Oklahoma students should read the Bible in their classes and challenge dubious interpretations

Oklahoma's state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters was in the news on June 27. News outlets from The Oklahoman to The New York Times to The Guardian, a publication based in the United Kingdom, published stories about his memo requiring public schools to teach the Bible, including the Ten Commandments.

Following in the wake of the Louisiana decision to require the Ten Commandments to be posted in every classroom in public schools, Walters’ decision has been seen as part of a broader mandate on the part of some Christians to extend their brand of Christian ideology to public schools. The ideology in question is called “Christian nationalism,” and has been the subject of books and articles.

Surely, the moves by Walters and the state of Louisiana challenges the doctrine of the separation of church and state. Yet, there are other implications of this and other decisions by Walters that merit scrutiny. After the death of Nex Benedict, human rights and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups sent Walters a letter criticizing him for fomenting hatred through his anti-trans rhetoric. Walters was unrepentant; in light of his decision about the Bible and the Ten Commandments, The New York Times called him “bombastic” and “an unapologetic culture warrior in education.”

Whatever else Walters and Christian nationalist “culture warriors” might be, they are confused. The deep message of the Bible, especially of the New Testament, is one of love and not hatred. “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34) and “When you did it to the least of my brothers, you did it to Me” (Matthew 25:40) are not exactly rhetorical bombs dropped on the heads of political opponents by a person in power.

With the exception of casting out demons, or the money-changers from the temple, the actions of Christ cannot generally be considered angry and certainly can’t be considered overtly political. "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s" (Matthew 22:21) does not bespeak a power grab. On the road to Calvary, Christ meekly accepted the abuse of the Roman power structure, and did not even attempt to argue His case, much less oppose the government through revolution. While nailed to the cross, He forgave the “good thief.” The overwhelming message is that the will of God is done through genuine love and not through hatred. But if so, just how “Christ-like” are Walters and others like him, who seek to mandate their own religious ideology through hateful rhetoric? Genuine love demands more than the cheap and hurtful politics they peddle.

I hope the students of Oklahoma do read the Bible in their classes. They should study it well, and challenge dubious interpretations from teachers, pastors and others who are keen to distort its message of love for nefarious reasons, such as the love of power and desire for control.

People have a way of making the words of the Bible support what they want. Supporters of cockfighting, for example, quote passages about dominion rather than stewardship, and never question whether dominion means cruelty. The Gospel’s message of love will ultimately defeat those who distort it for their own ends. Christianity has been with us for millennia. Walters and his ilk will not be in power for nearly as long.

Nancy E. Snow is a professor of philosophy at the University of Kansas. She formerly was a philosophy professor at the University of Oklahoma and director of the Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing.