The Spanish bishops propose the possibility of an itinerary, in primary and secondary education, related to the personal dimension that includes, in a dignified manner, the learning of Catholic Religion.
Include an educational itinerary related to the most personal, human and transcendental dimension. of the person in which the subject of Catholic Religion has its place.. This is the proposal that, from the Episcopal Commission for Education and Culture of the Spanish Episcopal Conference The aim is to initiate a dialogue, so far unsuccessful, in order to provide a dignified and necessary framework for Catholic religious education in the educational legislation.
This was explained by the Secretary General of the EEC, Msgr. Luis Argüello, together with the president of the Episcopal Commission for Education and Culture, Bishop Alfonso Carrasco, at a press conference with media professionals this morning.
In the wake of Pope Francis
The Global Education Pact Pope Francis has been the framework in which this proposal has been launched to those responsible for education in the Spanish Government whose Organic Law for the modification of the LOE (LOMLOE) does not include, among its proposals, a comprehensive, real and fair vision of the Catholic religion subject, freedom of choice of the educational model for families or equal conditions for the creation of private and public schools.
In this regard, Bishop Argüello recalled that "The CEE and its teaching commission are responsible for everything that has to do with the Religion class in the school, but not only that, but also for everything that has to do with humanization, the promotion of human values, everything that means putting the person at the center".. In relation to the positive assessment of various politicians in relation to the encyclical Fratelli TuttiArgüello recalled that in this text, the Pope "insists that all the dimensions of the person express his dignity: also the transcendent dimension. To be able to teach in school to students and families who so desire the doctrine of the Church, the biblical tradition or the Gospel of Jesus where fraternal love is spoken of, seems to us something valuable.".
A specific itinerary that includes religion
For its part, Bishop Alfonso Carrasco Rouco, has directly referred to the proposal they want to put on the table for dialogue with the government. "we propose to integrate a field in primary and secondary education, related to the personal, transcendent dimension... just as there is a field of natural sciences". In this line, he has defended that this space is "necessary for an integral education. There is no sense in a purely utilitarian education"..
The Bishop of Lugo has specified that the idea is not exclusive, it is not a question of eliminating one or another subject of Civic Values or similar, but to frame, within a single space, the subject of Civic Values. "education in moral values, in respect for the conscience, identity and tradition of children".. This underlies the right of parents to decide on the education of their children, since this tradition and identity is generally given by the family environment.
"The child has the right to know his world", Carrasco pointed out, that is why there must be different ways, "there can be no single format that forces everyone to be educated as the authority thinks.". For this reason, he has pointed out at various times "The modalities can be varied, appropriate to the identity of the people and one of them must be Catholic", to which he added the need for shared guidelines "referring to the elementary human values on which our society is built: the relationship with nature, the treatment of others, equality between men and women, justice, openness to the needy"?
With this proposal, the bishops intend to resume the dialogue in order to open ways to place the learning of Catholic Religion and the knowledge of the transcendental dimension of the human being within the educational curriculum.
