Jonathan Petersen April 13, 2016 Perspective: Bible Still Most Accepted Despite Being Included on ALA List of Top 10 Most Challenged Books

According to a new report, the Bible is among the most criticized books at public schools and libraries across the country. Out of 275 challenges in 2015 recorded by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Intellectual Freedom, the Bible ranks in the top ten at number six.
The ALA says people complaining think putting the Bible on library shelves violates the separation of church and state, but that’s really not the case. James LaRue, director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, says the library association does not oppose having Bibles in public schools. He says the Bible does not violate the separation of church and state as long as the library does not endorse or promote the views included in the Bible.
“The Bible has been criticized, challenged, and banned by individuals, groups, and governments through centuries of persecution yet it remains the singular, most popular, life-changing literary work in the world because of its unique inspiration (2 Tim. 3:16-17), and Bible Gateway is committed to making it accessible wherever people are,” says Rachel Barach, general manager, Bible Gateway.
Barach says it’s important to keep in mind that the ALA list is based on a relatively small number of challenges, and that the Bible continues to be overwhelmingly accepted by people around the world. For example, “the Bible is read on Bible Gateway by people from more than 240 countries or territories, including China, Vietnam, Cuba, and North Korea,” says Barach.
The ALA report goes on to quote The Harris Poll of 2244 Americans, saying a third of the respondents (33%) don’t think children should be able to get the Koran from their school library and 29% say the same of the Torah or Talmud. And 26% don’t think children should be able to get books that question the existence of a divine being or beings from school libraries. But Americans are least opposed to restricting children’s school library access to the Bible (only 13%).
The Bible is currently crowned “America’s favorite” in another recent Harris Poll. In 2014, the same as in 2008 when The Harris Poll last asked the question “What is your favorite book of all time?,” the number one answer was the Bible.