Ryan Walters, Oklahoma’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction, who has promised that “every teacher, every classroom in the state will have a Bible in the classroom and will be teaching from the Bible in the classroom” has requested $3 million to purchase the tomes, and with very specific parameters.
The Oklahoman reports: ‘Trump Bible’ one of few that meet Walters’ criteria for Oklahoma classrooms.
Bids opened Monday for a contract to supply the state Department of Education with 55,000 Bibles. According to the bid documents, vendors must meet certain specifications: Bibles must be the King James Version; must contain the Old and New Testaments; must include copies of the Pledge of Allegiance, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights; and must be bound in leather or leather-like material.
A salesperson at Mardel Christian & Education searched, and though they carry 2,900 Bibles, none fit the parameters.
But one Bible fits perfectly: Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A. Bible, endorsed by former President Donald Trump and commonly referred to as the Trump Bible. They cost $60 each online, with Trump receiving fees for his endorsement.
I know enough about how state institutions have to do bids and the general request for proposal (RFP) process works to know that this is a clearly and consciously manipulated request.
On Sept. 26, Walters asked for $3 million to purchase Bibles for Oklahoma classrooms as part of his agency’s fiscal year 2026 budget request to the Oklahoma Legislature.
“We have talked about ensuring that our history courses include the role the Bible played throughout American history,” Walters said. “We’ve talked about the efforts of left-wing groups and the teachers’ unions to drive the Bible out of school. I believe it’s important for historical context for our kids to understand the role the Bible played.”
He said the request was in conjunction with $3 million the agency was already putting forth to provide Bibles in the classroom. In a discussion with the board at the meeting, Walters said he wanted to issue an RFP and wanted the King James version of the Bible.
This story is problematic dare I say, six ways from Sunday. Not only is this a clear attempt to try and funnel Oklahoma state funds to Trump, but this is an utter waste of money at that price tag. Access to the Bible is incredibly easy to obtain. It is free online in any translation you could want and I expect the Gideons (or probably almost any Christian church) would be more than happy to provide one to anyone who asked. Further, I expect that more Oklahomans households have several copies on average.
This is yet another example of why is hard to take “fiscal conservatism” seriously. There is simply no reason to spend this kind of money on items that are all in the public domain.
To be clear: there is no church/state problem with having Bibles in schools or teaching about the Bible as history, literature, or in other appropriate contexts. It is a rather consequential text. But, the trope that the Bible has been “taken out of the classroom” or that it somehow is relevant across the curriculum is always an attempt to infuse religious instruction into the public school classroom. That is utterly inappropriate and does raise church/state issues.
I always find assertions like “ensuring that our history courses include the role the Bible played throughout American history” to be a canard. It is just an attempt to do what they claim is being done by a nebulous “left”: indoctrinate their beliefs. I would note that usage of the Bible in legitimate instruction outside of consciously religious institutions, would have to treat it like any other historical work. This would include not treating it as inerrant (as many Christians do) nor as the Word of God (with all the implications that that would entail).
Without any doubt, if you study American history it is impossible to not see the influence of Christianity. The Founders, for example, clearly were mostly Christians, although frequently not of a flavor that many contemporary Evangelicals would find familiar. At a bare minimum, at least basic adherence to the faith was part of the social fabric of the time and it was not at all unusual for Christian imagery to be part of the rhetoric of the day (and for many generations thereafter).
And, further, there are key examples of the Bible being deeply part of US history. For example, many Christians in the American South used the Bible to justify slavery. I suspect that isn’t the kind of thing that Walters is concerned with. Likewise, the abolition movement was often motivated by their views of Christian compassion. I would, in fact, actively agree that it is impossible to have a full view of socio-political development without including the role of religion. But, again, a scholarly approach to the role of religion is not the same thing as “teaching from the Bible in the classroom.”
Of course if you want to teach about “the role the Bible has played” you need scholarship on that subject. The Bible itself, being a collection of texts far older than the United States, cannot, by its mere presence, teach about its role in US history (or, really, its role in much of anything).
I will add that Oklahoma is a fairly religious state. As such, it is quite likely that the teachers in public schools are Christians of one persuasion or another. The idea, therefore, that Oklahoma public schools are devoid of any hint of Christianity is absurd.
This is just he kind of thing wherein I have to ask how much better we would be if people in positions of authority used their time, efforts, and budgets to focus on their actual jobs and not ideological side projects.
