IndoLink reports today that First Amendment objections have been raised to the teaching of yoga in Aspen, Colorado's Aspen Elementary School. Steven Woodrow, pastor of the First Baptist Church in Aspen is quoted: "At its base element, yoga is a spiritual practice. You can´t separate the religious from the spiritual. Why not teach Pilates or aerobics if it´s just stretching?" School officials say yoga is designed to help students be more attentive and improve their ability to focus.
The original yoga program was changed, after objections by critics, to eliminate all Sanskrit words. Students now end class here by saying "peace" rather than "namaste." But Pastor Woodrow says that even as modified, yoga incorporates aspects of Eastern religions that believe in reincarnation and pluralism,.
