I am a lifelong Lutheran, was educated in public schools, and taught in public schools for 32 years.

Judging from Mrs. Pullmann's other articles for The Federalist, she wrote off public education altogether a long time ago. Let's address specific schools where teaching may clash with our faith, and not lump all schools together into some alleged anti-God conspiracy.

The courts never "banned Christianity" from public schools. They only stopped schools from promoting any particular faith. In the 1800s, many Catholic parents objected to public schools teaching from the King James Bible. Many of the parents who objected to mandated Christian prayers in the classroom years ago were Jewish. Public schools need to be fair to all Americans, who all pay taxes to support them.

Kids and teachers are still perfectly free to pray privately, there are Christian clubs at many schools, etc. Religious freedom is alive and well in public schools!

The public schools serve families of all faiths. Which parents' teachings should they go against? It is perfectly feasible for schools to teach secular subjects (math, history, English, etc.) and leave religious instruction to the home and church. I did it for 32 years, and lots of public-school teachers do it every day. Being neutral and fair-minded about religion does not equal atheism!

Just because a student doesn't learn religion in school doesn't mean he or she doesn't learn it at all. I learned about God at home, church, and Sunday School, and I'm sure millions of kids today learn likewise.

SEL is not trying to meet "spiritual" needs. It strives to help students make good decisions and deal with problems in a healthy way; e.g., helping a kid from a foster home not fly into a rage when another kid teases him or her, or when classwork has him or her stuck for a solution. Often, these are kids with a lot to deal with in their lives.

As far as "virtue without religion," it is actually pretty feasible to teach the content of the Second Table of the Law even to unbelievers. Reason alone can justify virtue--look at the four cardinal virtues, which the pagan Aristotle came up with. Look at how many non-Christians live pretty ethical lives--that's why the Confessions invented the concept of "civil righteousness" to explain how unbelievers can live outwardly moral lives. Look at how many Christians live lives little better than their unbelieving neighbors (to our shame). Don't tell me you can't teach morality without Christian faith--actions speak louder than words.

Yes, some recommended "antiracist" books are actually pretty racist themselves. But that doesn't mean teachers have to read them or use them in the classroom.

As for the LGBT issue, here's the thing: gay people are not going back in the closet. And there are lots of gay kids (and parents) in our schools (public and private). Those kids still need to be educated, and those families are still our neighbors, and we need to figure out how to get along with (and show Christian love to) those folks. Sometimes, all gay kids hear from Christians is condemnation. We need to work on that.

This is a worthy subject, but a "culture warrior" such as Mrs. Pullman may not have been the best author to write about it.