Oklahoma orders schools to teach the Bible in every classroom

Oklahoma's education department ordered every teacher in the state to have a Bible in their classroom and to teach from it, in an announcement on Thursday that challenges US Supreme Court rulings that have found state sponsorship of religion unconstitutional.

Ryan Walters, Oklahoma's superintendent of public instruction, announced the order with immediate effect at Thursday's department board meeting in which he said special attention will be afforded to the 10 commandments.

“Every teacher, every classroom in the state will have a Bible in the classroom and will be teaching from the Bible in the classroom to ensure this historical understanding is there for every student in the state of Oklahoma,” he said.

He called the Bible, the holy scriptures of Judaism and Christianity, one of the “foundational documents of ... Western civilisation”. He said important historical figures, including civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, referred to the text.

The Hebrew and Christian Bible include the Jewish prophet Moses receiving the 10 commandments on Mount Sinai, while only the Christian Bible includes the New Testament. Walters, who is Christian, did not stipulate which version teachers must use to comply with his order and his spokesperson declined to answer questions.

The establishment clause of the US constitution's first amendment has been interpreted to prohibit the state from sponsoring or establishing any particular religion. The Oklahoma constitution goes further, stipulating any public school and spending of public funds must be nonsectarian and not benefit “any sect, church, denomination or system of religion”.

That part of the state constitution was cited two days before Walters' announcement, when the Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down an effort in which Walters was involved to create the first taxpayer-funded religious charter school in the US.

The main teachers' labour union in Oklahoma said Walters' Bible order was unconstitutional and state law said school districts have the right to decide which books are available in their classrooms.

“Teaching about the historical context of religion (and the Bible) is permissible; however, teaching religious doctrine is not permissible,” the Oklahoma Education Association said.