Teaching the Bible in public schools can be done constitutionally, but not necessarily easily.
Deciding through which context to teach the Bible, and then selecting a curriculum that is academic and objective in nature, are among the complexities outlined by panelists Sunday during a "Fruit from the Tree of Knowledge: The Bible in Public Schools" discussion.
The program came just weeks after the Chesterfield County School Board unanimously approved a textbook for an elective course on the Bible's impact on history. The class has yet to be taught.
Through a discussion with the audience of about 50 people at Virginia Commonwealth University, panelists covered an array of complications that can make teaching the text a tricky undertaking.
"Even the most basic facts about the Bible, who wrote it, when it was written, even what books comprise the Bible, let alone its actual meaning, are the subject of strong religious feelings and are very much in dispute," said Rebecca K. Glenberg, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia, who suggested a broader world-religions course as an alternate option.
There are also various contexts in which the Bible can be taught, from its influence on literature to its place among other sacred texts.
One audience member suggested the role that religion played in the history of this country be woven into school history studies.
Kent H. Richards, executive director emeritus of the Society of Biblical Literature, stressed that the success of such a course in large part hinges on teacher training and an understood goal of the course.
He advised that the Bible be taught as any other academic subject and not as a devotional, that educators teach for awareness and not acceptance, to introduce diverse perspectives and to neither promote nor denigrate the Bible.
Paul "Fritz" Kling, president of Kling Philanthropy Group LLC, and Eric Kniffin, legal counsel with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, rounded out the panel.
The program was presented by the First Freedom Center; the Religious Studies Program and L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at VCU; and the University of Richmond School of Law.
omeola@timesdispatch.com
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