Three people are dead after a student from Abundant Life Christian School (ALCS) in Madison, Wisconsin, opened fire inside the school Monday morning, Dec. 16. Six others are wounded.

The private, nondenominational school, which enrolls about 390 students in kindergarten through 12th grade, is located on the grounds of City Church. ALCS was founded in 1978 and graduated its first class in 1985, according to its website.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said his department received a call about an active shooter at 10:57 a.m. from a 2nd-grader. The shooting occurred in a study hall.

“Today truly is a sad day for Madison and for our country,” an emotional Barnes told reporters during a press briefing. “It is a day that I believe will live in our collective minds for a very, very long time.”

RELATED: Pastor’s 9-Year-Old Daughter Was One of the Victims in Covenant School Shooting

Barnes confirmed that three people, including the shooter, are dead.

“We know that the suspect was a teenage student who attended the school,” Barnes said. “At this time, we’re not releasing the age or gender of the student or any other identifying details.”

Later that evening, officials identified the shooter to be 15-year-old female student Natalie Rupnow. Detectives are currently still in the process of interviewing the shooter’s parents.

The fatalities include another teenage student and a teacher.

Six others were injured in the shooting. Barnes said two victims are in critical condition with life-threatening injuries, while four others are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Two of the shooting victims were discharged Monday night.

“These are just the physical injuries that we know about,” Barnes said. “We know this happened during the middle of the school day, so there will be other [emotional] injuries that we’ll have to face for a very long time. We’re going to do everything we can as a community to heal those injuries as well.”

“Let Us Pray: Chapter X,” the second posthumous album from iconic rapper DMX, reimagines his prayers and features artists including Lecrae, Snoop Dogg, Killer Mike and Mary Mary. The track Lecrae is featured on is titled, “Bear With Me,” and includes lyrics from the final track of DMX’s second studio album, “Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood.”

DMX’s lyrics read in part, “I thank You, Lord, for my birth and everything that’s followed / I thank You, Lord, for today and I will pray for tomorrow.”

“I don’t always do the right thing, and I ask you to forgive me,” he says, “Cause I need you here with me, without you in my life, it’s empty / I think back how some people did me like violence was the remedy / And because I think of that now, I pray for my enemy.”

DMX’s Second Posthumous Album Reimagines Rapper’s Prayers

DMX, whose real name was Earl Simmons, is known for hits including “Party Up (Up in Here),” “X Gon’ Give It To Ya,” and “Get at Me Dog.” His debut album, “It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot,” topped the Billboard 200 chart, and the rapper subsequently became the only rapper to have five albums in a row top that chart. DMX, whose stage name stood for “Dark Man X,” also had numerous hits on Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart.

DMX was nominated for four Grammy Awards, received multiple nominations for MTV Video Music Awards, and won an American Music Award and a Soul Train Award. In addition to his success as a musical artist, DMX was an actor who appeared in films including “Romeo Must Die” and “Cradle 2 the Grave.”

The rapper had a challenging upbringing. He was born to teen parents in Mount Vernon, New York, on Dec. 18, 1970. His father was absent and his abusive mother beat him severely. At one point as a teenager, DMX spent his nights sleeping in empty Salvation Army bins. He befriended stray dogs and came to trust the animals more than people. In his youth, DMX took up robbery, and it was during this time that he began exploring his talent for rapping.

RELATED: ‘I Saw the Vision of Jesus Christ’–‘Paper Planes’ Rapper Shares She Has Become a Born-Again Christian

DMX passed away on April 9, 2021, at the age of 50 from a heart attack that was the result of an apparent drug overdose. He struggled with drug addiction throughout his life and was frequently in and out of jail. His albums feature explicit lyrics but also contain prayers to God.

The rapper frequently spoke about his Christian faith and even at one point of expressed an intention becoming a pastor. According to Pitchfork, DMX was ordained as deacon at a church in Arizona. He appeared at Kanye West’s Sunday Services, and one time held a Bible study on Instagram. 

One month after receiving a pardon of innocence from the governor, North Carolina Pastor Darron Carmon received a $4.4 million settlement in his civil suit against the town of Winterville. Although the town admitted no wrongdoing, Carmon said he now has “4.4 million more reasons why…Winterville was actually wrong.”

