Court rulings are bolstering state mandates to display the Ten Commandments in public schools as supporters press to expand religion’s role in classrooms, including efforts to require Bible stories in curricula. On Tuesday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Texas’s law requiring the postings, rejecting arguments that the displays improperly intrude on students or parents.
The case marks the biggest drive yet—so far—to require Ten Commandments displays in every classroom across a state, with Texas starting the push last year. Supporters have said the requirement does not force students to adopt religious beliefs, while opponents have argued it violates church-state separation and parents’ rights.
Texas’s law was signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and took effect in September. The law requires districts to post the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom, but it only requires districts to hang the posters if they are donated, a detail that allowed conservative groups and individuals to begin dropping off boxed posters as the school year began.
In its Tuesday ruling, the 5th Circuit reversed a lower-court decision that had been blocking about a dozen Texas school districts from hanging the posters. The appeals court issued a 9-8 decision that found the requirement does not violate students’ or parents’ rights, and it emphasized that “No child is made to recite the Commandments, believe them, or affirm their divine origin,” according to the ruling.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups who challenged the Texas law said they were disappointed. In a statement, the ACLU said the First Amendment protects “the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction,” and it called the decision a violation of those rights.
The Texas ruling follows earlier appellate steps in similar litigation. In February, the 5th Circuit cleared the way for Louisiana to enforce its own Ten Commandments classroom law, and Louisiana’s attorney general, Republican Liz Murrill, later celebrated that decision in the Texas case discussion, saying it “adopted our entire legal defense.”
States pushing the Ten Commandments have largely come from Republican-led efforts across the South. Louisiana became the first state to pass a requirement in 2024, followed by Arkansas and Texas, and the latest addition is Alabama. This month, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in 5th through 12th grade public school classrooms where U.S. history is routinely taught, along with displays in common areas including cafeterias and school libraries.
Supporters also have been pursuing broader classroom changes beyond just Ten Commandments displays. In Texas, the push sits alongside state approvals and proposals involving Bible-infused education, and in neighboring Oklahoma, a mandate to incorporate the Bible into lesson plans for grades 5 through 12 prompted lawsuits from parents and teachers, with many schools choosing not to follow the requirement.
Last year, the Oklahoma Supreme Court blocked an attempt by the state to have the first publicly funded religious charter school in the country, and that dispute remains pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. Looking ahead from the Texas decision, the ACLU and other challengers said they anticipate appealing the 5th Circuit’s ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. As covered earlier today, the case continues to hinge on how courts weigh state display requirements against First Amendment protections.