Georgia looking to introduce history of religion in schools

The government of Georgia is considering introducing courses on the history of religion in the nation’s schools, reports Georgia Online. According to Georgian Minister of Education Mikhail Chkhenkeli, the subject should be taught by student choice: “I believe the history of religion should be taught as an elective in all of our schools, and we are moving in that direction.”

His Holiness Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II earlier said during one of his December homilies that the study of the history of religion and questions of spirituality should be studied in schools.

In 2013, His Holiness also proposed introducing a course called “Preparation for Family Life,” with an aim to overcome demographic problems.

The Russian school system has a course system entitled “Basics of Religious Cultures and Secular Ethics,” which consists of six modules: “The Basics of Orthodox Culture,” “The Basics of Islamic Culture,” “The Basics of Jewish Culture,” “The Basics of Buddhist Culture,” “The Basics of World Religious Cultures,” and “The Basics of Secular Ethics.” School children and their parents have the right to choose one of them.

Meanwhile, Greek hierarchs have been working fervently to preserve the religious education in their country, which they believe discriminate against holy Orthodoxy.

Source: OrthoChristian.com