AUSTIN, Texas — A few yards away from where Austin resident Mark Nortwich eats his lunch is a monument of the Bible’s Ten Commandments.

“Why are we putting these in places where we really don’t need to have them?” said Nortwich.

The monument has been at the Texas Capitol grounds since 1961. Republican state leaders want copies of the commandments placed inside every public school classroom.

What You Need To Know

  • After the governor of Louisiana signed a law to require every classroom in public schools from kindergarten through college to display the Ten Commandments, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a social media post that Texas should’ve been the first to pass the law
  • The bill made it through a Texas House committee but never got a vote on the floor
  • Patrick blamed House Speaker Dade Phelan in the same online post, saying it was “obviously not a priority for Dade Phelan”

  • Supporters of the proposed classroom display say students can learn non-biblical lessons from the commandments. But some public education groups say state leaders should focus on other classroom issues

“I think it’s gonna cause a lot of confusion for kids that weren’t raised on the Ten Commandments,” said Nortwich.

The governor of Louisiana signed a law last week to require every classroom in public schools from kindergarten through college to display the Ten Commandments.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a social media post that Texas should’ve been the first to pass the law. 

“We can call that ideology Christian nationalism,” said Mark Chancey, a Southern Methodist University professor of religious studies.

Religious experts say that ideology isn’t representative of Texas’ diverse religious makeup or of Christian beliefs.

“There's a lot of diversity among Christianity and many of those Christians are opposed to Christian nationalism. They see it as a distortion of their faith,” said Chancey.

The state Senate approved legislation last year that would’ve put a copy of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. The bill made it through a House committee but never got a vote on the floor. Patrick blamed House Speaker Dade Phelan in the same online post, saying it was “obviously not a priority for Dade Phelan.”

Phelan’s staff said the speaker lets the members drive the agenda and “this legislation passed with the support of its committee and was set for consideration by the full Texas House, but ultimately did not pass in time to meet the legislative deadline.”

“Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal,” said Mary Elizabeth Castle with Texas Values. “This is where the Ten Commandments have been kind of the bedrock of some of these principles that we hold in our society.”

Supporters of the proposed classroom display say students can learn non-biblical lessons from the commandments. But some public education groups say state leaders should focus on other classroom issues.

“We didn't get the funding that we should have received. We are not number one when it comes to teacher pay, to per-student allotment,” said Ovidia Molina with the Texas State Teachers Association.

Multiple civil liberties groups filed lawsuits this week challenging the Louisiana law. Experts expect lawsuits would also follow if Texas passed a similar law.

CORRECTION: This article has been updated to correct the spelling of Southren Methodist University professor Mark Chancey's name. (June 28, 2024)