Catholic schools must not abandon freedom, urges education chief

Joint Managerial Body (JMB)/Association of Management of Catholic Secondary Schools (AMCSS) hold annual AGM in Galway

Catholic schools must not abandon their freedom to appease the personal conscience of individual students, the President of the Association of Management of Catholic Secondary Schools (AMCSS) has urged.

In a staunch defence of Catholic schools at the organisation’s annual conference in Galway this week, Fr Paul Connell, said: “While respect of course should always be afforded to the religious freedom and personal conscience of individual pupils, the Catholic school cannot relinquish its own freedom to offer a formation based on the values to be found in a Christian education.”

Addressing 400 chairpersons of boards of management and principals of Catholic voluntary secondary schools, Fr Connell confirmed that Catholic voluntary secondary schools are committed to inclusivity and ensuring that a spirit of charity, respect and dialogue pervades the life of the schools.

Presence

He told delegates gathered at the conference that the presence of children from other traditions “enriches the educational experience offered in our schools”.

“Acceptance of, and commitment to, this ecumenical spirit is not characterised by a reduction of all Christian expressions to the lowest common denominator,” he said.

Fr Connell also stressed that “all Catholic voluntary secondary schools strive to provide the best possible education in the widest sense of that term for all in their school communities”.

His comments come after Education Minister Ruairí Quinn claimed that the Church had failed to provide the Department of Education and Skills (DES) with concrete examples of how its schools can be genuinely inclusive to people of all faiths and none.

The Joint Managerial Body (JMB)/AMCSS represents the Boards of Management of 380 Voluntary Secondary Schools in Ireland.