AUSTIN, Texas (ABP) — A group of Texas clergy, including some Baptist pastors, is speaking out against a proposed resolution that a state governing board may use to embroil itself yet again in the nation’s culture wars – this time over Islam.
A group of pastors, priests, rabbis, imams and other religious leaders organized by the Texas Freedom Network has signed an open letter to the Texas State Board of Education urging defeat of a proposed resolution denouncing a purported pro-Islamic and anti-Christian bias in the state’s world-history textbooks.
“We believe this resolution is a thinly veiled attempt to generate fear and promote religious intolerance, which as we have sadly seen before in history, can quickly lead to violence,” the letter says. “Also, this unwise resolution involves our children in a divisive political debate that has no place in Texas classrooms.”
The resolution cites several examples to claim that “pro-Islamic/anti-Christian bias has tainted some past Texas Social Studies textbooks” and that “pro-Islamic/anti-Christian half-truths, selective disinformation, and false editorial stereotypes still roil some Social Studies textbooks nationwide.”
The resolution goes on to say that the board – which sets teaching standards for the state’s schools, effectively controlling what must be taught in textbooks used in the Lone Star State – will “look to reject future prejudicial Social Studies submissions” when it comes to curriculum standards.
The board is expected to vote on the resolution Sept. 24.
The Texas Freedom Network — a moderate-to-progressive organization that frequently battles Religious Right efforts in the state — created a report challenging the resolution’s assertions as both based on outdated texts and “superficial and grossly misleading.”
Larry Bethune
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A group of four Austin-area clergy – including a Methodist official, a rabbi, an imam and Larry Bethune, pastor of Austin’s University Baptist Church — spoke against the resolution in a Sept. 20 press conference at the Texas State Capitol.
“We hope the state board this time will reject efforts to divide people of faith with ‘culture war’ tactics like this unwise resolution,” Bethune said. “It’s important that board members put education ahead of politics and ensure that Texas doesn’t become a poster child for intolerance toward people of any faith.”
A blogger for the Liberty Institute, a Texas-based conservative group that has championed the resolution, called the clergy opposing it “a small group of left-wing pastors” and claimed they were undermining their own advocacy for church-state separation by speaking out.
“They complain about people injecting politics into education, and then they turn around and inject their own politics into education,” blogger Jonathan Saenz wrote. “Do they really think they are fooling anyone?”
The Texas State Board of Education has repeatedly been the subject of national news in recent years for attempts by a bloc on the panel to change teaching standards for science and social-studies textbooks to counter what they consider anti-Christian, anti-American and anti-conservative bias in previous standards. In May, they gave final approval to a highly controversial set of social-studies standards.
Marcus McFaul
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Marcus McFaul, pastor of Austin’s Highland Park Baptist Church and a signatory to the letter, said he one of the reasons he spoke out against the proposed State Board of Education resolution is because the education board “continues to pursue an agenda set forth by political religious conservatives who want ‘Christian favoritism/exceptionalism’ as the default defense against religious pluralism.
“At a time when Islamaphobia is reaching violent levels this sends the worst possible message to all Americans. As a ‘good will’ Baptist Christian and pastor I cannot keep silent when paranoia, fear, and misinformation are being pushed by that crowd,” he said. “Their claim of anti-Christian bias in textbooks is simply laughable. Just ask a Texas Muslim. Better yet, get to know one.”
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Robert Marus is managing editor and Washington bureau chief for Associated Baptist Press.
Previous ABP stories:
Texas board gives final approval to controversial textbook standards (5/24/2010)
Religious leaders speak out against new Texas textbook standards (5/13/2010)
Gaddy urges textbook publishers to ignore new Texas standards (3/22/2010)
Baptists decry Texas board’s votes on textbook standards (3/16/2010)