Texas school to offer Bible class

[kikipug]

If they insist on teaching it, why not include it in a literature class...You know, along with all the other HISTORICAL FICTION ?

Hmm.... and you list your location as "West-by-WHO- virginny?" Guess that's a fictional place, too.

 

[Bill_Sykes]

In order to pass constitutional muster, the course will have to be very narrow and more in line of a comparative religion class. The current World History AP class that is taught for AP credit has a great deal on comparative religion already.

If the west texas town goes too far, this course will be stricken down. I am glad that the ACLU is monitoring the situation.

 

[wvrevy]

Hmm.... and you list your location as "West-by-WHO- virginny?" Guess that's a fictional place, too.

Considering the fact that I've met quite a few people from outside this state (adults, I'm referring to) that don't even realize that it is a state, perhaps schools should be spending more time on Geography (and history...and math...and science...and any number of other things) and less on moralistic fairy tales.

But maybe that's just me.

 

[chadfromdallas]

perhaps schools should be spending more time on Geography (and history...and math...and science...and any number of other things) and less on moralistic fairy tales.

But maybe that's just me.

Texas ranks extremely low on the educational rankings of their schools. You were right in saying they need to spend more time on other subjects, rather than adding more classes like this.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Considering the fact that I've met quite a few people from outside this state (adults, I'm referring to) that don't even realize that it is a state, perhaps schools should be spending more time on Geography (and history...and math...and science...and any number of other things) and less on moralistic fairy tales.

But maybe that's just me.

....because we all should understand that there is no such thing as morals anyway, right?

 

[DisDuck]

Sarcasm intended... that's right zippa.. all of us who are not catholic/christian are amoral.

tar heel.. nothing directly personal but I dislike the term The Old Testament. That is not what my book is called and if that is what it is called when combined with the 'other' book then those authors are wrong. Since you discussed changes over the centuries, maybe I need an education or my rabbi does on what has changed in The Torah since it was written. That would be news to us.

mom.. actually I agree with you I was just taking the position that if there is to be a class it should be along the lines I mentioned and not a 'religious' class.

 

[WDWHound]

. In general, 'christian' bibles use a translation from Greek which is a translation from Aramaic not Hebrew as the source. Therefore, there are bound to be mis-translations. The more appropriate tool would be an authorized English translation with annotations directly from The Torah Scroll (Hebrew).

Actually, most Translations these days use the oldest versions available as a source. This means they use Hebrew for the Torah (Old Testement to Christians) and Greek and Aramaic for the New Testement. Both the NIV (the most popular translation) and the NASB (another very popular choice and the one I tend to use) follow this approach. The NIV loeses a bit of accuaracy in trying to achive more readability, but it nearly always footnotes these cases. The NASB is a bit less readable, but it does so because works so hard to provide very accurate translation of the original langauges,

As for whether the Bible should be taught in school, I think it should, along with the Torah, Koran and a selection of the Vedas and the Sutras. These should be taught not just in a comparitive sense, but in a sociological and philisophical sense. These texts are the key to understanding the core values of most of the people alive today. To not study them is to ignore an important source of understanding of the nature of the modern societies out of fear that you might be exposed to something religious.

 

[tiger95]

Considering the fact that I've met quite a few people from outside this state (adults, I'm referring to) that don't even realize that it is a state, perhaps schools should be spending more time on Geography (and history...and math...and science...and any number of other things) and less on moralistic fairy tales.

But maybe that's just me.

Just what scares you so much about the Bible that you have to insult a whole group of people and their beliefs. I may disagree with your stance, but I am not going to personally insult your belief system to make my point.

JD

 

[Crankyshank]

Considering the fact that I've met quite a few people from outside this state (adults, I'm referring to) that don't even realize that it is a state, perhaps schools should be spending more time on Geography (and history...and math...and science...and any number of other things) and less on moralistic fairy tales.

But maybe that's just me.

And here I thought it was just Rhode Island that people thought wasn't really a state.

I would need more information as to what is covered in the class before deciding how I felt about it. However, if it's taught from a historical point of view and not evangelical, I don't have a problem with it. It would be nice if it also incorporated the Koran and the Torah.

 

[JoeEpcotRocks]

"Moralistic fairy tales" ???

Do you just feel that way about the Bible? Do you feel that way about the Koran or the Torah, too?

WOW!!

 

[JoeThaNo1Stunna]

If they insist on teaching it, why not include it in a literature class...You know, along with all the other HISTORICAL FICTION ?

