Students say prayer interrupted by teacher, rights violated

MAN, W.Va (WSAZ) -- With Bible in hand, Man High School student Ben May is on a mission to start a revival at his school. May has been preaching sermons of Christianity to his fellow classmates during their lunch hour.

"It's gonna make a difference big time," he said.

Since Friday, May says 16 students have given their lives to God after hearing the messages, but a bit of controversy has surrounded the prayer circles that follow May's sermons.

Social media in the Logan County area went wild Tuesday after students say their prayer circle was interrupted by a teacher who allegedly claimed the students were "going against the Constitution" and also offending non-believers.

Skyler Moore, a student at the school who was participating in the prayer, says she was recording May's sermon when he wrapped up and called the students to pray. Moore says she stopped recording to join the prayer circle, which was then stopped shortly after prayer started.

"A teacher walked up and told us it was against the Constitution and we couldn't do that and that apparently we were offending people," Moore said. "And what did you guys say? We told her that we had a right to pray and that they couldn't stop us."

WSAZ reached out to Logan County Schools Superintendent Phyllis Doty.

She says the students have the First Amendment right to assemble and pray and that it is not against the rules for students to lead their own prayer group. She says the teacher in question did not tell the students to stop praying.

She also says that to her knowledge, the teacher may have told the students they had to move. Doty clarified that the teacher was wrong, the students were allowed to pray in the area they were.

Ben May, the student who was preaching to his classmates, said he also had a discussion with the principal about the matter and hopes everyone can move forward with a positive outlook.

"God says don't look at the past. Look at the future, and that's what I'm doing," he said.

Now that the students know they are allowed to continue preaching and praying together during lunch, their biggest concern is Thursday's sermon and as they say, starting a revival.