Texas is about to make it mandatory for more than 5 million of its public school students to study biblical stories. The state has led a national movement by conservatives to introduce Christian teachings into American classrooms.
The Republican-majority Texas State Board of Education voted Friday to approve a measure that establishes children’s Bible stories and Bible verses as required reading in their curriculum.
Many of the students are already familiar with at least some Christian teachings: Texas last year became the largest state to require classrooms to display the Ten Commandments, a law recently upheld by a federal court.
The new list of required titles would include a picture book adaptation of the story of David and Goliath for elementary school students and Bible passages about Adam and Eve for older students, among other references.
At the same meeting, the school board voted to rewrite the state’s social studies curriculum, with a greater focus on Texas and U.S. history and reducing the weight of some teachings about history and global cultures. The change eliminates a sixth-grade “World Cultures” course and significantly expands classes on communism.
The proposals, which would take effect in 2030, have deeply divided teachers, parents and community members — hundreds of whom appeared before the school board this week to express their concerns and enthusiasm.
Advocates argue that the Bible should be studied as an essential literary text that can help students understand Western history and the founding of the United States. A public policy group celebrated the move as the “final battle” in an effort to eliminate from Texas schools classes on race and history that they say divide students and criticize America’s founders.
However, those who oppose the changes claim that the required reading list favors Christianity over other religions and violates the constitutionally protected separation of church and state. The teachings can also infringe on their children’s religious upbringing, they say, particularly in non-Christian homes.
From Sunday school to public school
In recent years, Texas leaders have largely eliminated studies of racial and cultural diversity while expanding schools’ possibilities for introducing Christianity to students.
In 2023, the state became the first to allow church officials to mentor students, and the following year it passed a measure offering more funding to schools that teach an optional elementary curriculum with biblical content.
The state’s education code already requires schools to teach “religious literature, including the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and the New Testament, and their impact on history and literature.” As students learn U.S. history, supporters of the proposed curriculum argue that Christian texts should be inseparable from lessons about the nation’s founding.
“We do not need to incorporate every religious belief into our history or our literary works, because our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian values,” said Susan Perez, founder of a Christian parent advocacy group, Citizens for Education Reform, at a school board meeting Monday. Perez highlighted Christian references in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, which was signed in the “Year of Our Lord” of 1787.
Under the new reading list, second graders would learn the story “ROAR! – Daniel and the Lion’s Den.” As students advance in reading level, they would be introduced to excerpts directly from the Bible. Sixth graders would learn “The Shepherd’s Psalm” from the Book of Psalms, along with religious writings by George Washington and poems by Langston Hughes and Robert Frost.
Several community members expressed concerns that the plan would violate their autonomy as parents in overseeing their children’s religious education. Kimmie Fink, mother of an active-duty military family based in Texas, told the board, “I would like to believe that my children’s constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom rights will remain intact wherever we are.”
“Isn’t that the case in Texas, a state that upholds parental rights? In Texas, parents have a fundamental legal right to guide the moral and religious formation of their children without interference from the state. The proposed literary works trample on that right,” Fink added.
Some proponents of curriculum changes dispute arguments that children will be explicitly taught about religion, asserting that biblical passages and stories will be taught in the context of world history.
Francis, a board member, said he does not consider the inclusion of biblical passages in classes to be “proselytizing.” “What we intend to do is simply introduce Texas children to the richness and breadth of a canon of Western literature,” Francis told the CNN on Friday, after the vote.
Earlier this week, former public school administrator Nancy Barker argued before the board that Bible readings “will provide students with the background knowledge they will need to understand the important books, speeches, poems, and documents that have shaped our civilization.”
“We don’t all believe in the same things”
Board member Tiffany Clark, a Christian and Democrat who represents parts of Dallas-Fort Worth, has publicly opposed the proposed curriculum. Clark said she and some of her Christian constituents believe “Bible classes should be taught on Sundays.”
“We don’t all believe the same things,” Clark said, noting that Christian denominations reference different translations of the Bible and sometimes differ in their interpretations. The proposed curriculum mandates specific biblical translations, including the King James Bible, widely used by Protestant and evangelical churches but shunned by the Roman Catholic Church.
Clark also says she fears that the emphasis on Christian texts will alienate children from other religious traditions and prevent their parents from being the ones to shape their religious upbringing. About a third of adults in Texas identify as non-Christian, according to Pew Research Center surveys from 2023-2024.
While parents have the option of exempting their children from some required teaching, Clark said, absence from class could impact students’ test scores. Because the texts would be part of the curriculum, they could be included on standardized tests, potentially affecting the school district’s testing history if students do not perform well.
A mother who spoke before the school board on Monday in support of the proposal said she believes Texas has always stood for “giving our children the knowledge they need to succeed.” “Keeping biblical references in our social studies standards is not about imposing my religion, it’s about giving our students a well-rounded education here and making sure they understand the history,” the mother said.
However, teachers can be put in the position of teaching religious texts they are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with, said Rabbi Joshua Fixler of Congregation Emanu El in Houston.
“This list is full of Christian texts that are inappropriate for public school classrooms. As a rabbi and parent of Jewish children, I believe it is critical that this board makes a distinction between teaching about religion and teaching religion. This list will force teachers to cross that line,” Fixler said.
