Lately, I have been asked about certain things happening in our country. I decided to address these here. First, Louisiana has mandated displaying the Ten Commandments in all publicly funded classrooms. Second, Oklahoma’s State Superintendent mandated that all schools incorporate the Bible into classroom lessons and that any teacher refusing to follow the mandate would lose their teaching license. Finally, prayer in schools has been a hot-button issue for so many Christians; I will also address it here.
When I was a kid, we had daily prayer in school. We also had the Ten Commandments on the wall—usually next to a picture of the President and the Declaration of Independence. Most of my teachers had a Bible on their desks as well. Those without one were the exception rather than the rule. At times, the teacher might even read out of it to the class.
I was in Junior High when the Assistant Principal came over the loudspeaker one day. He usually led the pledge and prayer. This day was different. He led the pledge and said, “We have been told we can no longer have prayer. But we will do what is right until they shut us down. Let’s pray.” He led us in prayer and signed off. I assume he was quickly fired because we never saw him at the school again.
As with so many such issues, I want to inspire thought. We must not support or oppose something without considering what it could lead to. Unintended consequences are part of the equation. I want to lay out some scenarios. I’ll start with prayer, then move on to teaching the Bible, and finally end with the display of the Ten Commandments. Keep in mind that I am going to approach each of these from a biblical Christian worldview.
Suppose the law is changed to allow teacher-led prayer times. Notice I said, “teacher-led.” I mean the teacher leading the prayer and not just participating. To whom is the teacher praying? What is the teacher praying about? When I was in school, you had about a 90% chance that the teacher leading prayer was a Protestant Christian. But if the school will lead your children in prayer, you might want to know to whom they will pray (the God of the Bible or another). Of course, my children are all grown now. But when they were in school, many in the church were surprised that I did not call for teacher-led prayer in their school. I would prefer they not be taught to pray to false deities or in the way of false religions. We need to stop assuming that most of our teachers are still believers, like they were in our childhood. Those days are gone. Sadly, but gone nonetheless.
Next, let’s consider teaching the Bible in the public school classroom. I love the Bible and have spent over thirty years studying and teaching it. Let’s use the Oklahoma mandate as an example. It says the Bible must be incorporated into classroom lessons. Let’s lay aside the whole argument about whether he has the right to make this mandate or if the local school board is the only one who can do this. I will say that I find it interesting when people who usually call for local control over schools change when a state official tries to run around the local districts with something with which they agree. But that is not important. You see, when I was in school, the teachers would have treated the Bible with respect. They would have honored it as the Word of God. But who would be teaching it today?
In my undergraduate studies (at a state college), I took a class on Ancient Literature. It included extensive study of the Bible. The professor told us outright that he saw it as his purpose to undermine our belief in the Bible so we would see it as nothing more than an ancient text with no divine inspiration. He wanted to make us all atheists. This was not hidden. It was blatant. If the Bible is to be taught in school, who will teach it? What is their perspective? Do you want a teacher who will twist the Bible and concentrate only on the negatives without considering apologetic answers to these? I wouldn’t want that for my kids.
Finally, let’s look at the mandate for displaying the Ten Commandments. This is probably the one that matters the least to me. Ultimately, I wonder how many students read these signs in the classroom. I also want to ask those who praise this mandate what they think the sign will accomplish. Will a potential school shooter read, “Thou shalt not kill,” and for no other reason change his mind? Will a nonbelieving child read, “I am the Lord your God,” and suddenly become a theist? Will students have a better relationship with their parents because they read, ‘Honor your father and your mother”? Or, like most classroom decorations, will these signs fade into the background?
The problems in this country are not caused by a lack of prayer, Bible instruction, or Ten Commandments displays in the schools. They also will not be fixed by reversing these. The problems we see are birthed at home and church—then nurtured in the schools. The solutions will only be found as the church reaches families and sees them transformed. Yes, school is important. What the school teaches is essential. However, a lousy lesson from school can often be overcome by a better lesson and a better example from home and church.
As a kid in school, my classes inspired me to seek answers to hard questions. When I sought a biblical response to the materialistic scientism I was being taught, I was told, “Good Christians don’t ask such questions.” This was useless. It drove me from church. If asking questions was a problem, then I felt church was a waste of time. Encourage people to ask questions. Encourage them to ask hard questions. Seek the answers, and teach them to do the same.
What about the house? Should we expect our children to listen to a display saying, “Thou shalt not commit adultery,” when they know where Dad keeps his porn collection? Will a son honor his mother when he sees Dad abusing and berating her? Will the kids respect their father when the mother tears him down in front of them? Will they learn not to steal when they see their parents doing precisely that? Before calling on the school to teach these things to our children, we should take that duty back. Begin modeling faith in the home and at the table.
Am I saying these mandates should not be done? Am I opposed to them? In this case, I am more interested in telling you what I support than oppose. I support families and churches following the Word of God. I know this will accomplish far more than political mandates. Besides, I have a sense of where these political mandates come from. They come from a desire to garner votes. Our children, their education, and their souls are worth far more than winning the next election. Whatever the government does in school, take up the educator’s mantel for yourself with your children and grandchildren.