A 16-year-old girl is in the High Court to accuse her school of discriminating against Christians by banning the wearing of "purity rings".
Lydia Playfoot was told by Millais School in Horsham, West Sussex, to remove her ring, which symbolises chastity, or face expulsion.
She says Sikh and Muslim pupils can wear bangles and headscarves in class.
The school denies breaching her human rights, insisting the ring is not an essential part of the Christian faith.
BBC News religious affairs correspondent Robert Piggott said a group of girls at the school were wearing the rings as part of a movement called the "Silver Ring Thing".
Human rights barrister Paul Diamond told the High Court the school's action was "forbidden" by law.
"Secular authorities and institutions cannot be arbiters of religious faith," Mr Diamond said.
He said a question the judge would have to answer was: "What are the religious rights of schoolchildren in the school context?"
Originating in America, the Silver Ring Thing promotes abstinence among young people.
Mr Piggott said it was now spreading to the UK as part of a wider protest by traditionalist Christians against what they see as the secularisation of society.
The rings are inscribed with a reference to the biblical verse I Thess 4:3-4, which translates as: "God wants you to be holy, so you should keep clear of all sexual sin. Then each of you will control your body and live in holiness and honour."
Miss Playfoot's school said her ring broke uniform rules and ordered her to remove it.
When she refused, she was taken out of lessons and made to study on her own.
She told BBC Breakfast: "In the Bible it says you should remain sexually pure and I think this is a way I want to express my faith.
"I think in the society we live in today with lots of pregnancies and STDs, something like this is quite important and should be taken hold of."
Miss Playfoot is seeking a judicial review under Article Nine of the Human Rights Act which guarantees freedom of religious expression.
She says that should protect her right to wear the ring.
Lawyers for the school will insist that it is not operating a discriminatory policy because allowances made for Sikhs and Muslims only occur for items integral to their religious beliefs.
It argues that a Christian pupil would be allowed to wear a crucifix.
In freely choosing the school, lawyers will also say that Miss Playfoot and her parents voluntarily accepted to adhere to the uniform code.
Miss Playfoot's first application to the High Court was turned down last year, but judges agreed to hear it today after she appealed.
Miss Playfoot completed her GCSEs last week and has now left the school.
But her father Phil, who is a pastor, said she still wanted to take the case because of its wider significance for all Christians.
"I think there's something bigger at stake here," he said.
Mr Playfoot and his wife Heather are part of the volunteer team which runs the UK branch of the Silver Ring Thing from their church in Horsham.
The organisers of the movement say as many as 25,000 young people have joined so far in the UK and that numbers are growing.
Miss Playfoot has received messages of support from politicians, including former Conservative party chairman Lord Tebbit and Tory MP Ann Widdecombe.
She also has the backing of the Lawyers Christian Fellowship (LCF) which represents 2,000 Christian lawyers across the UK.
The case is being funded through individual donations gathered through the LCF's sister group Christian Concern for our Nation.
Source
Do you think this is nonsense or do you think there is a genuine case here and that other faiths are getting a raw deal, and that ethnic faiths are having their wishes pandered? To me it does seem like double standards. She is clearly wearing the ring in reference to something she believes in and I personally think is worth doing, whether it is a fundamental part of her religion I just don't know, but if other faiths can wear their get-up then why should it be any different for other (no so in the public eye) faiths.
'Purity' ring school case goes to high court
Linear Mode
