Religious instruction should not be in public schools
For a long time there has been a movement, especially among white southern evangelical Christians, “to put God back in public schools.” During the 1960s and 70s, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that government led school prayer was unconstitutional, and along with a number of other decisions, affirmed the idea articulated by Thomas Jefferson, that the establishment clause in the U.S. Constitution purposely erected “a wall between church and state.” This meant government would not formally sanction any religion, and would strictly guard against becoming entangled with any religious preference. The government’s official position on questions of religion would be a strict neutrality.
I attended elementary school in the mid 1970s. School prayer was already gone. What I remember is starting each school day by standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. This was immediately followed by “a moment of silence.” I recall Mrs Pain—yes, that was her real name—telling our 3rd grade class that during the moment of silence we could either sit quietly and collect our thoughts, meditate, or pray silently. It was our choice. At the time, I knew nothing about the legal battles over school prayer, but looking back now the moment of silence seems like a good compromise.
But the political far right has been on the rise in the United States since the election of Donald Trump to the presidency in 2016. For now, the Republican Party, in large part, seems to have become the party of white christian nationalism, out to exact revenge—a key Christian principle—on perceived enemies and protect the wealth and power—another key Christian principle—of the party’s rich donor class. Donald Trump is their savior. He is their chosen one. He is also, with comic irony, a completely unprincipled man who lacks every single Christian virtue espoused in the New Testament.
And so this past week we saw a couple of Republican party state officials initiate policies that advance the goal of putting God (and Christianity) back into public schools.
In Louisiana, the Republican governor, Jeff Landry, signed a bill into law requiring all state elementary, secondary, and post secondary public schools (colleges), and private schools receiving state funds, to display the Ten Commandments “in each building it uses and classroom in each school under its jurisdiction.” The governor said the bill was “one of his favorites,” because “if you want to respect the rule of law, you gotta start from the original law given, which was Moses….He got his commandments from God.”
Meanwhile, in Oklahoma, at a state board of education meeting, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Ryan Walters, also a Republican, announced he was officially mandating that the Bible be incorporated into the curriculum of all public schools. Walters said:
It is essential that our kids have an understanding of the Bible and its historical context. So we will be issuing a memo today that every school district will adhere to, which is that every teacher, every classroom in the state, will have a Bible in the classroom and will be teaching from the Bible in the classroom to ensure that this historical understanding is there for every student in the state of Oklahoma in accordance with our academic standards and state law.
First, of course, there are the legal issues with these policies. In both cases, the state governments are imposing the views of a particular (Judeo-Christian) religious tradition on all students—whether they’re Christian or not. I can guarantee that both of these policies will be challenged in court as violations of the U.S. Constitution’s establishment clause. Furthermore, in the Oklahoma case, Walters’s policy would appear to directly violate article 2, section 5 of his own state’s Constitution, which says:
No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.
You can almost hear the army of lawyers rushing to file lawsuits in both states. It will be interesting to hear what arguments the states make in defense.
In the Louisiana case proponents might argue, I guess, that the 10 Commandants are basically universal moral rules that most reasonable people, regardless of their religious faith, would agree are good for society in general and shouldn’t be looked at in a strictly religious sense. But then it would be hard to argue that “Thou shalt have no other Gods before me” is a universal moral rule. This commandment is specifically referring to the God of the Old Testament. What about student’s whose religious (or non religious) beliefs don’t include a belief in the God of the Old Testament? Or the Bible for that matter?
The Oklahoma case, I think, is on even shakier legal ground. Walters carefully avoided religious language. He framed his argument as requiring the teaching of the Bible for its historical context and understanding. But it’s impossible to separate the Bible’s historical significance from its obvious religious significance. And again, as in the Louisiana case, the government will have chosen one religious tradition over others (non neutrality), which means the government is, in a sense, establishing a religious preference in the realm of public education. In a pluralistic democracy, where there are many religions and variations of the same religion, governments should keep a neutral position. In these cases, I believe, the policies violate the intent and spirit of the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution and multiple supreme court rulings.
There are other implications to consider also. If these policies are allowed to stand, I think the obvious question is what happens, for example, when a county or city public school district becomes mostly Muslim and the school board wants to post Muslim scripture in the schools and incorporate the Koran into the curriculum? Will that be acceptable? Of course not. This too would be a violation of the establishment clause. The point is that governments—school boards—should remain neutral when it comes to religion and keep public schools focused on providing a quality secular education. Religious education is something students can get at home or in their church or at privately funded religious schools.
Let me conclude with saying I consider myself a Christian, even if not a very good one. I believe the Bible and Christianity have played a significant role in the development of western civilization. I think it’s impossible to understand the significant accomplishments of western societies without understanding the important role Christianity played in shaping them.
I have a high regard for many religious schools. And though not Catholic, I think Catholic primary, secondary, and post secondary schools provide some of the best educations—religious or otherwise—a student can get in this country. I think an individual’s personal faith is a very important part of who they are, and I would encourage them to practice it and educate themselves about it. But I believe faith is a private matter and that no particular religion or faith should be given preference or direct support by our government—especially not in public schools.