School Nixes ‘Charlie Brown Christmas’

Families have been moved for years by “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” particularly the scene in which Linus — blanket in tow — takes the school stage and under a single spotlight, tells his friend where the true meaning of Christmas can be found.

“‘For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior which is Christ the Lord.’ That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown,” Linus tells his friend.

It is as simple and as deeply profound as that — the birth of the Lord.

You might be able to take the Bible out of a poster or a play, but you can’t remove it from the hearts of believers.

Dedra Shannon, a staffer at Patterson Middle School in Killeen, Texas, was so inspired by the beloved scene she decided to make a poster to decorate the door to the nurse’s office, Fox News reported. The poster included a picture of Linus, Charlie Brown’s pitiful Christmas tree, and Linus’ words from the Bible about the true meaning of the holiday.

The poster went up on Dec. 5 — and on Dec. 7, Shannon was confronted by the school’s principal.

“She said, ‘Please don’t hate me, but unfortunately you’re going to have to take your poster down,'” Shannon told Fox News. “I’m disappointed. It is a slap in the face of Christianity.”

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The principal told Shannon the poster violated the Constitution.

“She said my poster is an issue of separation of church and state,” Shannon told Fox News. “She said the poster had to come down because it might offend kids from other religions or those who do not have a religion.”

Shannon was told that the Bible passage had to be removed — but that Linus could stay. “I just took the entire thing down,” said Shannon. “I wasn’t going to leave Linus and the Christmas tree without having the dialogue. That’s the whole point of why it was put up.”

A Baltimore-area woman who makes a point to watch “A Charlie Brown Christmas” every year is offended by the school’s decision.

“Taking the Bible passage out of that poster is like taking Jesus out of the nativity scene,” Carole Purcell, 52, told LifeZette. “Sure, it’s still moving, but it no longer has a point. While clubs like LGBT and Satan clubs grow in popularity — a simple poster promoting peace and truth is too controversial for children. Crazy.”

Related: The Devilish Club at a School Near You

Shannon feels the same way.

“Throughout the school there are talks about diversity,” Shannon said. “Well, you aren’t being very diverse if you are not allowing the Christians to put something up that refers to a Christian holiday,” she said.

You might be able to take the Bible out of a poster or a play — but you can’t remove it from the hearts of believers.

In Paintsville, Kentucky, last year, audience members attending the performance of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at a W.R. Castle Elementary School recited the Bible passage from their seats after that school district deleted them from the play.

“We just kind of got together this morning and as were sitting there and it was just all on our hearts that they took out the Scriptures and that’s the main part, you know — that’s what it’s all about,” Holly Davis, a parent, told news station WSAZ.