Texas wants Bible stories as reading school reading

(AP): Texas would make Bible stories required reading for more than five million public school students under a proposal that has reignited debate over widening efforts in the US to put more religion in classrooms.

A final vote by the Republican-controlled Texas State Board of Education on whether to approve the plan is set for Friday. Last year, Texas became the largest state to require every classroom to display the Ten Commandments. The proposal has drawn fierce opposition. Critics argue the changes violate the constitutional separation of Church and State, inflate the role of Christianity in the nation’s history, and favour it over other religions. Supporters say Judeo-Christian traditions were fundamental to the nation’s founding, and that should be reflected in the public school curriculum.

US President Donald Trump has pledged to protect and expand religious expression in public schools nationwide, and Texas — a red state that is home to about one in 10 of all US public school students — often sets the agenda. In 2023, Texas became the first state to allow the hiring of chaplains to counsel students and, the following year, the board narrowly approved an optional Bible-infused curriculum for elementary schools. Last year, Republican lawmakers required public schools to display the Ten Commandments, a measure recently upheld by a federal appeals court.

Texas has about 5.5 million public school students from kindergarten through high school. If approved by the board, the required reading list would take effect in 2030.

“We need to focus on what our nation was founded on and not apologize for that,” Susan Perez, founder of the Citizens for Education Reform, told the education board during testimony over the proposal. “It is the truth and we should not be afraid.”

Picture-book stories for elementary students including Noah’s Ark are on the required reading list. By fourth grade, students would encounter passages about Jesus in the New Testament. By middle school, students would be expected to read several passages about Jesus, including passages from his most famous sermon, and another where he instructs people to cast aside earthly anxiety and seek the kingdom of God. In high school, students would read the parable of the prodigal son, portions of the book of Job, and the story of Adam and Eve.

The required readings rely heavily on the King James Bible, one of the most popular translations, and more recent evangelical translations that critics argue lean too heavily on Christian interpretations of the texts. Other critics question whether religious stories should be taught at all in schools attended by thousands of children of Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and other faiths, and others who identify as atheist or agnostic.