Forcing Ten Commandments into Texas classrooms is terrifying: Lawrence

A Texas bill forcing the Ten Commandments into its classrooms will lead the country to an American version of Christian Fascism. — Image credit: Getty Images

On April 20, the Texas Senate passed Bill 1515 requiring public school classrooms to prominently display a copy of the Ten Commandments, a move that many legal experts and civil liberties advocates say is an attack on the First Amendment’s ban on governmental religious preference. The bill’s author, Republican State Senator Phil King, said he wanted the state to bring back the Ten Commandments to the classroom in order to teach students across the state “the importance of a fundamental foundation of American and Texas law.”

But Straight Arrow News contributor Adrienne Lawrence warns that if this bill becomes law, Texas will come for “all else the Bible forbids” and our country will end up paying a steep price.

As far as I’m concerned, if we don’t get a hold of this violation of church and state, the United States will fall to Christian fascism and it will fall fast.

Look at one of the bills that was passed. Senate Bill 1515 requires predominantly displaying the Ten Commandments in each classroom, from elementary school all the way through the 12th grade. Yeah, Texas lawmakers even specified the size of the Commandments, calling for a font large enough that Moses himself could see it from the grave. These people are surreal. And like Moses, of course, our democracy clearly is dead. How does forcing religion upon children and public institutions not encroach upon the separation of church and state? I would really like the answer.

But you know, this whole entire premise of the United States seemed to have been on keeping church and state separate. The Founding Fathers reportedly fled religious oppression in England, which is why they memorialized freedom of religion in the First Amendment of the Constitution. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” Seems pretty clear to me. Even Texas has language in Section Six, stating, “No preference shall ever be given by law to any religious society or mode of worship.”

So what am I missing here? We can all agree that the Ten Commandments sit at the core of Christian ideology. So how is it not an affront to someone attending a public school to have to be slapped in the face with 20-point font, reminding them to put no other God before the Christian God?

The Lone Star State appears to be in a state of theocracy. The Republican controlled Texas senate passed three bills last week that would promote Christianity and public schools. Jesus take the wheel with a song and not a way to legislate. As far as I’m concerned, if we don’t get a hold of this violation of church and state, the United States will fall to Christian fascism and it will fall fast. Look at one of the bills that was passed. Senate Bill 1515 requires predominantly displaying the 10 commandments in each classroom, from elementary school all the way through the 12th grade. Yeah, Texas lawmakers even specified the size of the commandments, calling for font large enough that Moses himself could see it from the grave. These people are surreal. And like Moses, of course, our democracy clearly is dead. How does forcing religion upon children and public institutions not encroach upon the separation of church and state? I would really like the answer. But you know, this whole entire premise of the United States seemed to have been on keeping Church and State separate, the founding fathers reportedly fled religious oppression in England, which is why they memorialized freedom of religion in the First Amendment of the Constitution. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion seems pretty clear to me. Even Texas has language in Section six, stating no preference shall ever be given by law to any religious society or mode of worship. So what am I missing here? We can all agree that the 10 commandments sit at the core of Christian ideology. So how is it not an affront to someone attending a public school to have to be slapped in the face with 20 point font, reminding them to put no other God before the Christian God? I am a Christian and I am offended, not just because our society is supposed to keep religion separate from the state. But because this is laying the foundation to clerical or Christian fascism that is movements to bolster fascism with religious elements. The German Christians of the Nazi Party use this tactic, as did Benito Mussolini with the Lateran Treaty, pushing Christian principles as the mandated way of life, appropriating Christianity’s symbolism to create a national identity really advancing the US them narrative by way of Christ. Sacrificing politics is just a fascist go to to control people. And we’ve seen that in movements around the world over the last century. My God, we can even see it in every Netflix documentary involving some kind of weird Christian based cult. Christianity is weaponized, in a way with utmost aggression to harm people. And that’s clearly the agenda here for Texas lawmakers. The New King James Version of the Bible doesn’t have the most liberating guidance for women does it? First Timothy to 12. Women should be silent and not be allowed to teach or to tell men what to do. Ephesians 522 through 30, Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior, and so on. Just as there’s no shock as to why the gospel of Mary never made its way into the New King James Version. There’s no shock here as to why the white male Republican dominated legislature in Texas would seek to use its power to reinforce biblical teaching in the school system. It’s all about domination, not democracy. And I realized that the US has always given preference to Christians, shading Jews, Muslims behind all other belief systems, we have in God we trust on our denomination for God’s sakes. And at the same time, given where history stands in terms of how weaponizing religion leads to genocide and societal decline, it would really seem beneficial not to go down the path of proselytizing in public schools, perhaps simply let students get the facts in the classroom and get their fill of faith at home. That wouldn’t be asking for too much. In fact, I would say that separation of church and state would be asking for the bare minimum and what the United States is supposed to offer its people. If that separation isn’t preserved, the 10 commandments in the classroom will not be the end of it. Next, Texas lawmakers will come for no fault divorce, contraception, premarital sex and all else that the Bible happens to forbid if we want some sense of democracy and we wanted to stay alive. We have to push back against Christian fascism. And that should be the end of it.