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The Moderator of the Church of Scotland is using his New Year message to promote the importance of religious education in the Scottish school curriculum.

 

The Rt Rev John Chalmers believes a rounded education in the substance and practise of religion is critical if the rise in religious fundamentalism around the world is to be challenged and defeated.

 

Mr Chalmers insists any attempt to remove religious education from Scottish schools must be resisted.

 

The Moderator said: “As we enter a new year there is probably no issue of any greater concern around the world than the rise of religious fundamentalism.”

Moderator says religious education holds the key to defeating extremism

1 January 2015

He added: “Nothing is more dangerous than the radicalised mind and there is nothing worse than the indoctrinated child.

 

“We will not, however, defeat such extremism simply by confronting it across battle lines. The frontline for winning this battle is education and the school is the place where young minds need to be introduced to the power of critical enquiry.

 

“How else will a young person ever grow to be able to make wise choices unless they are allowed access to the widest possible range of knowledge and how else will they learn tolerance unless they are introduced to the wide ranging menu of different ideas that populate the world.”

 

He continued: “Peace in our time will only come when we find the means to respect those with whom we disagree and when we have matured to the point that we can discuss our deepest held views on religion, philosophy and politics without seeking to impose ours on others.

 

“Such tolerance, however, will not come by removing, as some desire, religious observance from the school curriculum; on the contrary what we should be doing is building on the strong tradition of religious reflection which is currently a part of the Scottish school environment.”

 

He said knowledge of the substance and practise of religion must be part of any rounded education.

 

Mr Chalmers added: “Intolerance would, in my view, be the resultant outcome of turning Time for Reflection in schools into a choice.

 

“It has never been more important than it is now to maintain a proper, temperate and inclusive approach to the practise of religious observance. Every child needs to know about religious practice and it has to be shared in a context of open-mindedness and mutual respect.”