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He just doesn't get that prayer and Bible study have no place in public schools. Even when I said "which religion should we study? what are you going to do when a non-christian faith wants their beliefs taught?"
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Where I come from we call that Religious Education. It's part of the curriculum. although I hated RE at school, I reckon it avoids a lot of problems - there is a forum in which to discuss matters of faith and compare the beliefs of various religions and philosophies, so it doesn't start to intrude on other classes.
This is a slight tangent, but there was an interesting letter into the
New Scientist the other week - a confirmed athiest commenting that they had always believed it was a good thing that Religious Education was not allowed in the US - until the whole Intelligent Design argument blew up, which set them thinking that there should be a forum for discussion of philosophical and religious questions pertaining to subjects like science, so that they didn't end up being discussed in the science classes where they don't belong. Interesting to note that there is no ID movement to speak of in the UK.
But off the subject of ID. Personally I try to be a Great Commandment and Great Commission Christian - I believe that we should be telling people about Jesus, but like Christian Aid, I also "believe in life before death". After all, how can you talk about Jesus' love without showing it?
(good verse on this subject) - and people are made differently. Personally I find it easier to get worked up about questions of social justice than classic evangelism. But then, some of my best friends are crazy evangelists, and I think that's a valuable gift - as long as the crazy evangelists are balanced by the practical people who have a passion for social justice and a knack for making soup, marching in protests or cleaning graffiti off walls. Not all evangelists are hate-preachers.
It always annoys me when people rip out half of Christianity and wave it about as if it was the whole thing. And then you get two factions each waving the opposite half and arguing as if they were following two separate religions.
Honestly!