Religious Education Archives | Teach Dont Preach

December 3, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Irish schools require children to respect Vatican codes of conduct that discriminate against gay people

The Irish Times reports that Pope Francis is concerned about what he describes as the “serious issue” of homosexuality and that being gay is a “fashion” to which the clergy is susceptible. He has said that “gay people should not be accepted into ministry”. It is nothing new that the Catholic ...

November 30, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Community National Schools oblige children to respect Catholic codes of sexual conduct

The Irish state, through the Community National Schools (GMGY course), requires children to demonstrate respect for codes of sexual conduct based on Catholic religious beliefs reflected in our 1937 Constitution and laws. Many people have for years been engaged in challenging those laws and Articles in our Constitution, because we ...

November 27, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Schools should teach children to challenge, not to respect, harmful religious codes of conduct

The religion course in Community National Schools requires children to respect the 'codes of conduct that influence the way people live in a range of belief traditions'. This crosses an important line between respecting the right to believe something and respecting the content of those beliefs. Indeed, it goes beyond that line ...

November 20, 2018 1 Comment Teach Dont Preach

The CNS religion course promotes respect for religious codes of conduct that breach human rights

The Goodness Me Goodness You religion course in Community National Schools requires children to respect ‘codes of conduct’ that influence the way people live in a range of belief traditions. But many religious ‘codes of conduct’ are used to undermine the rights of others. This includes the denial of access ...

November 4, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Why ETB schools should give an alternative subject to students who opt out from the NCCA religion course

Atheist Ireland, the Evangelical Alliance of Ireland, and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Ireland will be meeting the Department of Education to follow up on issues raised at our last meeting. At that meeting, the Department confirmed to us that students can in fact opt out from the NCCA religion course ...

October 7, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

How the State allows the Catholic Church to use the NCCA Religious Education course as a vehicle to evangelise

The Minister for Education has reversed a Circular Letter issued last February that permitted students to opt out of religion in ETB (State) schools and choose another subject. The reversal was due to the lobbying of the Catholic Church, Religion Teachers, The Association of Trustees of Catholic schools, The ETBI ...

September 14, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

The State Religious Education course is Religious Instruction, and is not objective

ETB schools are trying to evade the Department of Education directive to give students an alternative subject to religion, by claiming that the directive applies only to Religious Instruction and not to the State course in Religious Education. But what is referred to in Ireland as Religious Education is known ...

August 29, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Is your local ETB school offering an alternative subject to religion? Contact Atheist Ireland and let us know

Atheist Ireland, the Evangelical Alliance of Ireland, and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Ireland, will be meeting the Department of Education again in September, to discuss the recent directive regarding religion in ETB schools. We would like to be able to bring as much information to that meeting as possible, about what ...

August 27, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

Professional Development Service for Teachers won’t answer about in-service training with Catholic Church

Atheist Ireland recently used the Freedom of Information Act to ask some questions of the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST), which is a State-funded body that provides in-service training for teachers, about its relationship with the Catholic Church when providing such training for religion teachers. The PDST gave us ...

August 26, 2018 No Comments Teach Dont Preach

As Pope Francis visits Dublin, Jane Donnelly calls for secular schools at People Before Profit public meeting

While Pope Francis was speaking in Croke Park in Dublin, Jane Donnelly of Atheist Ireland was making the case for a secular education system free from Catholic Church influence. Jane was speaking at a public meeting convened by People Before Profit, about Separation of Church and State. Here is the ...