Clergy call for Missouri to reject Ten Commandments in schools

While similar attempts in other states have been rejected by the courts, Sen. Jamie Burger, R-Benton, said he is pursuing the law because he believes the absence of prayer in schools has led to the rise in school shootings.

Displaying the Ten Commandments could help make Christian prayer a normal practice in schools and reduce the number of violent crimes committed in them, he told members of the Senate Education Committee.

“I honestly believe that when prayer went out of schools ... guns came in,” Burger said.

Clergy and attorneys from a number of Christian denominations warned the move would be irresponsible.

Columbia attorney W.B. Tichenor, a Baptist minister, said the bill is “unconstitutional on its face.”

“There is no compelling state interest for the enactment of this legislation,” Tichenor said. “It promotes religious indoctrination. For those of us who read and study and revere the Scriptures, it’s a denigration.”

The Rev. Michael Dunn, a Disciples of Christ pastor from Columbia, urged lawmakers to reject the measure.

“Everyone knows when you force something down someone’s throat, they gag,” Dunn said.

The Ten Commandments are the basis of Christian doctrine. In Jewish and Christian theology, God gave the commandments directly to the Prophet Moses, as described in the Old Testament of the Bible.

The commandments include calls for people to not murder, steal, gossip or cheat on a spouse.

Under the proposal, school districts would have to exhibit 11-by-14-inch displays in each classroom and school building with the text of the commandments as the central focus in a “large, readable font.”

The measure would allow school districts to purchase the display themselves or have the signage or money to purchase them donated.

The legislation does not include penalties for schools that don’t comply.

Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, who chairs the Senate committee, said he supports the requirement, saying the United States was founded as a “Christian nation.”

“Unfortunately, our court system has not upheld our freedom of religion. They continue to actually erode ... who we are as a nation,” Brattin said. “I hate the fact that we even have to have this bill. This is not an infringement.”

The proposal comes in the wake of a Louisiana law approved last year that required the commandments to be displayed. It was blocked by a federal judge and is under appeal. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is among a group of Republican attorneys general who have filed briefs seeking to reverse the decision.

In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Kentucky’s attempt to mandate the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools was unconstitutional and violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause, which prevents the government from establishing a national religion or favoring one religion over another. State-sponsored prayer in schools was ruled unconstitutional in cases heard in the 1960s.

Public schools can teach about religion, and Missouri law allows classes on the Bible if they are taught from an objective, academic perspective that isn’t devotional or biased toward particular beliefs.

Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Kansas City, said the proposal was “frustrating” because Missouri would become embroiled in expensive lawsuits if the measure wins approval.

“Millions have been spent on these suits,” Nurrenbern said. “Why rush this? We know the Supreme Court is going to weigh in on this.”

The committee took no action on the measure.

The legislation is Senate Bill 594.