Religious Education and the Meaning of Life

A century later, inevitable feels like the right word. A long line of American politicians, scholars, and community leaders has characterized education as a way to hand down values and ethical priorities. Is religion essential to this sort of education? Some religious conservatives say yes—and then go on to manipulate the issue to achieve their own aims. This past summer, several states introduced legislation that would require public schools to display the Ten Commandments, and Louisiana became the first state to pass such a law (a move that the Supreme Court had ruled unconstitutional in 1980). In some cases, state officials have defended these measures as a way to teach students history; in other cases, they haven’t even bothered hiding the role of their personal beliefs.