by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Worthy News) – The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to weigh in on a growing national battle over whether states may require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public-school classrooms, potentially setting the stage for a major First Amendment ruling.
The American Civil Liberties Union and attorneys representing more than two dozen Texas families petitioned the Supreme Court on Monday to review a Texas law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments.
The appeal follows an April decision by the full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which voted 9-8 to uphold Texas Senate Bill 10. The law requires public elementary and secondary schools to prominently display an easily readable copy of the Ten Commandments in classrooms when qualifying posters are donated.
The closely divided appeals court concluded that the requirement does not amount to an unconstitutional establishment of religion because students are not required to recite the commandments, profess belief in them, or affirm their divine origin.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton praised the decision earlier this year as a victory for the state’s values, arguing that the Ten Commandments have played a significant role in American history and should remain visible to students.
A Potentially Landmark Religious Liberty Case
Opponents are asking the Supreme Court to reverse the appeals court, arguing that placing a state-selected version of Scripture in classrooms violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause and interferes with parents’ authority over their children’s religious upbringing.
At the center of the legal fight is the Supreme Court’s 1980 decision in Stone v. Graham, which struck down a Kentucky law requiring the Ten Commandments to be posted in public-school classrooms. The 5th Circuit concluded that subsequent Supreme Court decisions governing religion and government have undermined that precedent.
The dispute extends well beyond Texas. Louisiana, Arkansas and Alabama have adopted similar measures as lawmakers in several states seek to restore greater recognition of America’s religious heritage in public education.
If the Supreme Court accepts the Texas case, the justices could clarify whether the nation’s changing First Amendment jurisprudence permits states to recognize the Ten Commandments as part of America’s historical and moral tradition without constitutionally establishing religion.
The Court has not yet announced when it will consider whether to hear the appeal.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Nuclear material has been discovered in Syria and placed under International Atomic Energy Agency oversight, reviving attention on a clandestine nuclear program that Israel destroyed nearly two decades ago.
The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to weigh in on a growing national battle over whether states may require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public-school classrooms, potentially setting the stage for a major First Amendment ruling.
A prominent house church pastor and six other Christians have disappeared after being detained by police in Wenzhou, a major Christian center in eastern China often called the “Jerusalem of China.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner have reached an understanding that Hamas must be fully disarmed and the Gaza Strip demilitarized before reconstruction begins or Israeli forces withdraw, marking a significant narrowing of differences between Jerusalem and the Trump administration over the future of Gaza.
Humanoid robots capable of navigating rugged terrain, detecting people and conducting around-the-clock surveillance could eventually join U.S. Border Patrol operations along the southern border, as an American robotics company moves closer to potential national-security deployments.
Israel carried out an unusual airstrike deep inside northwestern Syria early Tuesday, targeting the strategic Abu al-Duhur military airfield shortly after a Turkish military delegation reportedly visited the base to assess its rehabilitation, according to Israeli and Syrian reports. The operation prompted a rare public rebuke from a senior U.S. envoy.
Newly declassified FBI records released by the White House detail what officials describe as a years-long Chinese intelligence effort to penetrate American political circles through sexual relationships, campaign donations, and strategically placed interns.