As ChurchLeaders reported, Carmon was convicted of armed robbery in 1994, at age 19. After eight years in prison, where he maintained his innocence, Carmon was released for good behavior. In 2022, a court overturned his conviction. Last month’s pardon from outgoing North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper made Carmon eligible for up to $400,000 in restitution from the state.

RELATED: NC Pastor Receives Full Pardon, Now Eligible for $400,000 in Restitution for Wrongful Imprisonment

In a civil lawsuit against Winterville and two former police officers, Carmon alleged they hid evidence that would have proved his innocence. A trial had been slated to begin this month.

North Carolina Pastor: ‘You Cannot Fix What You Do Not Face’

In a statement about the settlement, the town of Winterville said:

The town repudiates Mr. Carmon’s claims of wrongdoing by the town and its officers in the strongest possible terms. As part of the settlement, all parties specifically agreed that neither the town nor the officers admitted to any wrongdoing. While the town believes strongly that there was no wrongdoing by the town or its officers, the town is pleased to have this matter resolved and is ready to move forward.

Asked why he accepted a settlement, rather than going to court, Carmon said the town’s insurance providers wanted to avoid a trial. “They settled with what I actually wanted,” he told a reporter.

The settlement—along with his exoneration and pardon—speaks for itself, according to the pastor. Though he feels like justice was served, he said the “the lack of acknowledgement” from the town is “an issue because you cannot fix what you do not face.”

Carmon continued, “That means to me that it’s subject to happen again to somebody else…They’re not holding themselves accountable, and that’s problematic for our community, because who’s next?”

“If you’re not going to acknowledge every time someone who looks like me says that there’s been an injustice, you always say you didn’t do anything wrong,” said Carmon.

The pastor said the officers involved “should or could still, you know, recognize the wrong that was done.”

Christian artist Jeremy Camp has won several awards, including GMA Dove Awards and ASCAP Awards. While he is a decorated artist, he continues to be humbly vulnerable in front of his friends and fans. In an anniversary post honoring is wife, Adrienne, Camp opened up about the last year.

“To be honest, this past year has been one of the hardest of my life,” admitted Camp in a recent social media post.

Jeremy Camp Focuses on Gratefulness After ‘Overwhelming’ Year

Singer-songwriter Camp has used the stage to proclaim God’s goodness and to be transparent about his own life. Just like anyone, he has endured great hardship, and this year is no different.

Camp posted on Instagram to celebrate his anniversary with his second wife, Adrienne. The two have been married for 21 years now.

He and Adrienne have three children and share the fast-paced life of a music artist. Camp said, “I married my best friend, and what an incredible journey it has been.”

“To be honest, this past year has been one of the hardest of my life. From my heart procedure earlier this year, to broken relationships, to other challenges, to Adrienne’s total hip replacement, and now my recovery from knee replacement surgery—it’s been nonstop,” Camp said. “The mental, emotional, and spiritual strain has been overwhelming at times.”

Camp’s genuine faith in God has carried him through a number of tragedies in his life, including the death of his first wife, Melissa.

This year included a second heart surgery to correct a heart arrhythmia that had returned. Camp had to cut one show short due to his heart beating too fast. He returned to the stage less than a month later.

Earlier this month, Camp underwent another surgery, this time for a full knee replacement. One of his staff members posted on behalf of Camp to request prayers from friends and fans. Doctors expect him to make a full recovery after the hard work of rehab.

“Yet, even in the midst of all these struggles, there are always reasons to be grateful—things that shine brighter than the hardships. First and foremost, the beautiful truth that Jesus is our strength and our everything,” Camp said. He then turned his gratitude toward his bride, adding, “And Adrienne, you are one of those bright spots that always outweigh the negatives.”

Camp credited his wife and her steadfast support. “You’ve been my rock—especially during the moments I felt like I couldn’t go on. Times when I wanted to give up on music, you reminded me that God is not done with me yet,” he said. “You’ve stood by me, encouraged me, and loved me even when I didn’t deserve it. I cannot begin to express how much you mean to me, how much I love you, and how deeply grateful I am for you.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Jeremy Camp (@jeremycampofficial)

A holiday display sponsored by The Satanic Temple (TST) only briefly stood outside the New Hampshire State House, as vandals quickly broke the display into pieces. The broken display was later removed.

TST erected the display in New Hampshire’s capital city of Concord after a Christian nativity display was set up on public grounds nearby. 

