(RNS) — The Texas State Board of Education is preparing to vote next week on requiring schoolchildren in the state to read about a dozen Bible passages and religious stories, stepping into the long-running debate over religion’s — and specifically Christianity’s — place in the public school classroom.
A detailed look at the religious excerpts, part of about 200 passages that could become required reading in kindergarten through high school, shows a reliance on Christian perspectives without clear guidance on how to place the stories in historical or devotional context.
The new curriculum would have students as young as 6 interact with biblical stories titled “Noah’s Ark,” “David and Goliath” — meant to be read aloud from picture books — and “Daniel and the Lion’s Den” in their English classes. Daniel’s story is to be supplied by the Christian Broadcasting Network, a media company founded by televangelist Pat Robertson in the 1960s.
In fourth grade, students would encounter Luke 14:7-11, a New Testament passage where Jesus says: “All those who lift themselves up will be made humble. And those who make themselves humble will be lifted up.”
The long-debated reading list — preliminarily approved by the education board in April — requires schools to use specific Bible translations, a situation that can influence the tone and message of the passages.
The Christian scriptures were not written in English, so historically, any attempt to translate the original Gr …