Texas Schools To Require Students To Read Bible Verses

For a group of people who have spent the last decade and change fretting about “Shariah Law,” you’d think Republicans would be the staunchest advocates for the separation of church and state, but who am I kidding? Moral hypocrisy is the defining trait of modern conservatism, so it should come as no surprise that Texas’ Board of Education has made Bible passages mandatory reading for students.

The New York Times reports that the board approved the list in a 10-5 vote. There are several unusual things about the Board of Education’s mandatory reading list. First, mandatory reading lists typically aren’t issued by a school board, but by teachers or individual schools. Texas’ list appears to be a first on the national level, not only in terms of making students read Bible verses, but also in that the school board is dictating what students read. 

Believe it or not, there’s been pushback against the list by both parents and educators who feel like it violates the separation of church and state. “The government of Texas, let alone any American government body, should never be in the business of imposing one religion on everyone,” Rachel Laser, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, told the Times. 

“I would like to believe that my children’s constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom rights will remain intact wherever we are stationed,” Kimmie Fink, the mother of an active-duty military family stationed in Texas, told the board during a public hearing, according to CNN. 

“Is this not the case in Texas, a state that champions parents’ rights? In Texas, parents have the fundamental legal right to direct the moral and religious upbringing of their children without state interference. The proposed literary works trample on this right,” Fink added.

Supporters of the list have argued that the inclusion of Bible stories isn’t intended to preach to students, but to provide historical context for the role Christianity has played in American history. According to KERA, State Board of Education District 2 representative Brandon Hall, one of the Republicans who approved the list, said that the inclusion of Bible stories gives students a deeper understanding of American culture. It should be noted that Hall is also a pastor, so it’s not like he’s particularly biased or anything. 

“America and Texas have been a Christian nation and a Christian state forever,” Hall said. “And this is why, you know, the proportion of the impact they’ve had is why they’re included. Of course, there are other faiths that are represented, but they’ve had a minimal impact.” 

The list is supposedly intended to encourage students to read more, as fewer students read full books in English classes or for recreation. Beyond the understandable outrage of the inclusion of Bible verses, there’s also been pushback on the list itself, which predominantly focuses on older works written by white men. 

If the goal was to get more students to read, wouldn’t it make more sense to choose a more contemporary list of books to meet them where they’re at? Sure, teachers can still add their own books to the list, but there are concerns that the board’s mandatory reading list will take up most of the instruction time. 

“With a list that’s so extensive, would teachers have the time or space to choose texts that are a great fit for their students, their classrooms, their region?” Markesha Tisby, president of the Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts, told the Times. “Texas is extremely large and very diverse.”

The list will not be rolled out immediately but introduced gradually over the next few years. 

Unsurprisingly, this is not the first time that Texas has tried to force Christianity in public schools. Last year, Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law requiring all Texas public schools to display the Ten Commandments. A federal judge initially blocked that law, but earlier this year, a Texas appeals court ruled that it could go forward. Texas’ Ten Commandments law is largely expected to be brought before the Supreme Court. 

What’s crazy is these are the exact same people who would spend a month constantly crying on Fox News and various podcasts if a blue state announced that excerpts of the Quran would be taught in schools. 

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Texas Schools To Require Students To Read Bible Verses was originally published on newsone.com