Bible passages to be mandatory in Texas schools

Several Bible passages will soon be mandatory reading in schools across Texas following their addition to a new obligatory reading list by the State Board of Education.

Alongside texts from other writers, including Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare and Martin Luther King, the state’s five million school children will also study passages about Adam and Eve, the burning bush, David and Goliath, Job and excerpts about Jesus from the Gospels.

The mandated material will come into force in 2030 after the Republican-controlled board voted in favour of the new proposals in a reported 9-5 majority.

The move is the latest item to further intensify national discussion on religious involvement in schools, after the state previously required them to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.

Proponents of the change argue the material will give students a stronger understanding of the US’s Judeo-Christian values, with the nation’s founding including references to God, while critics argue that church and state should be kept entirely separate.

Asked about these claims, Christian Institute Director Ciaran Kelly told en: “Whether you have a Christian faith or not, you cannot deny that the Bible is both the most well-read and most influential book in the history of the world.

“It has fundamentally shaped the world, especially the Western world, for good and in a way that cannot be said of any other piece of literature. Separation of church and state doesn’t change that. Where Texas has led, may many other states follow.”