Religion will be studied in all Russian schools by 2012
(March 29, 2011) After a successful trial, religion will be taught in all Russian
schools throughout the country next year. The announcement was made by the Russian
Ministry of Education and the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate at a press conference
in Moscow last week to the representatives of the four major religions. According
to authorities and religious leaders, especially from the Russian Orthodox Church,
the trial year was a success, but nobody was able to respond to journalists questions
with exact figures on the course participants took and the degree of satisfaction.
"A large number of students chose courses on religion, said Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin,
chairman of the Department for the Church's relations with society at the Patriarchate
of Moscow. He said that this did not cause any inter-religious conflict, but instead
we noticed a change in the morale among the children who attended them. Banned
during the Soviet era, religion made a comeback in schools in April 2010, but only
in some regions. The initiative was strongly supported by the Patriarch of Moscow
and blessed by the Kremlin, which aims to a cement national identity on shared values
. Students of primary and secondary schools may choose to study the history of one
of the four traditional religions - Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Buddhism,
or more general courses on foundations of religious culture or fundamentals of public
ethics . Elena Romanova who heads the Ministry of Education office for the teaching
of religion, explained that some problems still remain. She mentioned one regarding
textbooks, saying they are prepared with too much haste. She also said that teachers
need further training.