"We are very happy that the court agreed with our assessment that the second semester course on the New Testament amounted to religious instruction and was therefore unconstitutional," said Shields.

Last Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Kovachevich ordered an injunction against the teaching of Bible History II, the portion of the class covering the New Testament. The judge ruled that she would not at this time enter an injunction against the Old Testament portion of the course, which began Wednesday. But the judge added that she expects careful monitoring of the Bible History classes, including videotaping, and would receive complaints promptly about the actual teaching of the class.

"Even though the court did not enjoin the first semester course," Shields continued, "we are pleased that the court essentially put the school district on strict probation. The court made clear that careful scrutiny of the course is expected and warned against even the slightest infraction of constitutional standards." Shields said the People For the American Way Foundation will "take up the judge's counsel and will monitor the school district's teaching of this `Bible History' course with the utmost scrutiny, and we expect the school district to cooperate in that effort."

Elliot Mincberg, legal director for the People For the American Way Foundation, pointed out that the court's decision was a clear repudiation of the New Testament curriculum developed by the National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools, a private North Carolina-based Religious Right-affiliated group. "We would hope that the school district will take the judge up on her invitation and will work with us to develop a proper curriculum that passes constitutional muster, rather than requiring the continuation of costly, divisive and time-consuming litigation."

The People For the American Way Foundation is a 300,000-member non-profit organization dedicated to defending civil rights; promoting the democratic values of religious freedom and respect for diversity; and developing a culture of opportunity and tolerance of individual difference. http://pfaw.org | pfaw@pfaw.org