On Thursday, October 6^th, hundreds of thousands of students across the country will bring their Bible to school.

Organized by Focus on the Family, the third annual “Bring Your Bible to School Day” encourages students to assert their religious rights at school and share their faith with classmates.

“This student-led event is a simple way for children and teens to celebrate religious freedom and to share the hope and inspiration they receive from reading their Bibles,” Focus on the Family said in a news release publicizing the event.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the religious exercise and expression of students in public schools.

In fact, schools must allow students to read their Bible during non-instructional time, including free reading time during class, between classes, during lunch, and before or after school. Students must also be permitted to distribute religious literature and share their faith with classmates.

Alliance Defending Freedom, a religious liberty organization, has provided a legal memorandum about the event, explaining the First Amendment rights of students.

But many schools and faculty members, misunderstanding the meaning of “separation of church and state,” needlessly and illegally restrict the constitutional rights of students concerning religion at school.

Last month, for example, we brought you news about Caleb Zavala, a first grade student enrolled in a California public school. School officials dispatched a sheriff’s deputy to the Zavala family home because Caleb had been sharing Bible verses with his friends during school lunch. The Palmdale elementary school has since apologized.

Focus on the Family hopes that “Bring Your Bible to School Day” serves “as a timely, vital way to empower modern-day Esthers and Daniels to be courageous in standing for their faith.”

To receive more information about “Bring Your Bible to School Day,” please see: www.focusonthefamily.com/bringyourbible.