The President of a Catholic school management association seems to believe that Catholic schools have a responsibility to disrespect atheist and secular parents’ convictions and undermine their human rights, and that children who are not educated to grow in faith are in danger of despair, nihilism and self-harm. In a recent speech, Father Paul Connell, ...
Some people have suggested that those who ticked the ‘no religion’ box in the census may be spiritual, and therefore in some way more religious than atheist. There was no specific box in the recent census to tick if you see yourself as spiritual and also religious. You had the option of ...
A recent article in the Irish Times regarding the requirement to study the Koran as part of the Leaving Certificate Arabic exam raises some very interesting questions for the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA). Approximately 200 students take the Leaving Certificate Arabic exam and they must study extracts ...
The Minister for Education & Skills, Jan O’Sullivan has removed Rule 68 of the Rules for National schools. Removing Rule 68 on its own is a purely symbolic gesture. Nothing will actually change on the ground in our publicly funded schools. Rule 68 of the Rules for National Schools. Atheist ...
The Minister of Education, Jan O’Sullivan has called for places to be set aside in National Schools with a religious ethos, for unbaptised children. The Minister is quoted as stating that:- “I recognise the right of denominational schools to protect their ethos,” she said in an interview with The Irish ...
Atheist Ireland has consistently argued in our lobbying for secular education that religion should not be integrated throughout the primary school curriculum. The Government claims that it is constitutionally obliged to buttress discrimination arising from the tenets of specific religions. But as long as twenty years ago, the Constitution Review ...
The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) has launched a consultation about introducing a new course in Irish Primary Schools called Education about Religions and Beliefs and Ethics (ERBE). At first glance this seems like a step forward, but on further examination it cannot be, unless there are also legal changes, and the ...
The Claire Byrne show last night on RTE discussed religious discrimination in access to schools. On one side we had Paddy Monahan arguing for the removal of religious discrimination in access (Section 7-3(c) of the Equal Status Act). On the other side we had David Quinn of the Iona Institute ...
As part of the Catholic religion course 'Grow in Love', six year old infants in Irish schools are being taught that 'Mary says YES'! to God 'working through her' by making her pregnant, despite Mary being afraid, confused and not understanding what was going on. Mary looks like a little ...
The purpose of the new religion course introduced recently in Irish Primary schools is to indoctrinate children into the Catholic faith. The 'Grow in Love' religion course for Junior and Senior infants is indoctrination, and to claim otherwise is to ignore the meaning of indoctrination. In a recent letter to ...
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