The organization, which is a secular humanist organization that employs religious imagery to challenge what it describes as Christian supremacy in America, is known for stirring controversy, repeatedly demanding to give invocations at city council meetings and establishing displays of Satanism wherever Christian imagery is present. 

In a video circulating on social media, representatives for TST can be seen unveiling the holiday display, which featured a baphomet wearing a cloak and holding flowers and an apple. 

RELATED: Man Charged With Hate Crime for Allegedly Vandalizing The Satanic Temple’s Display in Iowa

Before unveiling the display, one representative expressed gratitude toward the Satanic Representation Campaign for petitioning for “this holiday display to be placed here on city property next to these other beautiful holiday displays.”

“Hail Satan,” the representatives said as they unveiled the display. 

Sometime shortly after its unveiling, vandals dismantled the display, breaking the baphomet into several pieces and smashing in its head. 

The display was reportedly attacked several times, beginning just hours after it was unveiled. 

While the city of Concord did issue a permit for the display, they apparently did so under threat of litigation from TST.

RELATED: ‘SatanCon’ To Take Place in Boston; Event Dedicated to City Officials Who Barred Satanic Temple From Delivering Invocation

Byron O. Champlin, mayor of Concord, said during a recent city council meeting that he had “received phone calls from people in the community about the recent display” and wanted to clarify his position on the matter. 

(RNS) — Eighteen months since Bishop Prince Singh‘s two adult sons, Nivedhan and Eklan Singh, made allegations on social media that their father was guilty of physical abuse, alcoholism and emotional abuse, the head of the Episcopal Church has announced the misconduct complaints against Singh have been resolved.

Prince Singh, the former provisional bishop of the dioceses of Eastern and Western Michigan who resigned in September 2023, will be suspended from ministry for at least three more years, according to the terms of an accord reached between Singh and Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe.

Singh has been the subject of two clergy misconduct complaints. One involved allegations that he physically and emotionally abused his wife at the time, Roja Suganthy-Singh, and his sons; drank alcohol excessively at home; and was publicly deceitful about facts regarding his divorce with Suganthy-Singh, now his ex-wife. The second complaint, which came from members of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester where Singh previously served, included allegations of misusing Title IV — the Episcopal Church’s process for handling clergy misconduct — and of engaging in vindictiveness and public shaming.

In an announcement released Friday (Dec. 13), Rowe said that, while Singh continues to dispute the allegations, the accord, or written resolution, resolves both complaints. The terms of the accord were approved by the Disciplinary Board for Bishops, a church court made of 10 bishops, six other clergy and six lay people.

“My goal in negotiating this accord with Bishop Singh has been to achieve Title IV’s goals by identifying paths for him to be accountable, to amend his life, and then to seek reconciliation with his family and his former diocese if and when they are willing to do so,” Rowe’s announcement, sent to denominational members via email, said. “I also expect him to repair his relationships with his colleagues in the House of Bishops.”

A media statement released Saturday morning (Dec. 14), by Singh’s church lawyer said though Singh denies the allegations, he consents to the accord’s terms and commits to completing them faithfully. “In particular, Bishop Singh deeply regrets the pain suffered by his sons and former spouse and is pledged to pursue reconciliation and healing with them,” the statement said.

However, in an email to RNS, Nivedhan Singh voiced concerns with the final accord, calling the outcome “a tragic conclusion to what has been a deeply painful and retraumatizing process.

“Despite the Episcopal Church’s well-thought-out Title IV process, this Accord highlights significant shortcomings when the Presiding Bishop exercises unilateral authority to override the findings of earlier investigative panels,” Nivedhan Singh wrote.

In July, a conference panel that oversaw informal proceedings involving Nivedhan and Eklan Singh and Suganthy-Singh’s allegations against Prince Singh emailed the involved parties the draft of a proposed order that recommended permanently removing Singh from ministry, according to a copy of the draft order obtained by RNS. The panel said it found clear and convincing evidence that Prince Singh “engaged in persistent and ongoing physical violence directed at each of his sons” and in “serious deceptive behavior in the Church for his own personal benefit,” according to the proposed order. The panel also said Prince Singh had violated church canons and continued to deny the allegations.

