High School show must go on

John Burroughs High School students in Burbank recently performed a summer musical called “Children of Eden,” loosely based on the Old Testament. Some have criticized the show, arguing that it blurred the lines between church and state and that tax money shouldn’t go to such a program. Others say students should be exposed to all cultures and themes, of which the Old Testament is a part.

What do you think?

My position is that students should be exposed to all cultures and themes. The Hebrew Scriptures, which Christians call the Old Testament, is embraced by at least three major faiths of the world: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. (I realize that the Muslim Holy Book is the Koran, but Muslims also revere at some level both the Old and New Testaments. Officially, Muslims refer to Christians and Jews as “People of the Book.”) And let the kids have some fun, for crying out loud!

As I understand the situation, the John Burroughs thespians put on a production that was “loosely based” on writings in Genesis. Did you see “Jesus Christ Superstar”? How about “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”?

I’m all for church and state separation, and have said so in the past. But there’s a little thing called artistic license, and kids should learn about that, too. If the idea for a story comes from some religion’s Holy Writ, why get bent out of shape if it serves as the libretto for an opera or a musical? We’re talking about an educational institution, right? And if a student’s curiosity is somehow heightened to do some further reading, that’s a good thing, right? Even Shakespeare used biblical references in his works, so will we see picket signs that decry the Bard? I hope we have not yet sunk that far.

THE REV. C.L. "SKIP" LINDEMAN

Congregational Church of the Lighted Window

United Church of Christ

La Cañada Flintridge

High schools today are plagued by a variety of very troubling issues — including drug abuse, teenage pregnancy and violent crime.

Driving by some campuses and seeing how the young people dress, talk and act, you could be forgiven for thinking that you’d accidentally stumbled upon a gang hangout or house of ill repute. (While that statement may seem exaggerated, sadly the consequences of this trend are all too real — both for the children and for society at large.)