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By DAVE DOMESCIK | Staff Writer

School Ministries Alabama is an organization that provides biblically-related curriculum to students across the state via Released Time Bible Education.

The program currently operates in the Alexander City, Birmingham City, Elmore County, Etowah County, Shelby County, and Tallapoosa County school districts. Various classes are pending in the Pelham and Hoover districts, with further expansion planned for counties across the state.

Released Time Bible Education grants students the opportunity to be excused during the school day to receive instruction related to the Bible and Christianity.

“Most Americans become concerned when government administration, whether federal, state, or local, appears to somehow be involved with ‘establishment of religion’ in violation of the First Amendment,” said Winston Greer, Executive Secretary of the SMA Board of Directors. “This is especially true when government oversight is somehow involved in a Constitutionally permissible free exercise of religion.”

Greer also believes that RTBE is a tool that many Christians know little about and is often overlooked.

“(RTBE) is a religious freedom that is little known, often misunderstood, and underutilized by the evangelical Christian community,” Greer said.

SMA classes typically meet once a week, and begin and close with prayer. Middle school classes utilize the “God’s Rescue Mission” and “Jesus On Mission” textbooks, which give various lessons on the Bible and its teachings.

High school classes normally consist of five 50-minute sessions per week, using the “Worldview” curriculum. The first semester covers the Old Testament, while the second semester tackles the New Testament and world religions. High schoolers are also graded on five different aspects: attendance, class participation, journaling, the completion of a service project as well as the completion of a class paper covering that semester’s subject.

To find out more about the mission of SMA or how to donate or enroll a student in the program, visit Smalabama.org