Strasbourg, 3 April 2008                                                                    DGIV-RD (2008) 1 rev

           

EXCHANGE 2008
ON THE RELIGIOUS DIMENSION
OF INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE

“Teaching religious and convictional facts -
A tool for acquiring knowledge about religions and beliefs in education; a contribution to education for democratic citizenship, human rights and intercultural dialogue”

Strasbourg, 8 April 2008

Palais de l’Europe, Room 1

Teaching religious and convictional facts:

Declarations and projects of the Council of Europe

Information document compiled by the Secretariat

The aim of this document is to provide an overview of declarations and projects of the Council of Europe which are relevant to the teaching of religious and convictional facts.

A.        Activities in the intergovernmental context

In the Directorate of Education, different activities and events in recent years looked at intercultural issues involving a religious dimension, particularly:

•           The image of the other in history teaching;

•           The image of the Muslim world in history teaching in Europe;

•           Academic heritage and values underlying the European higher Education Area;

•           Policies and practices of teaching socio-cultural diversity;

•           The religious dimension of intercultural education.

In the context of the “Education for Democratic Citizenship” project, in 2005 the Secretariat organised a study day on “cultural and religious diversity and democratic citizenship”.

Two major Council of Europe projects have been developed in the field of intercultural education; one of them is “The new challenge of intercultural education: religious diversity and dialogue in Europe” (2002-2006), which looked at the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue. The project rests on the idea that religion is an important aspect of multiculturalism and, as such, central to the challenge of diversity. Looking beyond personal beliefs and affiliations, it views religion as a cultural phenomenon in its own right, that needs to be part of intercultural education programmes in the same way as other aspects of culture, such as history and languages.

This project is an innovative one in that, although the issue of diversity has already been addressed in several Council of Europe projects (such as education for democratic citizenship and the education of Roma children), not much attention had been given to the religious dimension of cultural diversity. The project also breaks with the traditional, polarising approach of religious diversity to move towards a genuine understanding of faith, as a precondition for tolerance, that involves recognising the value of diversity and social inclusion.

The project aims to raise awareness of the need to address the religious dimension as an element of intercultural education. It is thus part of a broader rethink of the intercultural education strategy currently in place in Council of Europe member states.

A number of activities have been undertaken in order to meet these objectives, including a forum on inter-faith dialogue entitled “The new intercultural challenge to education: religious diversity and dialogue in Europe”, held by the Steering Committee for Education in September 2002 in Strasbourg, with the participation of religious education inspectors.

The 21^st session of the Standing Conference of European Education Ministers (Athens, 2003), although not directly part of the project, did nevertheless play a prominent role in it, as it was devoted entirely to “Intercultural education: managing diversity, strengthening democracy”. The activities implemented under the project made a major contribution to the work of this conference.

A conference on “The religious dimension of intercultural education” held in Oslo (Norway) in June 2004 was attended by senior education officials from most of the member states of the European Cultural Convention and the observer states of the Council of Europe, education professionals and representatives of civil society working in the field of intercultural education.  Other exchanges and discussions have taken place, including a seminar on basic concepts and research findings on intercultural learning was held in Paris in June 2004, with researchers working in the field of intercultural education, representatives of professional associations and trainers.

After the Oslo conference, the Council of Europe’s Steering Committee for Education appointed a group of experts to prepare a document for everyone involved in intercultural education (teachers, teacher trainers, administrators and policy-makers) focusing on ways of dealing with religious diversity in education. The work, entitled “Religious diversity and intercultural education: a reference book for schools” was published in 2007. The Steering Committee for Education also approved a draft recommendation on the religious dimension of intercultural education and sent it for final adoption to the Committee of Ministers.

The main aim of the second project of the Council of Europe “Policies and practices for teaching socio-cultural diversity”, launched by the Steering Committee for Education in 2006, in response to the Action Plan of the Third Summit, is the realisation of a framework of competences which future teachers must master with a view to managing and enhancing the socio-cultural diversity of schools, including religious diversity. This project offers a response to the Final Declaration of the Ministers responsible for Education, adopted at the 22^nd session of the Standing Conference in Istanbul, on 4 and 5 May 2007, in which the Ministers underlined the need for the Council of Europe to analyse and develop key competences for democratic culture and social cohesion.

The framework of competences for teachers on diversity highlights the concepts and principles upheld by the Council of Europe and proposes practical measures for establishments involved in the initial training of teachers, with a view to integrating these concepts and principles in initial teacher training study programmes. The framework will serve as a practical tool for strengthening teachers’ abilities to apply appropriate methods in the management and positive enhancement of diversity.

Given the new multicultural environment in which schools now operate and the leading role played by teachers in intercultural education, it is essential to introduce training courses that allow them to develop effective methods of managing cultural and religious diversity in the classroom and aids to intercultural dialogue. The seminars run to date come under the “Pestalozzi” training programme for education professionals.

