Texas Schools get OK for elective Bible course
Local school districts got a green light Friday to offer high school students an elective Bible course without the specific state standards that some contend are necessary to guide well-intentioned teachers from straying into religious proselytizing.
State Board of Education members argued about whether they were obligated to establish specific state standards for the new course approved by state lawmakers last year or allow the 1,039 independent school districts to set up their own course, using existing general guidelines from English and social studies classes.
The argument focused on legislative intent. In the end, the board’s coalition of social conservatives prevailed, 10-5. Some religious experts immediately expressed dismay.
Read more here.
[From me]
I don’t know if this is a good idea. Sure, if a teacher is an accomplished Bible scholar it would be good. But what about having an atheist, Buddhist or Mormon teaching the Bible? I wouldn’t want my child being taught by someone who wasn’t empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Bible is meant for teaching at home and church or private Christian school. I had a non-believer teach a class on Christians in History while I was at UAB and it was very slanted against Christianity.
What do you think?
If the Bible is truth, and if there’s spiritual truth in the bible, and if the Holy Ghost sovereignly reveals truths to its readers, then I say most anything that gets young people to read it is good. I’ve heard enough empirical tales of folks setting out to read it so they can disprove it, who then got saved, to feel bad about folks reading it for ANY reason.
It’s not the schools’ job to point people to Jesus, but then it wasn’t Pilate’s job, either …. until he painted that sign that said “King of the Jews” and hung it over Jesus’ head, and THAT pointed a dying thief to Jesus.
If the devil can be an unwitting servant of the Most High God, I guess the schools can, too.
Bob Cleveland’s last blog post..You Pick The Caption
We had a class my high school in Oklahoma (a mere 30 years ago) that was “Bible as literature”. It was a bona fide English elective course. It happened to be taught by a wonderful Christian lady. I think it was our schools attempt to get around silly rules. I never took it, simply because the only time offered conflicted with something else I wanted to take and at that point in my life I wasn’t interested in most any English class.
I do find it interesting, as I think back about that, that another English teacher gave me a Mormon book, “He Walked the Americas”. I really resent it now and wish that I had known more about it then to stand up against it.
Rick Boyne’s last blog post..Dog Days of Summer
Rick’s “testimony” could be mine…except I did take the high school “Bible as Literature” class, and move the high school to Alabama.
Needless to say, no deep insights were gained. About the only good that came out of the class was the required reading part–we actually had to read the Bible!
I wonder what would happen if we had the same reading requirement for those in Sunday School! It’s kind of ironic isn’t it, we want our kids to pray in school and read the Bible in school, yet we so seldom “mandate” that in church or in the homes of believers? Why is that?
M. Steve Heartsill’s last blog post..What’s in Your Pringles Can?
I’m not happy with what the Texas State Board of Education has done here. They have not mandated strict guidelines for how this course should be taught, etc.
With religion being front and center in our World, I’d say it’s rather important for teens to have a firm grasp on the academic study of religion not to the confused with devotional religion. It shouldn’t matter who is teaching the comparative religion course though.
Without strict guidelines, who knows how much proselytizing will be going on.
As a side note, I took a “New Testament as Literature” course at the University of Georgia. We were exposed to many different possible interpretations and theories. But our teacher did not have an agenda. She did not push one interpretation over the other. We had atheists and agnostics in that class. And we had some really smart reformed guys from RUF. No complaints. The class was taught well. We were presented with many different ideas and allowed to think on our own.
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I agree that there should be some guidelines. I think all of y’all are right in the sense that this could turn out bad.
However, sometimes you have to take incremental policy steps to get to where you want to go. Not every policy can go from zero to sixty in one meeting. Sometimes it takes years, even decades to get what you were aiming for all along. Perhaps this will eventually lead to those guidelines, etc.
$.02
Michael’s last blog post..Jude Chapter 1: Be Weary of False Teachings
Hmmmm. Trying to decide if I should add my two cents or not.
Camey’s last blog post..The Gift of Quietness
Camey…your opinion is worth far more than $.02…
M. Steve Heartsill’s last blog post..What’s in Your Pringles Can?
Steve,
Aw. Thanks! I’ll be back…
Camey’s last blog post..Testing. Testing. Testing.
For all of us in the Christian camp who are excited about the introduction of this course…..What about when we begin offering “The Koran as Literature”?
We will definitely be “excited” by that, but I think in a slightly different way!
Charles Brazeale
Charles,
Like I said, I’m not in favor of this.
Kevin Bussey’s last blog post..Can you be a “Christian” and not believe in the deity of Jesus?
While I certainly believe Hebrews 4:12 (For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.) and Isaiah 55:10 (Isaiah 55:10-11 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
) I share Kevin’s concerns. Do I really want pagans teaching the Bible - or worse yet, theological liberals?
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