bible.JPG

The Bible could potentially become the state book of Mississippi. (File photo)

( )

There's a state bird, a state nut, a state shell and more, but what about a book? A couple of Mississippi lawmakers are hoping to make the Bible the official book of the state.

Rep. Tom Miles of Forest and fellow Democratic Rep. Michael Evans of Preston are spearheading the bill which was proposed last week, according to Evans.

Evans told AL.com that the idea came about while he was speaking with constituents.

"Me and my constituents, we were talking about it and one of them made a comment that people ought to start reading the Bible," said Evans.

He said that they discussed "all the things going wrong in the world" and someone suggested making the Bible the state book.

Evans, in his fourth year as a representative, is Baptist. "I believe in the Bible," he said.

Rep. Michael T. Evans, District 43, is one of two MS Democrats proposing a bill that would make the Bible the state book of MS. (Courtesy of Evans)

As for those who would criticize the bill, he said "the bill doesn't force anyone to read it," but that he hopes it encourages people to pick it up.

Miles told the Associated Press that he is also "not trying to force religion" but sees the Bible as promoting kindness and compassion.

The bill will take a few weeks to go forward, Evans said.

The action was also proposed in Louisiana in 2014 but was scrapped after controversy, according to AL.com affiliate NOLA.com.