This Thursday, October 6, 2016 is Bring Your Bible to School Day. Created by Focus on the Family, the annual event is a nationwide movement to celebrate religious freedom and share God’s hope with others. Last year, an estimated 155,000 students participated in Bring Your Bible to School Day. This year, Focus on the Family expects twice as many to take part.

Their motto: “Bring It. Share It. Live It.”

While students have religious freedom, some have experienced hostility and humiliation when practicing their faith at school. In 2014, a Florida fifth-grader was told by his teacher that he could not read his Bible during his class’ free reading period “in accordance with the law.” His father contacted Liberty Institute, a Christian legal organization that defends religious freedom in cases such as these. Their attorneys sent a letter to the school district explaining that the teacher had violated the student’s civil rights to religious free speech, which prompted the school district to release a statement “affirming students’ rights to choose to read religious books during the free reading period.”

Students should not feel ashamed of their Christian beliefs or feel the need to hide them when they go to school, Focus on the Family believes. So, that same year, the organization started Bring Your Bible to School Day in an effort to raise awareness of students’ religious freedom and give them the opportunity to share their faith with classmates.

“I thought it was a good way to show people what I believe in — that I’m a Christian,” said one elementary school-aged girl. “We really don’t talk about it at public school, so I thought it was really cool.”

In today’s climate, students who bring their Bibles to school Thursday may face confrontations with school staff. Alliance Defending Freedom, a group of Christian attorneys who defend those facing religious freedom challenges, will offer pro bono legal assistance as deemed appropriate for those students who “encounter unconstitutional roadblocks to their free speech rights.”

BringYourBible.org has provided information about the event as well as answers to frequently asked questions and contact information for Alliance Defending Freedom. In addition, Alliance Defending Freedom issued a memorandum detailing the First Amendment rights of students to promote and participate in Bring Your Bible to School Day.

Students wishing to participate in the event may sign up, obtain guides and print announcements to share at BringYourBible.org. They may also join the conversation about the event through Facebook and Twitter.

The Christian band Newsboys brought awareness to Bring Your Bible to School Day last year by posting their then-new song Guilty on Jim Daly’s website. The song presents the harassment experienced by students who mention God’s name in school and the biblical response to such behavior. May the song continue to be an anthem for all students who “Bring It. Share It. Live It.” on Bring Your Bible to School Day.