This letter comes in response to Megan Tomasic’s article “Hempfield school board to continue discussion of books available to high school students” on the board’s discussions of requests to ban certain books as inappropriate, too sensitive, too sexual for high school students. I posit that the board would have to consider the Bible as such a book.

The Bible is mistakenly considered appropriate not just for high school students but also for much younger children in school, church or home. But consider these episodes in the Bible: Lot offers both his virgin daughters to a crowd to be raped. Lot impregnates both his daughters. Amnon rapes his sister Tamar. A Levite gives his concubine wife to a crowd to be raped all night. When she is returned badly injured, the Levite cuts her body into 12 pieces and spreads them around the coasts of Israel. A drunken, naked Noah is seen by his son. But the innocent son is punished for seeing Noah naked. Prophets prophesy in the nude.

David commits adultery and murder. David cuts off 200 penis foreskins as war trophies. Jephthah burns his virgin daughter at the stake in thanksgiving for victory in battle. Virgins are to be taken as sexual prisoners in wars. Enemy wives are to be raped and/or killed, as are children in womb or out. To protect themselves, Abraham and Isaac lie, claim their wives are their sisters, allow their wives to be taken as concubines. Solomon has 700 wives, 300 concubines. The song of Solomon speaks of lust for naked women with large breasts.

Bruce Braden

Carmel, Ind.

The writer is a Mt. Pleasant native.

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