Senate votes to place Aitken Bibles in classroom as resources
By Stephen Baldwin, RealWV
As first reported by RealWV on January 23, the Senate is advancing legislation to make Aitken Bibles available to history students in public and charter schools in grades 4, 8, and 10, as long as private dollars pay for the books.
SB388 passed the full chamber by a vote of 30-4 on Thursday. For context on what the Aitken Bible is, please read our previous story.
Sen. Amy Grady, R-Mason, sponsored the bill and spoke in favor of it on the floor, telling colleagues it would be made available as a resource if students requested it.
“This Bible is about the historical significance of religion to American history,” she said. “This Bible is not being used for instruction. It’s available because of its historical significance.”
Pushed by Sen. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, during debate on whether it’s appropriate for public school teachers to provide instruction using the Aitken Bible, Grady (who is also an educator) responded, “They (teachers) shouldn’t teach out of it, separation of church and state. We cannot teach from a Bible.”
She said that the Aitken Bible was of historical significance since it was the first English-language Bible printed in America, and that it should be available as a resource in the classroom if students requested to access it.
Sen. Jack David Woodrum, R-Summers, read a prepared statement on the floor, echoing Grady’s remarks.
“This is not about teaching religion; it’s about history,” Woodrum said. “This Bible is a foundational American historical document referenced in the study of early American culture. Making it available is no different than making other primary source documents available for understanding.”
Two Republicans, Sen. Ryan Weld, R-Marshall, and Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, joined Woelfel and Sen. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, in opposing the bill.
It now heads to the House of Delegates for consideration, and is expected to be taken up. Delegates, like Senators, proclaimed it the “Day of the Bible” last week when members of the First American Bible Project attended a floor session and handed out personalized Aitken Bibles to legislators.
