Despite intense backlash from secular opponents, Oklahoma state officials are not backing down from their mission to promote faith in the public schools. According to recent reports, over 500 Bibles have been ordered to be placed in Advanced Placement (AP) Government classrooms in Oklahoma as an “academic literary source.”
The initiative led by State Superintendent Ryan Walters seeks to ultimately order 55,000 King James Version Bibles for classrooms across the state alongside other relevant documents to United States history, such as the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. He said, “We are focused on ensuring we get Bibles available in every classroom in our state as quickly as we can,” Walters said about his efforts. “I will take every step possible to ensure Oklahoma students have the resources they need to fully understand American history.
Walters continued, “By acting now, Oklahoma is leading the country on a path toward greater focus on academic excellence by providing critical historical, cultural, and literary context for our students. We are not going to change our history, and the Bible is a major part of that.”
Describing the initiative’s importance, Walters continued, “We have the Bible, the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights—these are foundational documents in our nation’s history. Our kids have to understand the role the Bible played in influencing American history.”
The Christian Tribune previously reported on the Oklahoma Education department creating the “Office of Religious Liberty and Patriotism.” Speaking about the new office, Walters said, “For decades our nation’s public schools have tragically been ground zero for the erosion of religious liberty across our country. The radical left never misses a chance to co- opt the teacher unions and their minions to indoctrinate our children against traditional values of faith and family, seeking to attack any display of faith or religion or patriotism.
He continued, “It is no coincidence that the dismantling of faith and family values in public schools directly correlates with declining academic outcomes in our public schools. In Oklahoma, we are reversing this negative trend and, working with the incoming Trump Administration, we are going to aggressively pursue education policies that will improve academic outcomes and give our children a better future.”
A statement from the Oklahoma State Department of Education read, “The new office will be charged with supporting teachers and students when their constitutional rights are threatened by well-funded, out of state groups as happened in Skiatook last year when a school was bullied into removing Bible quotes from a classroom. At the time, Superintendent Walters was clear in his assessment: “the removal of Bible verses from display in Skiatook under the threat of a baseless lawsuit is unacceptable. The Constitution guarantees, and the Supreme Court has affirmed in Kennedy v. Bremerton, the right of teachers to religious freedom and expression. American citizens do not give up their right to practice their faith at the schoolhouse door or anywhere else.”
Featured image credit: United States House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ryan_Walters_(Oklahoma_Superintendent).png