Ethics and Religious Education in Quebec

I just saw a tv program that told about a new educational program for primary school children in Quebec called Ethics and Religious Education. It is still in a pilot stage and the purpose of this new program is to teach school children about the various 'major religions' of the world and subsequently, foster a tolerant mentality towards them. This means that, if their parent once sat in class listening to the stories of Jesus and his twelve sidekicks (only), now the kid can skip that and learn not only about Christianity, but also Judaism and Islam instead, for example. Great, huh? What an appropriate new school program for children brought up in a world full of news of bomb threats and bombs actually going off.

Unfortunately, some parents (backed by some Christian religious authorities) do not agree. They have organized a resistance group and filed petitions to have their children exempted from this program. The good thing is, theirs seems to be a lost cause. School boards around the region have rejected their plea, leaving behind a trail of pissed off parents.

One parent was quoted to say that he is worried that if his kids learn about other religions on top of Catholicism, they will become confused by too many choices. Another said that the course threatens his children's Christian faith. A child's Christian faith? I don't believe that there is such a thing. As much as I don't believe in a young Muslim girl wearing a veil just because her mother does.

The purpose of sending your children to school is to equip them with life skills. Skills that will ensure their survival in society, especially one that is becoming more and more diverse. If these parents want their children to have Christian faith, that kind of education should take place at home, where the children learn about Christian faith by observing their parents living according to those values.

There was an incident recently in the Laurentians where a Jewish man was assaulted. The Gazette reported that "A group of young guys started staring at us and then, from five metres away, they threw a whole bunch of coins at us - I don't know, maybe thinking, 'Jews are cheap' - a typical joke," recalled Haouzi." The incident led to poor Haouzi being punched and injured. A witness nearby refused to call the police.

While fundamentalists and racists can never be completely eradicated, a program that teaches about what your neighbours believe in and how, deep inside, we're all more or less the same, can ensure their numbers stay low. I have to admit, I am guilty of an ignorant thought from time to time too, but maybe that's because I didn't grow up with an Ethics and Religious Education course.