MARSHALL, Mo. – A Missouri middle schooler and his family are fighting back after the boy’s teacher allegedly banned him from reading his Bible during free reading time.

Loyal Grandstaff told Fox 4 he wasn’t reading out loud or sharing his Bible with classmates when his teacher at Marshall’s Bueker Middle School told the 12-year-old the book wasn’t allowed and forced him to put it away shortly before Christmas break.

“I was just reading, just reading because I had free time,” Grandstaff said. “A time to do what I want to, so I just broke it out and read.”

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Lance Tobin, the school’s principal, who told the news site he was investigating the situation and wouldn’t comment on the details, but confirmed that Bibles are not banned at Bueker.

Grandstaff’s father, Justin, said his son’s constitutional rights were violated and he plans to meet with Tobin soon to relay his concerns in person.

“I feel like it violated his freedom of religion but also his freedom of speech,” he said.

“There are kids walking around disrespecting their teachers, kids walking around cussing and everything else and they’re practically getting in no trouble at all,” Justin Grandstaff said.

Grandstaff told Fox he likes to read the Bible because “it’s a good book,” and he has no plans to stop.

The seventh grader also offered his own theory about why his teacher doesn’t want him to read his Bible in class, Inquisitr.com reports.

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“He doesn’t want me reading it in his class because he doesn’t believe it, because he feels like he’s shut down,” Grandstaff said.

Neither Fox nor Inquisitr named the teacher who allegedly forbid the Bible.

Those who commented on the story online clearly believe Grandstaff did nothing wrong.

“If it’s free reading time, he should be able to read it,” Gayla Schue Sliwa posted to Facebook. “I think the teacher is completely in the wrong.”

Laura Jewell agreed.

“It was definitely within his rights to read the Bible,” she posted. “I do think that taking things to social media before trying to diffuse or resolve face to face might not have been the best. Though … no one would have heard of the story otherwise.”

Others, like military veteran Ralph Moerschbacher, were personally offended by the teacher’s actions.

“As a 22 year military veteran, his freedom is what I fought for in Vietnam,” Moerschbacher wrote. “Liberals are killing us.”