Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters is pushing forward with his plan to introduce Bibles into classrooms, opening bids Monday for a contract to supply 55,000 Bibles to the state’s Department of Education.

The move follows his long-held stance of incorporating the Bible into the educational environment, but the specifics of the bid have raised legal and ethical concerns.

According to the bid documents, the Bibles must adhere to strict requirements: they must be King James Version (KJV), include both the Old and New Testaments, and be bound in leather or leather-like material.

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Additionally, they must contain several American founding documents, including the Pledge of Allegiance, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.

However, finding Bibles that meet these criteria has proven challenging. A salesperson from Mardel Christian & Education, a major supplier of Christian educational materials, reported that despite carrying 2,900 different Bibles, none met the bid’s specifications.

Yet, one Bible does: the God Bless the U.S.A. Bible—often referred to as the “Trump Bible”—endorsed by former President Donald Trump.

Priced at $60 each, this Bible is available online, with Trump receiving fees for his endorsement. Another option, the We The People Bible, endorsed by Donald Trump Jr., retails for $90.

The involvement of Trump-endorsed products has sparked criticism.

Colleen McCarty, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, expressed concerns about the bid process.

“The RFP on its face seems fair, but with additional scrutiny, we can see there are very few Bibles on the market that would meet these criteria, and all of them have been endorsed by former President Donald Trump,” McCarty said.

Former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson weighed in, suggesting that the specifications could be legally questionable. “It appears to me that this bid is anything but competitive,” Edmondson said.

“It adds to the basic specification other requirements that have nothing to do with the text.

“The special binding and inclusion of government documents will exclude almost all bidders. If the bid specs exclude most bidders unnecessarily, I could consider that a violation.”

Beyond the potential legal and competitive issues, concerns about the cost have emerged. If the state opts for the God Bless the U.S.A. Bible at $60 per copy, the total expense for 55,000 Bibles would amount to $3.3 million.

Walters’ agency had requested $3 million from the Oklahoma Legislature as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget, specifically earmarked for Bible purchases, despite cheaper options being readily available.

Paperback versions of the New King James Version can be purchased for as little as $2.99, and free Bible apps are widely accessible.

Walters has frequently spoken about his desire to place Bibles in classrooms, though he has clarified that they would only be used in academic contexts, such as history or literature classes.

However, with only 43,000 classroom teachers in the state, many of whom do not teach these subjects, the request for 55,000 copies has drawn skepticism.

“We have talked about ensuring that our history courses include the role the Bible played throughout American history,” Walters said.

“We’ve talked about the efforts of left-wing groups and the teachers’ unions to drive the Bible out of school. I believe it’s important for historical context for our kids to understand the role the Bible played.”

The inclusion of government documents in the Bible has been another sticking point, with Walters explaining that while he does not want “extra things” added, items like the Constitution and the Magna Carta could be valuable historical references.

In a rare Friday sermon delivered in Arabic, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei strongly defended Iran’s recent missile attack on Israel, stoking fears of an expanding regional conflict.

Addressing tens of thousands of supporters at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla mosque, Khamenei praised the resolve of Iran-aligned militant groups in the Middle East, including Hezbollah and Hamas, and vowed that resistance against Israel would continue unabated.

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Khamenei condemned the recent Israeli killings of militant leaders, asserting that these “martyrdoms” would only strengthen the so-called “axis of resistance” led by Iran.

“The resistance in the region will not back down,” Khamenei said, hailing the actions of armed groups as “logical and legitimate.”

This sermon, Khamenei’s first in nearly five years, took place amid a dramatic escalation of violence in the region.

Tensions soared after Israel’s recent assassination of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and Revolutionary Guards commander Abbas Nilforoushan in southern Beirut, as well as a previous attack that killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

Iran responded with a salvo of missiles against Israel earlier this week, marking only the second time it has directly targeted the U.S.-backed country.

“What our armed forces did was the minimum punishment for the crimes of the usurping Zionist regime,” Khamenei declared, referring to the missile strikes.

He dismissed criticism of the attacks and accused Israel of being a “malicious regime” propped up solely by American support. “It will not last long,” he predicted.

The sermon also commemorated the one-year anniversary of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.

Khamenei reiterated Tehran’s support for Hamas, calling their assault “logical and legal.” While Iran denies direct involvement in the Gaza conflict, it has been a key backer of Palestinian groups opposed to Israel since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Tensions between Iran and Israel have been simmering for years, with several proxy battles erupting across the region.

In April, Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel following an Israeli strike on Iran’s consulate in Damascus.

The latest round of missile fire, however, underscores the escalating hostilities as the region teeters on the brink of wider war.

Despite Israel’s claim that its defense systems intercepted most of the missiles, the attacks represent a significant escalation in Iran’s direct military involvement.

Khamenei’s defiant rhetoric signals a continued hardening of Iran’s stance toward Israel and its allies, further entrenching the polarized dynamics in the region. As armed groups aligned with Tehran remain steadfast, the risk of broader conflict grows with each retaliatory strike.

A devastating fire at a hospital in southern Taiwan claimed the lives of nine people on Thursday, as emergency responders worked to control the blaze amid challenging weather conditions brought by Typhoon Krathon.

The fire erupted at a hospital in Pingtung County around 7:40 a.m., according to Taiwan’s Fire Department.

Firefighters managed to extinguish the flames shortly after 1 p.m. Eight victims, evacuated for treatment, were later confirmed dead. Authorities found a ninth victim at the scene after the fire was contained.

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The blaze coincided with Typhoon Krathon’s landfall in Taiwan’s south, although officials have not connected the fire to the storm.

The typhoon’s strong winds and heavy rainfall led to widespread disruptions, forcing schools and businesses to remain closed for a second day.

The storm has also left two people dead and more than 100 others injured.

Investigations into the cause of the hospital fire are ongoing as Taiwan contends with the storm’s aftermath and the tragedy at the hospital.