A North Carolina public school system is caught indoctrinating children in Christian dogma, teaching elementary school students that the Biblical 7-day creation story is a scientific “fact” as well as other points of Christian propaganda.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is calling on the Rowan-Salisbury School District in North Carolina to put an immediate stop to the “flagrantly unconstitutional” Bible classes currently being taught in at least three elementary schools including Cleveland, Woodleaf, and Mount Ulla Elementary schools.

Local churches fund the weekly 45-minute Bible classes; however, as the FFRF points out, under firm Supreme Court precedent, such outside funding does not relieve the school of its obligation to ensure all public school students a secular education free of religious indoctrination.

FFRF Staff Attorney Patrick Elliott sent a letter to the district on Sept. 24 calling the classes “flagrantly unconstitutional,” pointing out that the Supreme Court had struck down similar classes in 1948 in a landmark case in which the facts “could hardly be more similar.”

Elliott said:

“It is appalling that the District would take away from instructional time to indoctrinate children in Christian dogma.”

According to the FFRF, the school district’s youngest students attend a bible class in which the teacher presents the bible as literal fact, including teaching a 7-day creation, giving students examples of “God’s plan” that “clearly” showed the universe was created with a purpose, and supposed examples of the bible predicting scientific discoveries, among other inappropriate teachings inculcating biblical beliefs.

FFRF Staff Attorney Elliot headed off any justification that students can apparently be excused from the bible classes, writing that “suggesting that children who do not wish to be subjected to religious activity at their school should be segregated from their classmates is reprehensible.”

Elliot continued:

“Parents should not be required to excuse students from constitutional violations, and segregating students based on religious beliefs, or lack thereof, is not a way to get around prohibitions on religious activity in public schools.”

District superintendent Dr. Lynn Moody told WBTV that the school board met on Thursday to discuss the FFRF letter, but did not wish to make a statement at that time.

FFRF is calling on Rowan-Salisbury School System to put an immediate moratorium on the elementary school bible classes involving “young, impressionable elementary school students.”