of an inclusive society, where all students may find companionship and help, is an essential prerequisite to reducing gun violence. Dependence upon prayer can result in a positive student-based community. Experiencing some peer pressures of my own has led me to seek a sense of peace through prayer. I was educated through prayer at a young age and have benefited greatly since having done so. I have not sought validation from my community through gun violence or any other violence when in distress because I was taught that there was another way. If students were ensured and made aware that there is a positive way to overcome the struggles of their communities, then it would be a greater possibility that they would utilize prayer rather than violence. School is one of the first foundations for educating children hence the reason for the recommendation of prayer being in schools. Students who do not have the positive resources in their communities should be able to look for help in the school. Educational institutions should be a place that can offer certain programs, including the prayer that will help reduce gun violence.
Not all pupils are religious, as secular education has become more popular. Today it is easier to go with popular demand rather than to stand out. Not many young students are seeking religion. Most teens would rather avoid religion. As previously stated, peer pressure is another struggle within schools. Being one to be in favor of prayer may not make you popular but can help you to overpower violent and negative behaviors. Spirituality, regardless of religiousness, helps students achieve a higher degree of maturity and urges them to develop both emotionally and intellectually (Cremin & Bevington, 2017). Prayer as an act of self-reflection does not force students to follow a religion, they do not identify with but instead promotes conscientiousness and honesty with themselves.
School and Spirituality
It is worth noting that the challenging environment with various pressures in which students develop lead to the fact that schools should become one of the centers of an individual’s spiritual development. Apart from the implementation of educational standards, institutions should provide learners with spiritual and moral education (Waters, Barsky, Ridd, & Allen, 2015). Interestingly, the diversity of approaches to understanding what spirituality is and how it is related to religion often misleads teachers and school leaders (Bartkowski, Acevedo, & Van Loggerenberg, 2017). It should be emphasized that spirituality and religiosity are not identical concepts, and the task of the school is not centered on the religious teaching of students. The goal of developing spirituality in students lies in the intellectual evolvement of children through mental attitudes and not religious ones (Wang, Li, & Gaylord, 2019). Each individual may choose a prayer or meditation that will be appropriate for them but will pursue a common goal, which is the development of moral qualities.
In this regard, prayer may be viewed as a practical exercise. It will teach the student to let go of the problem or open up to themselves to understand the root of the issue that leads to thoughts about violence. Through the acceptance of the internal state, a student can further comprehend how to address the problem (Johnson, 2018). Through prayer or meditative practice, students will be able to analyze what is happening in their inner world that bothers them (Holland, Dooley, Fedock, Ferebee, & Bailey, 2017). Meditation or prayer is one of the ways to gain spirituality practiced in many religions or by people who do not profess a particular religion but strive to achieve inner balance. This can be a way to free students from violent thinking, which leads to aggression, and prayer will help them to relax and let go of disturbing emotions.
Conclusion
The positive effect of peaceful religiousness, such as self-consciousness and discipline through frequent and community-supported prayer, leads to a decrease in gun violence and allows educating students on gentle ways of resolving conflict. Spirituality remains an essential aspect of both people’s moral orienting and community identification, allowing the creation of relationships and the recognition of wrongs and rights. Therefore, prayer is an attempt to affect merely a single aspect of the US’s gun violence problem, but the one that is directed towards helping conflicted students by educating them before the occurrence of catalytic events.
References
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