All school districts in Oklahoma received a directive on Thursday from the state’s top education official, asking them to include the Bible in the curriculum for grades five through twelve.
The directive, which the Washington Examiner exclusively obtained, states that the state Department of Education will shortly be providing guidelines and instructional materials, and it mandates that the school districts comply immediately.
Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters told the Washington Examiner, “There is a critical need to read and study the Bible in Oklahoma’s classrooms.” The Bible has been a primary source for Western civilization and the creation of our nation. Each classroom will have a copy of the Bible. In every school, immediate and rigorous compliance is required.
The Bible is the “cornerstone of Western civilization,” according to the letter, and it has shaped history, culture, morality, the American founding, and the Constitution.
The letter said, “This is not only an instructional directive but a critical step in guaranteeing our pupils understand the fundamental values and historical background of our nation.”
Following the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision to overturn what would have been the first-ever use of public funding for a private religious charter school nationwide, Walters made this move. According to the court, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School cannot receive funding because it is a Catholic institution.
Walters declared, “I firmly believe that the Oklahoma Supreme Court was mistaken once more.” “Our Constitution does not contain the phrase ‘separation of religion and state,’ and it is reprehensible that the Oklahoma Supreme Court misinterpreted important First Amendment rulings and approved discrimination against Christians on the basis of their faith alone. Oklahomans want educational choice, not discrimination based on religion.
Walters added that parents in Oklahoma are looking for more options for education outside of traditional classrooms, based just on the enrollment demand for St. Isidore’s.
He declared, “This ruling cannot and must not stand.” “I will never stop fighting for Oklahomans’ constitutional, God-given freedom to express their religious conviction. There will be additional legal action in favor of those parents and the millions of Oklahomans who believe profoundly in religious liberty.”
A Louisiana law, which aligns with Oklahoma’s mandate regarding the Bible and the Ten Commandments, mandates the display of the Ten Commandments in all publicly financed K–12 and college classrooms. As of this week, a legal challenge against that law exists.
Recently, the neighboring state of Texas released new reading standards that include biblical allusions. They are hoping for permission in November.
