A divided U.S. federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that Texas can require public schools to display the biblical Ten Commandments in every classroom, reversing a lower court judge who had blocked the law and marking a setback for parents who accused the Republican-led state of trampling their rights under the U.S. Constitution.
The New Orleans-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit voted 9-7 to uphold Texas Senate Bill 10, which was enacted last year and requires a poster of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in a visible spot in every public elementary and secondary school classroom in the state.
The majority’s ruling, written by Circuit Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan and joined by Chief Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod and seven other judges, said the law does not violate the U.S. Constitution's prohibition on government establishment of religion or its protection of the free exercise of religion.
The Texas law “does not tell churches or synagogues or mosques what to believe or how to worship or whom to employ as priests, rabbis, or imams,” Duncan wrote. “It punishes no one who rejects the Ten Commandments, no matter the reason.”
In a statement, a lead attorney for the challengers of the Texas law said they were disappointed by the ruling.
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"The court’s ruling goes against fundamental First Amendment principles and binding U.S. Supreme Court authority," Jon Youngwood said. "The First Amendment safeguards the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction."
Youngwood said the plaintiffs "anticipate asking the Supreme Court to reverse this decision and uphold the religious-freedom rights of children and parents."
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a statement called the appeals court’s decision “a major victory for Texas and our moral values.” Paxton said the “Ten Commandments have had a profound impact on our nation, and it’s important that students learn from them every single day.”
The challengers, including multifaith and nonreligious families, contended that they have a right under the U.S. Constitution to decide their children’s religious education.
In a dissent, 5th Circuit Judge Irma Carrillo Ramirez said the appeals court was bound by a 1980 U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down a nearly identical Kentucky law.
The 5th Circuit’s ruling reversed a preliminary injunction that had blocked the Texas law from taking effect.