“The Conference Panel is now convinced, by clear and convincing evidence, that Respondent cannot be allowed to continue the exercise of ordained ministry under these circumstances and, given his unwillingness to even admit to the behavior described above, the Conference Panel finds and hereby recommends deposition from ministry to be the appropriate action for the good of the Church,” the proposed order says. However, the matter did not fully resolve at that juncture and was referred to a hearing panel.

In an email to RNS, Amanda Skofstad, public affairs officer for the denomination, emphasized that the conference panel order was a draft, and all parties must agree to a conference panel’s proposed order for it to be enforceable. “The conference panel referred the matter to a hearing panel, and no order was issued,” she wrote.

Author and Bible teacher Priscilla Shirer met her husband, Jerry Shirer, when she was only 23 years old and gave a motivational speech at a luncheon for a group of executives. She described the beginning of her love story to actor and producer Candace Cameron Bure in the most recent episode of “The Candace Cameron Bure Podcast.”

“It is interesting when Jerry and I are at the 25-year mark now, and…it was so far in the future when we first got married, and then all of a sudden you’re there, and you’re not exactly sure how that happened,” said Priscilla. “And then you’re grateful that you do still kind of like each other, and, you know, you want to spend time together.”

“And you realize there are very few relationships these days that are going the distance,” she added, “so I feel really grateful.”

Priscilla Shirer and Candace Cameron Bure ‘Talk Husbands’

Candace Cameron Bure is known for starring in the 90s sitcom “Full House” and the 2016-2020 spinoff, “Fuller House,” as well as numerous Hallmark movies. In 2022 she announced she had left the Hallmark Channel and signed with Great American Family, where she serves as chief creative officer.

Priscilla Shirer is a co-founder with her husband, Jerry, of Going Beyond Ministries. She is the New York Times bestselling author of more than two dozen books and has had featured roles in a number of films, including “War Room,” “I Can Only Imagine,” and her latest, “The Forge.”

RELATED: Priscilla Shirer Talks About ‘The Forge’ and Shares How ‘Critical’ Discipleship Is in the Church Today

At the beginning of the women’s conversation, Candace said, “Let’s talk husbands for a minute because you adore yours and I adore mine.”

Priscilla said that she met Jerry, who is 6-and-a-half years older than she is, when she was 23. She had been invited to speak at a meeting for some executives (“I don’t know why,” she said) and planned to give a 15-minute motivational talk. At the time, Jerry was an executive for Hilton Hotels.

For some reason, the woman organizing the luncheon thought that Priscilla and Jerry should meet. “I didn’t know this woman,” said Priscilla. “She’d never met me before, nor I her.” When Priscilla learned the woman wanted her to meet a young executive at the meeting, “I was like, ‘Girl, what?’” 

On the flip side, when Jerry learned that Priscilla was the one who would be speaking at the luncheon, he said he didn’t want to meet her—because she was his pastor’s daughter!

On his 100th birthday, retired Pastor Marshall Reinhardt preached the gospel and invited worshipers to make Jesus “the Lord of your life.” Reinhardt, born in Georgia on Dec. 1, 1924, was the guest of honor and guest speaker Sunday, Dec. 1, at Awtrey-Westville Baptist Church in Acworth, Georgia. One of his two sons, Tommy Reinhardt, currently pastors that congregation.

During a special worship service, Pastor Tommy Reinhardt honored his father “for his life and his service and his dedication.” Tommy shared 1 Timothy 5:17, which says, “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.”

RELATED: Deacon Who Tackled Church Gunman Honored at Fox Nation Patriot Awards

But his dad would correct him, Tommy said, unless he clarified that “our real object today is to honor God, because God blessing [my father]—the life that [God has] blessed him with—has blessed all of us.”

Pastor Marshall Reinhardt Preaches on 100th Birthday

Marshall Reinhardt, who pastored 10 churches during his ministry, stood at the pulpit on his 100th birthday, urging listeners to share the gospel wherever and whenever they can. As an example, he spoke about Ruth, his wife of 57 years, who died in 2002.

When the couple first began dating, Reinhardt said, Ruth was a churchgoer and a good person, so he didn’t witness to her. A few years later, after Ruth attended a Christian revival, she revealed that she had just been saved.

Reinhardt’s own path to faith started out rocky, he admitted. Although saved as a teen, he experienced a couple of years of persistent doubt. Finally, on the advice of his pastor, Reinhardt knelt in a gully one day, prayed, and “heaven came down,” he said.

