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Should Religion Be Taught in Public Schools?

Should Religion Be Taught in Public Schools?

Last updated on: August 8, 2026 at 11:10 am by Roger E. Olson

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Should Religion Be Taught in Public Schools? 2026-08-08T11:10:01-05:00 Roger E. Olson

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My simple answer is yes—definitely and absolutely yes! Religion should be taught in public schools.

Texas democrat James Talarico is reported to have said that religion should NOT be taught in public schools.

So why do I say it should be taught in public schools?

Simply because religion is part of social reality. It’s an important part of social reality. It’s also a part of history. To ignore religion is to ignore a major aspect of the world, of history, of society.

However, I agree with Talarico IF he means no specific religion should be taught as truth in public schools. Religion should be taught but taught about.

You might say it can’t be taught about because the teacher (and the textbooks) will inevitably fail to be objective and neutral and in his or her teaching will incline toward indoctrination. I don’t think that is true. Teachers are trained. They should be trained to teach religion without bias or favor.

So what religions should be taught about in schools? Whatever ones have presence and influence in the school’s region (city, county, state, nation). I would not expect a teacher in Texas to spent much time teaching about an obscure sect of Hinduism in India. Not that he or she shouldn’t. But that should not be expected. However, if there is a significant presence of students or others from India, that might change the expectation.

In most of America Christianity should be taught about. It’s major traditions and beliefs. We cannot expect that most students are Christians or know much about Christianity. LDS/Mormonism should be taught about. Judaism should be taught about. Islam should be taught about. Buddhism and Hinduism should be taught about. All are present and at least somewhat influential in places in America. Where I live there is a huge Buddhist center in the heart of downtown. There is a large Hindu temple in a suburb.

Should atheism be taught about? Yes. And whatever else related to religion. Belief in God should be taught about as a philosophical and not only a religious belief.

IF Talarico meant that religion should not be taught about in public schools, I disagree.

Many public school administrators and teachers shy away from the topic of religion because they consider it a minefield. Every subject can be a minefield. But religion is especially dangerous because of fear that it will always be taught, if taught at all, with a bias toward one religion and against others. That would be simply sloppy and unprofessional. Teachers should be reprimanded if they do that. They should be trained how not to do that.

Religion is taught about in may public universities. I earned an MA and a PhD in religious studies from a private but secular university and there was no indoctrination or bias.

We Americans need to grow out of this fear of religion in public places, including schools, and recognize that to ignore religion is to be blind to a significant part of reality.

*Note: If you choose to comment, make sure your comment is relatively brief (not more than 100 words), on topic, addressed to me, civil and respectful (not hostile or argumentative), and devoid of pictures or links.*

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