A US court has cleared the way for a law to take effect, which requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public classrooms in Louisiana.
The policy is controversial because critics argue it violates the separation of church and state, while supporters believe the Ten Commandments are historical and part of the foundation of US law.
On Friday, the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals voted 12 to 6 to lift a block that a lower court first placed on the Louisiana law in 2024. In the opinion released Friday, the court said it was too early to make a judgment on whether the legislation was constitutional.
The panel decided it did not have enough information to consider any First Amendment issues, including how prominent the religious text is in schools and whether teachers will refer to it during classes.
Arkansas has a similar law that has been challenged in federal court. A Texas law also took effect on 1 September, marking the widest-reaching attempt in the nation to hang the Ten Commandments in public schools.
Some Texas school districts were barred from posting the commandments after federal judges issued injunctions in two cases challenging the law, but they have already been put up in many classrooms across the state.
Legal challenges have been brought on constitutional grounds, based on a principle designed to ensure that government and religious institutions operate independently of one another.
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Circuit Judge James Ho wrote that the new law was “not just constitutional – it affirms our nation’s highest and most noble traditions”.
But six judges who voted against the decision wrote a series of opposing arguments.
There are different interpretations of the Ten Commandments across Jewish, Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox traditions. Here is the Church of England’s take on the religious and ethical directives:
• I am the Lord your God: you shall have no other gods but me.
• You shall not make for yourself any idol.
• You shall not dishonour the name of the Lord your God.
• Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.
• Honour your father and mother.
• You shall not commit murder.
• You shall not commit adultery.
• You shall not steal.
• You shall not be a false witness.
• You shall not covet anything which belongs to your neighbour.
Some said the law exposes children to government-endorsed religion in a place where they are required to be, presenting a clear constitutional burden.
Jeff Landry, Republican governor of Louisiana, celebrated the ruling on X, declaring, “Common sense is making a comeback!”
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Louisiana attorney general Liz Murrill said in a statement that “don’t kill or steal shouldn’t be controversial”.
“My office has issued clear guidance to our public schools on how to comply with the law, and we have created multiple examples of posters demonstrating how it can be applied constitutionally.
“Louisiana public schools should follow the law,” she added.
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The Freedom From Religion Foundation called the ruling “extremely disappointing” while another group involved in the legal challenge, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), pledged to explore all legal pathways to continue fighting the law.
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The laws represent pressure by Republicans, including Donald Trump, to incorporate religion into public school classrooms.
