A state mandate to incorporate the Bible into grades 5-12 lesson plans has set the stage for an epic showdown. Strap on for this faceoff in Oklahoma just weeks before the start of the new school year. The state superintendent of public instruction Ryan Walters warned that critics who are against the new guidelines which were released last week “will comply, and I will use every means to make sure of it.”
The defiant message from some Oklahoma schools: Bring it on.
Schools and parents have already begun the process of preparing lawsuits.
Walters’s guidance, which follows a June announcement of mandatory biblical curricula for grades five through 12, says that lessons on the Christian text should emphasize its historical context, literary significance and artistic and musical influence. The guidance also says a physical copy of the book should be in every classroom, along with copies of the Ten Commandments, the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.
In a statement to The Hill, a spokesperson for Walters said, “Oklahoma school districts are required by state law to teach the historical significance of the Bible. Superintendent Walters will hold teachers and administrators accountable. Rogue, left-wing activists who refuse can leave Oklahoma and go to California.”
I can’t WAIT for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on this BLATANT VIOLATION of the original intent of the First Amendment.