CNN has reported on several bills sailing through the Texas state legislature which seek to impose religion – no, to impose Christianity – on public school students.
My previous self would have been ecstatic about this news, but today, I no longer live inside a bubble, and I know this legislation has nothing to do with religious liberty and everything to do with supremacy.
One Texas bill would require each public school classroom to display a copy of the Ten Commandments. It passed the state Senate 17-12, and will now head to the state’s House of Representatives.
Previous Self: YES! Christians are once again taking our rightful place in American culture, where we will humbly lead the way in righteousness. Our neighbors will recognize the great wisdom of our guiding principles!
Today Self: NO.
- First of all, our “rightful place” is shoulder to shoulder with our neighbors, not above them.
- Second, American Christians tend to be neither humble nor righteous.
- Third, Christians do not have a monopoly on guiding principles. The Ten Commandments are not really unique – and they’re not “ours.”
The state senator who authored the bill, Phil King, has claimed, “Religious liberty was a bedrock of America’s founding. For the last several decades, expression of that liberty has been restricted…[This bill] restores those liberties that were lost, and reminds students all across Texas of the importance of a fundamental foundation of American and Texas law: the Ten Commandments.”
Previous Self: YES! Our children need to be reminded every day of the Christian laws that made us a great nation from the beginning! This is a critical part of our religious liberty.
Today Self: NO, for so many reasons.
- Our religious liberty has not been “restricted” in the last several decades. It was reined in because Christianity had overstepped its constitutional boundaries – and trampled on the liberties of others.
- That said, even if every public school classroom were wallpapered with the Ten Commandments, it would not change behavior. We adults break those commandments on a daily basis (and by “we” I mean Christians).
- America was born in sin. Our treatment of enslaved and native peoples in our land was a gross violation of every commandment.
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Another bill passed in the Texas state senate last week would require schools to “provide students and employees with an opportunity to participate in a period of prayer and reading of the Bible or other religious text on each school day.” Only those who sign a consent form may participate, and by doing so, they waive the right to take the school district to court for violation of the Establishment Clause.
Previous Self: YES! This is a recognition that Bible reading and prayer are worthwhile endeavors. This is certain to have a positive impact, and Christian kids can let their lights shine! And nobody will be forced to participate, so they can’t complain. Religious liberty is back!
Today Self: NO. This is unnecessary.
- Bible reading and prayer are worthwhile endeavors, but they do not need to happen in a public school building that is funded by tax dollars of all Texans.
- No student should be associated by default with a religion, and have to “opt out” in order to be freed from it. Belief systems literally belong anywhere except in government-run places.
- Setting aside time during every school day just for Christians to do something special, while the rest wait, is discriminatory and divisive.
- Demanding that parents waive their right to settle a religious rights issue in court is un-American.
After the passage of the two bills, the lieutenant governor of Texas, Dan Patrick said in a statement, “allowing the Ten Commandments and prayer back into our public schools is one step we can take to make sure that all Texas have the right to freely express their sincerely held religious beliefs,” and “bringing the Ten Commandments and prayer back to our public schools will enable our students to become better Texans.”
Previous Self: Yes! Kids – and all Christians – should not be barred from expressing their religious beliefs. Praise Jesus, we’re taking Texas back for the Lord and for religious liberty!
Today Self: Again, NO.
- Christian students in public schools are not barred from expressing their beliefs appropriately. They do not need commandments and Bible study time at school in order to do it.
- These students presumably have a Christian home and a church in which they can express their beliefs, and where they can study their Bibles and pray.
If Christian leaders in Texas want public school students to shine in a dark world, they should recall Jesus’ words in Matthew 22:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.
When adults begin to model obedience to the Great Commandment, then they may begin to look for godliness in the next generation.
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- How the Bible helps us demonize the poor
- What evangelical certainty looks like
- “Guns don’t kill – sin kills”?
- The trap of being an A+ Christian (and how to escape)
FEATURED IMAGE: “Texas Flag” by sylvester75117 is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
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