Bible Back in Schools

From Drew Zahn; follow the link for the full article:

One county in Tennessee, however, has found a way to keep biblical instruction in its public schools – with the blessing of a court decision, the support of the community and in keeping with a tradition that began in 1922.

On Sept. 16, a group of 11 Hamilton County, Tenn., churches – including Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, Assemblies of God and more – will meet for the “Hixson Gathering,” a prayer service and fund-raiser for a unique program of elective, for-credit, Bible history classes taught at 20 schools in the county, including the Hixson Middle and High Schools.

With the help of an organization called Bible in the Schools, area residents, like those at the Hixson Gathering, are able to reimburse the Hamilton County Department of Education for certified Bible teachers – hired at no cost to the taxpayers – while dodging the legal tactics of groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.

“The federal courts have affirmed that teaching the Bible in our public schools is a constitutionally protected freedom,” Bible in the Schools asserts. “[And] with all the concern over character, no program is better positioned to touch more students quantitatively or qualitatively.”…

According to the Bible in the Schools website, several unique factors enable its plan for Bible courses to be offered and taught constitutionally and in accordance with the U.S. District Court’s decision:

• Teachers must be employed and supervised by the county Department of Education.
• Teachers must be certified and have a minimum of 12 semester hours of Bible courses as part of their college education.
• The schools must be reimbursed in full for the teachers’ salaries and benefits by private citizens; there is no cost to the taxpayer.
• Bible courses are elective, offered to middle and senior high students only, and credit is given for their study.
• No religious proselytizing, sectarianism nor denominationalism is permitted in class. Students with doctrinal questions are encouraged to seek out a pastor or rabbi
• The curriculum is court approved.