The centenarian urged worshipers to joyfully shine Jesus’ light. “When people hear and see my actions, they draw a mind picture,” said Reinhardt. “And if I’ve done anything wrong in their sight and I’m walking in sin, they know about it. They see that, and it affects my witnessing to them.”

The preacher continued: “We’re indebted to [Jesus], to live for him, to glorify and honor his name. People should be able to see Jesus in our lives, in our actions, the way we conduct our business.”

Reinhardt concluded by saying, “I love the Lord. He’s done so much for me. He’s the Savior, he’s the Lord of my life, and he wants to be the Lord of your life.”

As for tips for new pastors, Reinhardt reminded them to pray for and love their congregants. “Remember who called you, and do God’s will,” he added. “You can’t improve on God’s will.”

A recently released clip from the upcoming season of “The Chosen” is making waves online, with some calling out the dialogue in the scene as “unbiblical.” 

The footage was one of two scenes that Dallas Jenkins, who created and directs the show, previewed to fans during a livestream on Dec. 10. 

“The Chosen” is the first multi-season television show to depict the life and ministry of Jesus Christ and has received both praise and criticism. While the show has won several awards, it has also consistently received backlash for taking creative liberties with the New Testament accounts. 

Jenkins has defended the show in the face of allegations that it “adds to Scripture” on numerous occasions, including in an interview on “The Stetzer ChurchLeaders Podcast” last year.

RELATED: Voddie Baucham Believes Watching ‘The Chosen’ Would Violate the Second Commandment

“I come from a conservative, Bible-believing background. I’m a strong evangelical who believes that the Bible is God’s Word,” Jenkins said. “So we start with that as our primary source of truth and inspiration, and we don’t change it.”

Nevertheless, the show explores what it was like for Jesus’ disciples to follow him, and that includes imagining moments and scenarios that aren’t covered in Scripture. So when it comes to writing the scripts for the show, Jenkins and his team of spiritual advisors and biblical scholars strive to fill in the narrative gaps with details that are “plausible.”

“Is this plausible? Does this fit within the character of Jesus and the gospels? And if so, we believe that we have the opportunity to fill in some gaps,” Jenkins said. 

While not everyone agrees with how the show decides to fill in these gaps, Jenkins has continued to emphasize that “The Chosen” is not a replacement for Scripture and that the show has actually inspired many people to engage more deeply with Scripture. 

The latest scene stirring online conversation will appear in Season 5 of the show and depicts a conversation between Jesus and Judas. 

RELATED: Dallas Jenkins Reveals ‘Very First Line That Was Ever Written’ for ‘The Chosen’

“You have a choice to make, Judas,” Jesus says in the scene, “who you belong to. Who has your heart? I want it, and I’ve had it before. You followed me willingly.”

LONDON (RNS) — Two weeks before Christmas is normally one of the busiest times of the year for the Archbishop of Canterbury, spent preparing his sermon for Canterbury Cathedral’s Christmas morning service that makes the news on British television on Dec. 25.

But this is not a normal Christmas season for outgoing Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who has entered an unaccustomed period of silence after first stepping down because of the Church of England’s handling of one of its worst abuse scandals, followed by his disastrous valedictory address in the House of Lords last week.

It seems we will hear no more from Welby before he officially leaves his post on Jan. 6 — besides giving up his Christmas sermon, he will not deliver his usual televised New Year’s Day message, the BBC has confirmed. Instead, officials at Lambeth Palace said, this year he will spend the holidays privately with his family.

RELATED: Justin Welby Resigns as Head of Church of England Following Damning Report on Sex Abuse Cover-Up

Welby’s reputation was badly tarnished by the Makin Review, an independent investigation of the church’s response to allegations of abuse against John Smyth, a prominent layman who ran summer camps in England and Zimbabwe. After the report appeared in early November, confirming that Welby had been slow to isolate a suspected abuser, Welby announced he would resign his post a year before he turned 70, when Archbishops of Canterbury traditionally quit.

An ex officio member of the British Parliament’s House of Lords, Welby rose to make his farewell remarks Thursday (Dec. 5) during a debate on housing and homelessness — issues on which he has commented many times during his episcopacy.

