Contemporary antagonisms between the irretrievably scientifically-minded and hopelessly atavistic far-right religious extremists seem needlessly rancorous. This tiresome controversy doesn’t really have to be seen as never-ending conflict between science and religion—far better options are available. It seems to me that a few simple accommodations would have high prospects of converting these differing perspectives and opinions into unity for betterment of the nation as a whole.

For example, consider intelligent design proponents’ vow that they will perpetually try to install their religious agenda alongside the teaching of biological evolution. Think about that. If we as a nation were to adopt their idea and run with it, as folk of goodwill indeed might, let us imagine where it might lead. Suppose, just suppose, that we persuade Congress to pass new legislation requiring that every public high school student, everywhere across this wide nation, will henceforth attend a new four-year curriculum on comparative religions.

Our new addition to nationwide high school curricula, titled: “The Design and Evolution of Religions,” will be annexed to the traditional four-part mix of Readin’-writin’-‘rithmatic, Participatory Arts, History and Civics, and STEM. To help focus attention on the new comparative studies, no federal funds will be permitted for any public school that fails to provide these five essentials of a sound education.

Freshmen will study “Introduction to World Religions.” After learning basic beliefs and rituals of every world religion with more than a hundred million adherents, they will survey thirty lesser belief systems, including agnostic, atheist, secular humanist, and the spiritual beliefs of Native Americans and Australian Aborigines. Students will consider human “purpose” and discuss implications for personal life choices.

Sophomores will study “Historical evolution of [in order] Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Taoism, Confucianism and Shinto.” Students will learn how each religion began, how its modern version has evolved from its original version, what rewards and punishments (if any) it offers here and hereafter, and its teachings about the origin of the Earth, of life, and of humanity, gods and great turtles. Students will also explore the range of relationships between religion and moral-ethical behavior, will explore definitions of moral-ethical behavior, and will try to identify five persons in world history whose lives exemplify it.

All first-semester juniors will study “Introduction to Definitions,” with research and discussions to include not less than “consciousness, spirit, soul, ghost, angel, being, essence, mind, aware, awake, alive, life, free will, think, sentient, understand, comprehend, apprehend, grace, faith, belief, knowledge and know.” No student may be flunked because of inability to master this section of the curriculum.

In the second semester of their junior year, girls will write research papers on the religious views of [pick any two] Thomas Jefferson, Abigail Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and will research liturgical leadership rules and gender roles across all modern religions and their various levels of sectarian sub-denominations. Boys will study the status of women in the Hindu, Islamic and Christian religions from ancient times to the present, concluding with twenty-first century stoning, honor killing, excommunication, shunning, sectarian boarding schools for Native American children, and ongoing clerical abuse denial and coverup. The semester’s final two weeks will bring boys and girls together to discuss all these matters in context of history of women’s suffrage in the USA, plus Judaic conquest of Canaan by the sword, Christian conversion of Europe by the sword, and Islamic conversion of the Greater Levant, Balkans and North Africa by the sword.

Seniors will study “Overview of Evolving Christianity,” which shall include and not be limited to:

• the early centuries of creating a “catholic” church, including synods that established the New Testament, the Trinity, sanctification of Mary as Mother of God, papal infallibility, et cetera;
• compare and contrast endless controversies and divisions in the early Pauline churches with endless controversies and divisions in modern churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, etc;
• exceptionalism among the Ebionites, Marcionites, Phibionites, and snake-handling Baptists;
• historical methods for imposing Christian doctrines on Native North Americans, other American tribes from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Australian aboriginals, and Africa south of the Sahara;
• students’ opinions on Martin Luther’s objections, what he objected to, and how and why the Protestant Reformation evolved out of control by either the Church or Luther;
• Christian influences and tactics in colonial America—from civil trials in Salem, Massachusetts to slave conversions in South Carolina, and soul saving among friendly Native Americans;
• “Evolving Diversity in Modern America” will acquaint students with present-day beliefs, rituals and structure of the seven largest protestant denominations and the modern Roman Catholic Church. Students will present oral reports on any of the dozens of other sects (including late arrivals such as Mormonism and Eckankar), and compare them doctrinally to Christian churches established during Christianity’s first three hundred years.
• The senior curriculum will conclude by tracing the evolution of Medieval Flat-Earth Creationism into New-Earth Creationism into Old-Earth Creationism into Intelligent Design. Students will also compare the political goals of conservative Christian fundamentalists to the political goals of conservative Islamic fundamentalists, and announce their personal judgment on which is right.

These courses at every grade level shall be taught strictly without reference to physics, chemistry or biology. In order to graduate, every senior shall be required to pass a final exam on world religions and write a 10-page essay on the topic: “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”