Catechists protested against changes in the organization of religious education classes at school

Members of the Association of Secular Catechists (SKŚ), which organized the protest, announced that the event was a reaction, among others, to the regulation of the Minister of Education of July 26, 2024.

According to the new regulations, which will come into force on September 1, 2024, the school principal will be able to group children from departments or classes in which seven or more students have registered for religious education with people from departments or classes in which fewer than seven children have registered for religious education. At the same time, the regulation introduces the principle that primary school students can be grouped into a group consisting of: students from grades I–III or grades IV–VI or grades VII and VIII.

READ: “We have a concordat, religious education classes for those willing to attend must and will be held at schools.”

The protest began with a several-minute-long happening prepared by religion teachers from all over Poland.

– There are almost 30 thousand of us in schools, most of whom are us, secular teachers. We want to show in images and music what a great role the Christian religion played in the creation of our unique civilization and continues to play in the upbringing of young generations – said the Association's spokesman Dariusz Kwiecień.

According to Kwiecień, the actions of the Ministry of National Education are “eradicating religion from schools”. – We trust that the vast majority of Poles understand this well and will not allow it – he stated.

READ: “Strong opposition” from the episcopate to proposed changes to religion classes.

SKŚ Chairman Piotr Janowicz assessed the MEN's actions as “carelessly prepared and hastily introduced”. – They are guided more by the quick, haphazard and essentially illusory implementation of election demands than by the good of the students and the search for social consensus – he said.

He emphasized that lay catechists were completely omitted from consultations on the draft regulation. He recalled that on February 18, the Association of Lay Catechists asked the Ministry of National Education whether any changes were planned in the organization of religious education classes in schools and requested that the Association be taken into account during consultations on any changes.

– On March 18, 2024, the Association received an assurance from the Ministry of National Education that no conceptual or legislative work is currently underway to change the status of religion or reduce the dimension of this science – he said.

He added that churches and religious associations were also omitted in the consultation process. – Is the authoritarian introduction of the regulation contrary to the positions of churches and religious associations a realization of the idea of ​​a democratic state, therefore based on dialogue and mutual respect and respect for the applicable law, or quite the opposite? – he asked.

READ: Religion in School: Church Data Shows How Students Are Declining

He recalled that the Association had asked the president to appeal the regulation of the Ministry of National Education of 26 July this year to the Constitutional Tribunal. – In addition, we believe that representatives of churches and religious associations, including the Roman Catholic Church, will appeal the regulation – he noted.

According to Janowicz, grouping students from classes at different levels of education will deprive them of access to education consistent with their current knowledge or psychological and emotional development, and will also put them in an “uncomfortable” situation of comparing themselves with their peers from higher classes.

– This in turn will lead to students withdrawing from ethics and religion classes. Probably, under the slogan of rationalizing time, there is a hidden goal of weakening religion and ethics through mass withdrawal of students, i.e. a veiled removal of religion and ethics from schools through the so-called back door – he assessed. – We will not teach anyone respect or tolerance if we do not teach it in the school space, and religious tolerance is one of the foundations of a well-functioning society – he added.

According to Janowicz, religion and ethics are lessons that allow for the raising of fundamental, existential issues that are important for the development of students. – In Poland, 80 percent of students attend religious education classes. Why do we as a society want to be so intolerant as to make it difficult for them? – he asked.

He emphasized that the Association members demand in-depth talks on the shape of religion and ethics in schools, as the implementation of the democratic right to education in accordance with the religion professed. At the same time, he stated that they protest against the introduction of legal regulations that should be based on an agreement with the Churches and appear contrary to their position, as well as the introduction of changes just before the beginning of the school year, which disorganizes the work of schools and puts religious teachers in a precarious situation.

– We say stop to regulations that discriminate against students who want to attend religion and ethics classes, taking away their and their parents' constitutional rights. We expect the introduction of a voluntary choice of compulsory religion or ethics. We say this for religious tolerance – he emphasized.

The protest participants held banners with the slogans: “Science and religion”, “Stop discrimination against believers”, “Religion in the life of the nation is the most important good”, “We want God in books at school” and chanted the slogans: “Equal rights for religion” and “stop discrimination, stop segregation”.

SEE: The number of students attending religion classes in Warsaw is decreasing.

The aim of these changes is to take religion and ethics out of schools through the back door – said the chairman of the Association of Secular Catechists, Piotr Janowicz.