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Oklahoma: Top education official orders Bible to be taught in all public schools

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – In a move that has drawn condemnation from supporters of the separation of church and state, Oklahoma’s conservative Education Superintendent last week ordered all public schools in the state to teach the Bible in grades 5 through 12, with immediate effect, the Associated Press reports.

Sending his order to all of Oklahoma’s school districts on Thursday, State Superintendent Ryan Walters said the mandate is to be implemented “immediately” and that “strict compliance is expected.”

In a statement explaining his action, Walter said: “The Bible is an indispensable historical and cultural touchstone. Without basic knowledge of it, Oklahoma students are unable to properly contextualize the foundation of our nation which is why Oklahoma educational standards provide for its instruction.”

The order is expected to be vehemently challenged in the courts, with civil rights activists arguing it violates the US Constitution’s Establishment Clause, which prohibits the government from “establishing” a religion.

“Public schools are not Sunday schools,” Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said in a statement. “This is textbook Christian Nationalism: Walters is abusing the power of his public office to impose his religious beliefs on everyone else’s children. Not on our watch.”