What a nice guy you are.

 

[chadfromdallas]

the Koran or the Torah, too?

Why does this follow after someone always makes a comment about the bible?

Why would someone's opinion such as mine or wvrevy's change in regard to the type of religious text?

 

[JoeEpcotRocks]

Why does this follow after someone always makes a comment about the bible?

Why would someone's opinion such as mine or wvrevy's change in regard to the type of religious text?

So, you are saying that all religious texts are "moralistic fairy tails" ?

 

[wvrevy]

Just what scares you so much about the Bible that you have to insult a whole group of people and their beliefs. I may disagree with your stance, but I am not going to personally insult your belief system to make my point.

JD

Intolerance for people that believe differently....raging mysogeny....the impetus for millions of deaths (from the Inquisition through the Crusades through modern day gay bashing)...the belief that ignorance is somehow superior to knowledge....

Just off the top of my head, those are just a very few things to be "feared" in the bible. At the very least, they're good enough reasons for me to say that, if people want to "believe", they can do so at home. It has no business being taught in a school as anything other than a piece of literature.

 

[WDWHound]

Intolerance for people that believe differently....raging mysogeny....the impetus for millions of deaths (from the Inquisition through the Crusades through modern day gay bashing)...the belief that ignorance is somehow superior to knowledge....

Have you even read the book? Lets take these one by one:
Intolerance for people that believe differently
You should read Jesus' teachings more closely. He demands the exact oposite.

raging mysogeny....
What? Women in the Bible are treated no differently than other women in the culture of the times. Paul used Women to found his church. Jesus included women in his followers. Try reading Greek myths if you want mysogeny. Should we ban the teaching of Greek mythology too?

the impetus for millions of deaths (from the Inquisition through the Crusades through modern day gay bashing)
Evil people can and do use anything for evil means. It can be religion, govenrment, geography, skin color, economic status or system... The list goes on and on. ANYTHING can be used for evil means, but that doesn't make it the thing being used evil. Should we stop teaching about Democracy? Many have been wrongly killed in its name.

the belief that ignorance is somehow superior to knowledge
Show me where in the Bible this beleif is stated. Faith and education can go hand in hand and the Bible actually encourages education.

Everything yoiu have mentioned is a misinterpretation based on stereotypes of the Bible. Perhaps if kids studied it, we wouldn't have such misinterpretation, but no, that cant be allowed.

 

[6_Time_Momma]

I guess I don't see the big deal if it is an elective.

 

[chadfromdallas]

I guess I don't see the big deal if it is an elective.

Government sponsored religious teachings.

 

[JoeEpcotRocks]

Have you even read the book? Lets take these one by one:
Intolerance for people that believe differently
You should read Jesus' teachings more closely. He demands the exact oposite.

raging mysogeny....
What? Women in the Bible are treated no differently than other women in the culture of the times. Paul used Women to found his church. Jesus included women in his followers. Try reading Greek myths if you want mysogeny. Should we ban the teaching of Greek mythology too?

the impetus for millions of deaths (from the Inquisition through the Crusades through modern day gay bashing)
Evil people can and do use anything for evil means. It can be religion, govenrment, geography, skin color, economic status or system... The list goes on and on. ANYTHING can be used for evil means, but that doesn't make it the thing being used evil. Should we stop teaching about Democracy? Many have been wrongly killed in its name.

the belief that ignorance is somehow superior to knowledge
Show me where in the Bible this is stated. Faith and education can go hand in hand and the Bible actually encourages education.

Everything yoiu have mentioned is a misinterpretation based on stereotypes of the Bible. Perhaps if kids studied it, we wouldn't have such misinterpretation, but no, that cant be allowed.

Amen! Well said.

 

[MinnieM21]

I'm unsure about what I think about a Bible class being introduced into the curriculum. Maybe others kids will now be able to decide for themselves what they think about Christianity.

I went to a Private Catholic school and had to take religion classes which I didn't enjoy. We studied the bible and read the Old Testament, New Testament and did many other things that I can't remember.

Through all of the classes, I started to question things more for myself and I realized that I no longer believed what I did before. After the classes, everything just seemed like a bunch of fairytales.

.

 

[chadfromdallas]

Through all of the classes, I started to question things more for myself and I realized that I no longer believed what I did before. After the classes, everything just seemed like a bunch of fairytales.

.

Interesting