by Andrew Horn

Created on: September 14, 2007

This question is somewhat confusing, and from reading some of the other articles, it might also produce different answers from the same person, depending on how it is phrased.

As the question is phrased now, "Should public schools (presumably high schools as they are usually the only public school setting to offer elective courses) offer courses in the Bible?," my answer is sure. Why not? However, it would be my strong recommendation to any school considering to offer such a class to also offer courses dealing with the religious texts of other major religions. What I mean by this is, if the question were rephrased, "Should public schools offer courses in the Bible, exclusively?," my answer would be absolutely not.

That is the distinction that needs to be made. Would the school be limiting their new curriculum to the Bible, or would the Bible course be part of a general expansion in courses dealing with religion. Although offering a course on the Bible isn't illegal or immoral, it would be in a schools best interest to also offer courses covering other religions as well. In other words, they should teach all or nothing. To teach a class about the Bible, solely, without any alternative or comparison, would only invite trouble. Even if the course had the noblest intentions of viewing the Bible purely from a scholarly perspective, there would still be accusations or hints at political incorrectness, at best, and violations of Church and State, at worst. Moreover, it would be a educational disservice to the students to only offer them information regarding one of the worlds major religions.

I realize that this sounds like more a "no" answer than a "yes," but it's not. I only believe that there should be some recommendations, or guidelines, that go along with any course on the Bible, or any course dealing with religion.

Teaching a class on the Bible is a wonderful idea. Students get to be exposed to the historical and religious significance of one of the most widely read, and widely sold, religious texts in all the world. However, this exposure needs to be taught in context. Any course on the Bible needs to be accompanied by, or be part of a larger world religion curriculum. Context is everything, and without context, a student's education is diminished and skewed.

So, should public schools offer courses in the Bible? Absolutely. They should also offer courses in the Koran for Islam, the Torah for Judaism, the Book of Mormon for Mormonism, the Vedas for Hinduism, and any other religion or religious text that one can think of.

A student's education should not be limited simply because a subject has a religious base. However, it should also not be limited to only one narrow aspect of that subject as if it were all there was to know. Students need to be given the opportunity to explore, experience, and learn about everything the world has to offer...including, but not limited to, the Bible.

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