Bulgarian clergymen and Orthodox believers marched on September 24 to
voice their support for the introduction of a mandatory religion course
in schools, submitting a petition to that end in Parliament and to the
Government.
The Holy Synod's petition bemoaned moral decadence and asked that children are protected from it through educational means, asking the state to "fulfill its duty to future generations and put in place legislative changes towards the mandatory study of the subject of religion."
In a statement read by the Metropolitan Neofit of Rousse in front of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Holy Synod emphasised the importance of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church throughout the country's history, including the Revival period in the 19th century, when the first secular schools were built.
The subject was currently available as an optional course. The proposal put forth by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church' Holy Synod envisioned the study of Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic Christianity or Islam.
Pupils who decline either option would have mandatory classes on ethics instead. According to Dessislava Panayotova, a member of the task force that drafted the proposal and organised the march, as quoted by Bulgarian National Radio, these pupils will study "an ethically-oriented, spiritual discipline like good conduct or Christian morality, something that will achieve our goal, namely that children become more kind, more calm and with a more peaceful spirit."
The proponents of the new subject rejected criticism that the introduction of a mandatory course on religion would heighten religious tension in schools. Organisers said that more than 10 000 people joined the march.
Commenting on the march, Education Minister Sergei Ignatov told reporters that about 20 000 pupils were now taking the optional class, mostly in Islam, while only 3000 were enrolled in the Christianity course.
"Faith cannot be absorbed academically, whether in school or on university benches," Ignatov said. Instead, the focus should be elsewhere: "There is a long road towards regaining the values of our society and I think that the society should help the Church, because when churches are full, then we will have the grounds to discuss other matters."
But minister without portfolio Bozhidar Dimitrov, nominally in charge of Bulgarians living abroad, who met with the clergymen at the presentation of the petition, appeared to favour the initiative.
"This year we will hold a wide public debate, so that next year the study of religion can be introduced in the Bulgarian school system in some way," Dimitrov was quoted as saying by website mediapool.bg.
The Holy Synod's petition bemoaned moral decadence and asked that children are protected from it through educational means, asking the state to "fulfill its duty to future generations and put in place legislative changes towards the mandatory study of the subject of religion."
In a statement read by the Metropolitan Neofit of Rousse in front of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Holy Synod emphasised the importance of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church throughout the country's history, including the Revival period in the 19th century, when the first secular schools were built.
The subject was currently available as an optional course. The proposal put forth by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church' Holy Synod envisioned the study of Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic Christianity or Islam.
Pupils who decline either option would have mandatory classes on ethics instead. According to Dessislava Panayotova, a member of the task force that drafted the proposal and organised the march, as quoted by Bulgarian National Radio, these pupils will study "an ethically-oriented, spiritual discipline like good conduct or Christian morality, something that will achieve our goal, namely that children become more kind, more calm and with a more peaceful spirit."
The proponents of the new subject rejected criticism that the introduction of a mandatory course on religion would heighten religious tension in schools. Organisers said that more than 10 000 people joined the march.
Commenting on the march, Education Minister Sergei Ignatov told reporters that about 20 000 pupils were now taking the optional class, mostly in Islam, while only 3000 were enrolled in the Christianity course.
"Faith cannot be absorbed academically, whether in school or on university benches," Ignatov said. Instead, the focus should be elsewhere: "There is a long road towards regaining the values of our society and I think that the society should help the Church, because when churches are full, then we will have the grounds to discuss other matters."
But minister without portfolio Bozhidar Dimitrov, nominally in charge of Bulgarians living abroad, who met with the clergymen at the presentation of the petition, appeared to favour the initiative.
"This year we will hold a wide public debate, so that next year the study of religion can be introduced in the Bulgarian school system in some way," Dimitrov was quoted as saying by website mediapool.bg.
SIC: SE/EU