Back on May 30th (a week after the Texas GOP suggested Bible reading in the public schools), the Texas Education Agency proposed adding Bible lessons into the public school curriculum. With an attempt to base it in science, they claim that this is proven to increase cognition and test scores. They are also offering schools an extra $60 per pupil if the school uses the curriculum (sounds like a bribe to me). In response, David R. Brockman, Ph.D., a religious studies scholar and Christian theologian connected to Rice University, claimed that after studying the curriculum, he found that the Bible lessons had no connection to the educational lessons they were combined with. The lessons also misrepresent the role the Bible played in the shaping of America, adding that there are “numerous misleading passages, inaccuracies, and errors in the instructional materials.
I have to hand it to the proponents who are attempting to form public schools into their warped vision of pseudo-Christianity; they are persistent. It has been 62/63 years (two different court cases) since the Supreme Court removed prayer and Bible reading from public schools (with only Justice Potter Stewart dissenting in both cases). The first case took 11 years to be decided, and most people alive today have never been subjected to the force-feeding of religion in our public school education. Recently, though, a number of states have passed laws to make America Christian again. I hope you see the snark in that statement.
Missing in all of this is the Golden Rule, which exists, in some form, in just about every religion. Every time I read about religion being forced on children by politicians, I wonder to myself if these spiritual manipulators ever ask themselves how they would like this to be done to them. It is happening. All over America, the Satanic Temple is organizing “After School Satan Clubs” and getting their members to sign up to offer in-school religious education about, well – Satan? (Cue the Church Lady) The Satanic Temple and the After School Satan Club, despite their name, do not worship Satan and do not “believe in the existence of Satan or the supernatural,” said the temple’s website. Rather, temple members consider the concept of Satan to be a “‘mythological framework’ that encourages people to question authority and follow ‘the best available evidence,'” Lucien Greaves, the co-founder of the Satanic Temple, told the NY Times.
Whatever. This is America, the place where anyone can practice their religion freely. And as I have said for 40 years, if you let one in, you have to let them all in. That wall of separation is a metaphorical one, built to protect all of us from unwanted intrusion of any religion we don’t want in our lives. I don’t know what kind of Christians are doing this force-feeding, but in this case, they have crossed the line of decency and faithfulness. Jesus never forced Himself on anyone, and neither should we. Sharing faith, if asked, is one thing; abusing people with it is an entirely unacceptable way to live. Everything we do should be in line with the Golden Rule. This isn’t.
Prayer – Holy God, speak to all of us in Your words so we can understand that faith is offered and shared, but never forced by the government. Amen.
Today’s art is a digital image by Nikolay Todorov of the Norse Gods. Shall we start a religious group?