Bible lessons don’t belong in city schools
As a person who does his best to be a good practicing Christian, I am concerned regarding state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters’ latest edict requiring the teaching of the Bible in fifth through 12th grades in all Oklahoma public schools. In part, he justifies this action based on the Bible’s “influence on our nation’s founders and the principles of our Constitution. This is not merely an educational directive but a crucial step in ensuring our students grasp the core values and historical context of our country.” He said that the Oklahoma State Department of Education will provide support materials to “ensure uniformity in delivery.”
If Walters and the state Education Department take this process seriously, it seems to me that they will have to deal with the following.
The Bible was used to justify the American system of slavery and subsequent Jim Crow laws. Examples in the Bible would include Genesis 9:1827, sometimes known as “The Curse of Ham,” which is frequently cited as justification for racial discrimination. Another example would be Ephesians 6:5-7, which says, “Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling…” These examples can only be interpreted to mean that one group of people is clearly superior to another, the teaching of which would violate state law. The impacts of slavery and racism continue today.
Women didn’t get to vote in this country until 1920. The subjugation of women by our Founding Fathers derives its justification from the Bible. Genesis 3:16-17 says to women, “Your desire shall be for your husband and he shall rule over you.” In addition to justifying not giving women the right to vote, this passage continues to be used today to justify not allowing women to assume roles of authority in many Christian denominations. It is also used by abusive men as justification for sexually and physically abusing wives, spouses and partners and for years protected American men from prosecution for committing spousal abuse in male-dominated courts that ignored battery and assault laws when the victim was a woman.
A more graphic and disturbing justification for the subjugation of women is in Genesis 19. In this biblical account, Lot in response to the presence of a group of men asking for sex replies, “I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like to them. But don’t do anything to these men (including his future sons-in-law) for they have come under the protection of my roof.” This blatant example of violent sexism does not seem to represent the kind of core values that we want to teach our children.
Similar accounts can be found for the biblical justification of the American genocide and ongoing oppression of Native Americans. The Bible is also used to justify hatred for and a lack of Christian compassion for LBGTQ+ Americans.
It is not possible to honestly deny the absolutely devastating impact that such use of biblical justification has inflicted on countless millions of American citizens, including women, people of color, people who identify as queer or those who practice a different religion.
Will Walters and the state Education Department include examples such as these in their supporting materials to demonstrate both the positive and negative impacts that the Bible has had on our country’s core values and historical context? Somehow, I doubt it.
I said I am a practicing Christian, but I frequently struggle with some of the contradictions contained in the Bible. I am also an American, and I believe that this action by Walters represents a clear violation of the establishment clause in our Constitution. As such, I trust that the courts will get it right and prohibit this truly partisan and self-serving action from going forward.
Mike Mize, of Oklahoma City, is a retired program manager and has been active in the Presbyterian church on a local, regional and national level.