Missouri bid to enforce Bible classes in public schools advances

But critics question why the bill is necessary at all: 'I do not need the state teaching my son the Bible'

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A Republican politician in Missouri wants to add Bible classes to public school curriculums, and a bill to do just that is moving forward in the state’s legislature.

The measure was introduced by state Representative Ben Baker, and would require state officials to come up with curriculum guidelines for elective courses on the Old Testament and New Testament.

“The Bible is simply a part of the fabric of life,” Mr Baker told his colleagues on Tuesday, according to the St Louis Post-Dispatch.

Mr Baker is also an employee at Ozark Bible College in Neosho, Missouri. The classes he has proposed are among three similar proposals that are being considered in the statehouse.

On Tuesday, he said he expected the measure to be controversial, with critics likely to claim the classes would violate the constitutional protections between church and state.

“This is something, for whatever reason over the course of time, has caused a lot of controversy,” he said. “Obviously, there is going to be controversy.”

Some of that criticism came from Brian Kaylor, a pastor at the Second Baptist Church in Jefferson City, who testified before the committee considering the bill.

“I oppose this legislation not because I oppose the Bible,” Mr Kaylor said. “The Bible cannot be reduced to merely an elective high school class. The Bible is inherently religious and we cannot pretend otherwise.”

He continued: “I do not need the state teaching my son the Bible.”