Separation Of Church And State Debate Over Schools Heats Up
A U.S. district judge heard arguments on Oct. 21 over whether Louisiana public schools should be required to post the Ten Commandments prominently in each classroom, as the Legislature now stipulates.
In Oklahoma, several organizations are suing the State Board of Education over its mandate that the Bible be incorporated in public school lessons in grades five through 12 statewide.
The Oklahoma Board of Education has approved the expenditure of $3 million this fiscal year and next to purchase 55,000 King James Version Bibles and accompanying publications of select historical documents for classroom instruction.
READ: Amid Calls For Bibles in Schools, Some Religious Voters Are Tuning Out
Also in Oklahoma, attorneys have filed an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking permission to open what would be the first publicly funded religious charter school in the nation, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.
In Ohio, a handful of private religious schools received a total of nearly $4 million in public funds for renovations and structural improvements including a playground this fiscal year, according to a listing on the Office of Budget and Management website, which many local leaders said is the first for the state.
The cases test the separation of church and state guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution, but variously interpreted by legal experts and judges.
In the Louisiana case, U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles heard arguments in a lawsuit filed by nine families including Christian pastors, Jewish leaders and others, as well as groups including the state and national American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
The plaintiffs are trying to block the new law that requires all schools to display the Ten Commandments by Jan. 1, 2025, citing the scripture’s historical significance. But those opposed to the law say it violates the Constitution.
“That’s why we have a separation of church and state,” State Senator Royce Duplessis, who voted against the measure, has said. “We learned the Ten Commandments when we went to Sunday School. As I said on the Senate floor, if you want your kids to learn the Ten Commandments, you can take them to church.”
But Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, fighting to keep the law active, has countered, “Tell your child not to look at them.”
Louisiana is the only state to mandate such a display since the U.S. Supreme Court declared unconstitutional and solely religious a 1978 Kentucky law mandating the same. Louisiana bases its mandate on historical significance rather than religion, according to the text of the law on the legislative website, describing the commandments as “foundational” to Louisiana and the U.S.
Ohio’s distribution of $4 million in grants to private religious schools includes $1.5 million for Mansfield Christian School, $1 million for Holy Trinity Orthodox Christian Academy and Preschool, and other grants ranging from $800,000 for Saint Edwards High School, $250,000 each for Temple Christian School and Bellefontaine Calvary Christian School, and as little as $4,000 for playground enhancements at St. Mary School.
The allocations are included in the $190.7 billion biennial budget for fiscal years 2024 and 2025.
In Tennessee, an effort to pass a statewide voucher program to fund private education with public funds died in 2024, but Gov. Bill Lee pledged to try again in 2025.
In Oklahoma, four organizations representing dozens of Oklahoma residents filed a lawsuit Oct. 17 in the Supreme Court of Oklahoma seeking to block State Superintendent Ryan Walters from spending $3 million to purchase Bibles in support of his mandate, and seeking to block the mandate itself.
The lawsuit points out Article 11, Section 5 of the Oklahoma Constitution, which states, “No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice filed the lawsuit on behalf of a diverse group of more than 30 residents, including parents, students, teachers and pastors.
Oklahoma’s mandate comes with guidance to focus on the Bible’s historical, literary, artistic and musical influences.
“The Bible has been a key cornerstone in the development of Western thought, influencing legal systems, ethical frameworks, and cultural norms,” Walters wrote in his guidance. “Teachers must focus on how biblical principles have shaped the foundational aspects of Western societies, such as the concepts of justice, human rights, and the rule of law.”
Similarly, the Texas State Board of Education is considering using curriculum that incorporates Bible stories into K-5 curriculum because of the “literary and historical value of the content,” 19thnews.org reported.
Questions of separation of church and state will likely be settled by the nation’s highest court, as attorneys for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City hope the court will take up its case on the use of public funding for the religious charter school.
“The Oklahoma Attorney General’s attack against religious educators who wish to serve their communities through privately operated charter schools is wrong on the law and even worse for families in need,” John Meiser, director of the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic and associate clinical professor of law, said in support of the archdiocese upon its filing with the High Court.
“St. Isidore would offer an innovative schooling option to bring opportunity and educational choice to those communities who need it most. That is an act of service and generosity that we all should welcome. And St. Isidore’s right not to be excluded from this program simply because of its faith is a freedom that the Constitution guarantees.”
This article has been republished with permission from Baptist Press.
Diana Chandler is Baptist Press’ senior writer.