Oklahoma’s top education official is facing mounting opposition to his directive that every public school classroom have Bibles for teaching Scripture to students.
Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters was sued Oct. 17 by more than 30 faith leaders, teachers, parents and their children to prevent implementation of the mandate and the planned use of $3.3 million in taxpayer funds to purchase the Bibles.
Just a few days earlier, Ryan was the target of a new Change.org petition campaign seeking his impeachment for using his position for political gain instead of improving state schools.
“It’s clear that Ryan Walters is using his role to pander politically instead of focusing on supporting the students in Oklahoma’s public schools,” petition starter Stevie E. said. “Oklahoma is ranked 49th in education — almost dead last in the nation. We cannot afford this kind of leadership any longer. Our children deserve better than this, and so do we.”
“Oklahoma is ranked 49th in education — almost dead last in the nation. We cannot afford this kind of leadership any longer.”
The petition followed an August rally at the State Capitol where educators, parents and legislators called for Walters’ impeachment for his conduct as schools superintendent.
And there has been resistance to his Bible mandate in some of the state’s largest school districts, both BNG and the Associated Press reported. “It is unclear how many, if any, Oklahoma school districts are resuming schools this month with a Bible in every classroom,” the AP said.
Walters gained national attention in June when he issued the order requiring public schools to begin teaching from the Bible in grades five through 12 during the 2024-25 school year.
“The Bible is one of the most historically significant books and a cornerstone of Western civilization, along with the Ten Commandments,” Walters’ edict explains. “They will be referenced as an appropriate study of history, civilization, ethics, comparative religion, or the like, as well as for their substantial influence on our nation’s founders and the foundational principles of our Constitution.”
The initial bid for school Bibles also generated controversy because his requirements matched only the so-called “Trump Bible” or a similar Bible marketed by one of Trump’s sons. Selling for $60 apiece and with proceeds going to the Trump campaign, the Trump Bibles matched Walters’ demand for a leather-bound text including the King James version of the Old and New Testaments, the U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence and Pledge of Allegiance.
Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty warned Walters’ directive raised “significant church-state issues” and using the “God Bless the USA” Bible “would be an especially insidious choice for public school classrooms.”
Lori Walke
After significant backlash, the Oklahoma Department of Education on Oct. 7 amended the bid for 55,000 Bibles to no longer require the inclusion of nonbiblical documents because those can be provided separately, Politico reported. The deadline for vendors to submit bids expired Oct. 21.
But Rev. Lori Walke v. Ryan Walters, the litigation now before the Oklahoma Supreme Court, argues Walters and the state Department of Education flagrantly exceeded their authority by mandating the use of Scripture in public schools and the use of state funds to purchase Bibles.
The mandate also violates the Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act requirements that new policies comply with the Constitution, provide public notice and forward copies to the governor and legislative leaders, according to the suit.
“Nor did the Department of Education respondents follow the procedure for modifying the Oklahoma Academic Standards in promulgating the Bible Education Mandate,” the suit says. “These subject-matter standards are a set of educational benchmarks for each grade in each subject-matter area. The subject-matter standards must be adopted by the State Board of Education every six years and must be approved by the Legislature.”
Walke, the lead plaintiff in the suit and senior minister at Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ in Oklahoma City, said she is repulsed to see the Bible being used to score political points.
“As a Christian, I’m appalled by the use of the Bible — a sacred text — for Superintendent Walters’ political grandstanding,” said plaintiff Mitch Randall, a Baptist pastor and CEO of Good Faith Media.
“As a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, I’m alarmed by the parallels between this Bible mandate and the religious proselytization and forced assimilation my relatives faced in government boarding schools,” Randall said. “As a taxpayer, I object to the state spending public funds on religious texts.”
Erika Wright
Erika Wright, a parent of two public school students and founder of the Oklahoma Rural Schools Coalition, protested the state trying to provide religious education for her children.
“As parents, my husband and I have sole responsibility to decide how and when our children learn about the Bible and religious teachings. We are devout Christians, but different Christian denominations have different theological beliefs and practices,” she said. “It is not the role of any politician or public school official to intervene in these personal matters.”
Instead, the focus should be on improving the quality of education in Oklahoma, Wright urged. “Mandating a Bible curriculum will not address our educational shortcomings. Superintendent Walters should focus on providing our children and teachers with the resources they need; our families can handle religious education at home.”
The lawsuit was filed by Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma and the Freedom from Religion Foundation.
AU described the plaintiffs as “32 Oklahomans — parents, students, teachers, LGBTQ people, indigenous people, nonreligious and religious folks, and clergy members.”
In addition to citing Walters’ Bible mandate, the Change.org petition calls for Walters’ impeachment because of anti-LGBTQ statements he made following the February suicide of Nex Benedict, a transgender high school student who died by suicide the day after being bullied at Owasso High School near Tulsa.
“Everyone here is sick of Ryan Walters. I know I am,” petition starter Stevie E. said. “It’s time to take action, and we need your help to make it happen. You do not need to be a Republican or Democrat to be horrified by what has been going on.”
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