Just as he did last year, Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin, a Republican who never misses an opportunity to promote Christianity while in office, released a video encouraging students to bring their Bibles to school today.
It’s in honor of Bring Your Bible to School Day, an event sponsored by Focus on the Family encouraging young Christians to do something they’re allowed to do every single day already.
Hi. This is Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin. If you go to school in Kentucky, I want to encourage you to be aware of a date, October the 4th, in an event that is coming up.
It began rather quietly four years ago, 2014. Bring Your Bible to School Day was something that was launched. About 8,000 children participated across the country. Last year, three years later, about a half a million did the same thing, including many of you from right here in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
The Bible is an amazing document. Has an incredible amount of history, knowledge, wisdom, guidance, things that our Founders understood and took to heart as they set this entire nation in motion.
I want to encourage you to take part in this day at your school.
Last summer, I signed House Bill 128 which gives public schools in Kentucky the option to teach Bible literacy classes. The Kentucky Board of Education is guiding this program. This elective class explores many interesting topics such as the Bible’s influence on historical, political, and social movements. It recounts how our Founding Fathers used biblical principles to draft the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and I want to encourage each and every one of you to set a note in your calendar right now, October the 4th. Bring Your Bible to School Day.
You can learn more by going to BringYourBible.org. BringYourBible.org. This is your constitutional right, not just on October 4th, but every day. We are Kentucky.
So… the governor urged all students (not just Christian ones) to bring a Bible to school in a way he would never do if there was a similar day for Muslims. He didn’t quite say students should accept Jesus — it’s like he’s aware there’s a line he can’t cross — but he claimed without citation that the Bible is really the founding document for own nation’s history, a claim that has no significant backing outside of a David Barton lie.
You can find history, knowledge, wisdom, guidance, and inspiration for our founding documents even if there was no Bible around. Claiming that universal ideas like the Golden Rule and loving your neighbor didn’t originate with Christianity (and there are plenty of stories in the Bible that are horrific and cruel).
That said, he’s right about one thing. Young atheists should absolutely bring a Bible to school today. They should make sure it’s highlighted with all the contradictions and disturbing passages. It’ll make those conversations with believers all the more entertaining.
(Large portions of this article were published earlier)
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