His speech did eventually address those topics, but not initially. Instead, Welby began by seeming to make light of his resignation and the serious safeguarding failures detailed in the Makin Review. After joking about a 14^th-century predecessor who was beheaded, Welby suggested, “If you pity anyone, pity my poor diary secretary, who has seen weeks and months of work disappear in a puff of a resignation announcement.” He went on to thank fellow members of the Lords for their supportive messages over the past few weeks.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, center, addresses the British Parliament’s House of Lords, Dec. 5, 2024. (Video screen grab)

While some peers and the fellow Church of England bishops seated behind Welby on the parliamentary benches appeared to be amused, the bishop of London, Dame Sarah Mullally, appeared to be mortified, holding her hand across her face. The squirm of embarrassment was also felt by viewers at home and by commentators.

One of Smyth’s victims told The Guardian that he was appalled by Welby’s speech, saying, “I have never come across anyone so tone-deaf.”

The bishops who oversee anti-abuse efforts — Joanne Grenfell, Julie Conalty and Robert Springett — released a letter sent to survivors and their advocates the day after the speech, responding to a rash of emails expressing anger about Welby’s speech.

“Both in content and delivery, the speech was utterly insensitive, lacked any focus on victims and survivors of abuse, especially those affected by John Smyth, and made light of the events surrounding the Archbishop’s resignation,” they wrote. “It was mistaken and wrong. We acknowledge and deeply regret that this has caused further harm to you in an already distressing situation.”

Welby issued a mea culpa the same day, expressing regret at sins of commission and omission. “I understand that my words – the things that I said, and those I omitted to say – have caused further distress for those who were traumatised, and continue to be harmed, by John Smyth’s heinous abuse and by the far-reaching effects of other perpetrators of abuse,” he said in a statement.

(RNS) — Some describe LifeWise Academy as vacation Bible school for public schoolers.

The free program, which serves nearly 400 schools in Ohio and hundreds more across the United States, provides public school students with Bible-themed games, instruction and hands-on activities, all conducted off school property during recess, lunch or while the student would be in a noncore class.

But some school districts in Ohio have begun to pull back from LifeWise, bringing mixed reactions from parents and coming as state legislators work to make the “religious release” available statewide.

Students in the Worthington City School District, near Columbus, Ohio, have been attending LifeWise Academy’s sessions since last year. But on Monday (Dec. 9), the school board unanimously voted to end a policy that allows public school students to participate in religious programs during school hours.

“I just can’t understand why this program, which is valuable to many families, can’t meet after school,” board member Jennifer Best, who wore a silver cross necklace at the meeting Monday where outside instruction was voted down. “If we get to the point where there’s two or three or four programs, and then all of a sudden the music world wants kids to take music lessons during school time, and then language lessons during school time, I just see it growing and getting out of hand.”

More than 20 students will be affected by the vote, according to LifeWise, based in Hilliard, Ohio, which had planned to expand to four schools in the district due to demand. Jennifer Jury, LifeWise director of program advocacy, called the decision “really disappointing.”

The school board did not respond to requests for comment.

Worthington is the second Ohio school district to discontinue its religious release policy in recent months, after a similar decision by Westerville City Schools, another central Ohio district, which dropped the policy in October, impacting nearly 300 students who had been enrolled in LifeWise, according to Jury.

Both decisions come amid statewide discussions on religious release, a policy that gives students express leave to be excused during the school day for religious instruction and is currently permitted statewide. Under the policy, religious programs must provide transportation, must not use public funds or public school personnel and must obtain parental consent for student participation. A new bill in the Ohio General Assembly would mandate school districts to allow religious release programs.

The bill would update an existing law saying a school district board “may” permit religious release with new language saying boards “shall” authorize such programs. Initially introduced this spring as Ohio House Bill 445 by sponsor Gary Click, a Republican state representative, and Al Cutrona, a Republican senator, it includes the same mandatory religious release language as a Senate bill this summer by Republican Sen. Michele Reynolds. In an email to RNS, Click described the House bill as creating “a level playing field and equal opportunity for all parents and students throughout Ohio regardless of a student’s zip code.” Both bills have drawn extensive criticism and support, and neither bill has yet made it out of committee.

More recently, the mandatory religious release policy was added to a bill that passed Ohio’s lower chamber last summer that bans teaching on “sexual concepts and gender ideology” below third grade, according to the Ohio Capital Journal.