In a groundbreaking step for faith in public education, Texas has introduced a new English curriculum that brings biblical literacy and Christian themes back into the heart of classroom learning. According to The New York Times, more than 300 of Texas’s 1,200 school districts have chosen to use the new program this year, a powerful indication that families and educators are ready to see moral and spiritual stories restored to their rightful place in education.
A Curriculum That Honors the Word
The curriculum, adapted from the widely used Amplify reading program, adds new lessons exploring the life of Jesus, the Old and New Testaments, and biblical stories that have shaped Western civilization. According to The New York Times, the Texas version mentions Jesus 87 times, compared with only 19 in the original.
State leaders have emphasized that these lessons are meant to enrich students’ cultural and historical understanding, not to proselytize. A spokesman for the Texas Education Agency, Jake Kobersky, told the Times that the curriculum “references several religious texts ‘when contextually relevant for historical and literary value,’” adding that such references “create a strong background of knowledge for students with rich texts to further their understanding of our society, including our history, economy and culture.”
For Catholic readers, this represents not merely a pedagogical choice, but a cultural restoration. The stories of Scripture are not only sacred; they are foundational to language, literature, art, and the moral imagination.
Faith in the Classroom, Not Out of It
Unlike past efforts to scrub the Bible from public discourse, the Texas curriculum treats Christian stories as an essential part of civilization’s shared heritage. Children learn about Genesis in art lessons, Psalms in poetry, and the Parable of the Prodigal Son alongside traditional fables.
In first grade, for example, students now encounter biblical creation stories as sources of artistic inspiration. Fifth graders study a psalm as poetry, a beautiful reminder that faith and creativity are intertwined.
According to The New York Times, even lessons on figures like King Solomon and Queen Esther have been newly added, showing that wisdom, virtue, and courage are not outdated ideals but timeless virtues worth studying.
Christian Roots in America’s Story
The curriculum doesn’t shy away from Christianity’s role in the nation’s formation. In lessons on colonial America, a subtle but meaningful change shifts the tone: the original Amplify program said missionaries came to “convert the native people to Christianity,” while the Texas version says they came to “introduce the Native people to Christianity.”
That difference, while small, reflects a broader truth, Christianity has been a driving force for good in history. The Texas curriculum even adds references to Christian abolitionists who opposed slavery on moral grounds, and to Abraham Lincoln’s Christian convictions in his fight to end it.
As the Times reports, “Even as the use of slave labor grew, opposition to slavery also grew, driven by colonists morally opposed to the practice, often based on their beliefs as Christians.” For many Catholics, such framing restores a long-overdue recognition of how faith has shaped movements for justice.
Martin Luther King Jr. and Faith in Action
The new curriculum also includes a detailed lesson on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” While some critics say it downplays the racial context, many Christian educators see value in how it emphasizes Dr. King’s biblical grounding. As the Times quoted historian Lerone A. Martin, “Dr. King was often guided in his activism by his Christian faith and ministry.”
In Catholic terms, this alignment between spiritual conviction and public action reflects the Church’s teaching that faith and reason, belief and justice, belong together — not apart.
A Renaissance Rediscovered
Perhaps the most striking addition is a lesson on Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.” Students now study the scene through Scripture itself, reading directly from the Gospel of Matthew and learning about the Christian rite of Communion.
For students, and for our nation, it’s a quiet reawakening. As theologian David R. Brockman told The New York Times, these lessons “amount to Bible study in a public school curriculum.” While some critics mean that as a warning, many believers hear it as hope.
Why It Matters for Catholics
Texas’s curriculum revival is more than an educational reform; it’s a sign that America’s public institutions are rediscovering the spiritual roots that once united them. Catholic families can see in this a reflection of the Church’s enduring mission: to educate not just the mind, but the soul.
At a time when many schools remove moral language from education, Texas is offering children the chance to learn from Scripture as story, faith as culture, and Christianity as history.
As the Times rightly noted, these changes could become “a potent blueprint for other states.” For Catholics, that blueprint is one worth praying for — a future where truth, beauty, and faith once again belong in the classroom.
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