Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is encouraging Texas school boards to adopt prayer time for students in classrooms.

Following the passage of Senate Bill 11, Mr. Paxton said in a press release Tuesday he would defend any school that adopts a prayer policy.

“I’m encouraging Texas schools to begin the legal process of putting prayer back in the classroom and recommending the Lord’s Prayer for students,” Mr. Paxton posted on X.

“In Texas classrooms, we want the Word of God opened, the Ten Commandments displayed, and prayers lifted up.”

Senate Bill 11 went into effect Monday. It permits school boards to implement time in class for voluntary prayer and the reading of religious texts.

Each school district must take a recorded vote on whether to implement the policies within six months.

Parents must consent to student participation.

Lawsuits have been filed challenging the law.

Mr. Paxton has also encouraged school districts, which were not a party to a lawsuit over displaying the Ten Commandments, to display the religious text.

“From the beginning, the Ten Commandments have been irrevocably intertwined with America’s legal, moral, and historical heritage,” Mr. Paxton wrote. “Schools not enjoined by ongoing litigation must abide by S.B. 10 and display the Ten Commandments. The woke radicals seeking to erase our nation’s history will be defeated. I will not back down from defending the virtues and values that built this country.” 

A federal judge in August blocked some school districts in the state from enforcing S.B. 10, which mandates a poster of the Ten Commandments be hung in every public school classroom.

U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Texas Fred Biery said the requirement could burden children and interfere with parents’ rights to raise their children according to certain religious beliefs.

The American Civil Liberties Union challenged the requirement, representing a group of parents from mixed or no faith backgrounds.

• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.