The Directorate of Youth and Sport has organised in recent years several colloquies and conferences dealing with topics related to the intercultural education and the role of religion, among them activities on the following themes:

•           “Religions and human rights”

•           “Religion contributing to human rights education”

•           “Human rights: the contribution of European Muslims”

•           “Common values and identity for a different Europe”

•           “Intercultural mediation”

•           “Religious dimension in youth work and faith-based youth work”

•           “Interfaith dialogue: Religious dimension in youth work”

•           “Religion and conflict prevention and resolution”

Participants in the symposium on “Interreligious and intercultural dialogue in youth work", organised in March 2007 in co-operation with the Islamic Conference Youth Forum for Dialogue and Co-operation, drew up a long list of recommendations to various stakeholders. They suggested inter alia that local, national and international institutions support youth activities dealing with conflict transformation in order to prevent conflicts. They encouraged international and national NGOs specialised in conflict and post-conflict transformation, dialogue, peace and human rights education to take a more active role in supporting youth work.

The “North-South Centre” (Lisbon) organised in recent years a number of colloquies and conferences that looked at various issues related to religion and education, among them “Religion and globalisation: perspectives for the new Millennium”, “Women’s rights in the Euro-Mediterranean region: laws, religions and traditions”, “Intercultural dialogue in the Euro-Med region” and “Media and religion”.

B.        Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

The Parliamentary Assembly has repeatedly expressed itself on issues of religion and education.

Recommendation 1720 on “Education and religion”, adopted in 2005, emphasised, inter alia, that “by teaching children the history and philosophy of the main religions with restraint and objectivity and with respect for the values of the European Convention on Human Rights, it will effectively combat fanaticism… Knowledge of religions is an integral part of knowledge of the history of mankind and civilisations. It is altogether distinct from belief in a specific religion and its observance. Even countries where one religion predominates should teach about the origins of all religions rather than favour a single one or encourage proselytising.” The Parliamentary Assembly also criticised that “education systems generally—and especially the state schools in so-called secular countries—are not devoting enough resources to teaching about religions, or—particularly in countries where there is a state religion and in denominational schools—are focusing on only one religion.”[1]

Recommendation 1804 (2007) on “State, religion, secularity and human rights”, adopted in 2007, stated that "education is the key to combating ignorance, stereotypes and misunderstanding of religions and their leaders”. Resolution 1580 (2007) on “The dangers of creationism for education” drew attention to attacks by religious fundamentalists against the teaching of science.

C.        Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities has expressed itself on numerous occasions on educational and youth issues. Recently, the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue has come into focus.

In the “Twelve Principles of Intercultural and Interreligious Dialogue for the Local Authorities” published in 2007 on the basis of contributions presented at the Montchanin Conference (November 2006), it is argued that “local authorities must contribute to the process of discovering other cultures, by observing cultural similarities and differences, understanding those whose outlook is different and at variance with local custom and practice and disseminating and sharing this information. They can do so by encouraging the teaching of the full range of religious knowledge, with a view to developing cultural knowledge and religious practices. Such education, provided both at school and through civic religious study centres, will be a key factor in fostering greater openness and a quest for knowledge.” [2]

D.        Commissioner for Human Rights

Ever since the creation of the office of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, the Commissioner has been investigating the role that the major monotheistic religions can play in disseminating and promoting human rights. Annual meetings have been held, during which several topics have been discussed including, among others, the churches’ links with education.

The third seminar of this series, held at the Catholic University of Louvain-la-Neuve in December 2002, bore the title “Human rights, culture and religion: convergence or divergence? Beliefs, values and education”. In their conclusions, the participants reaffirmed the essential role of education in developing the consciences of future citizens and stated, “in order to ensure the best possible quality in such a crucial and sensitive subject, the participants consider that the time has come to establish a specific training centre in which a methodology for integrating human rights into religious education, and for integrating the religious dimension into general education, could be developed.”

The conclusions of the fourth seminar, held in Malta in May 2004 (entitled “Religion and education: the possibility of developing tolerance through the teaching of religious facts”) stated, inter alia, that “it was considered essential to revitalise the understanding of our cultural heritages, in which religions play an integral part. Only one institution is capable of fulfilling this task – our schools, whether public or private. It was recognised that schools must be the primary mechanism for the transmission of cultural traditions. At the same time, schools do not have a monopoly on such transmission. Even if the State confers this task on schools, they will need to be armed with the necessary means and methods to be successful. In this context, it was recalled that it is impossible to combine the individual histories of each in a single unified approach. It was emphasised by many participants that national and traditional components remain central to the reappropriation of our religious heritages. The question consequently arises of the content and methods of such teaching. If religious teaching ought to remain within the exclusive domain of the religions themselves, it is incumbent on schools, whether public or private, to include other aspects of religious cultures in its teaching, such as their history, ethics, philosophy, artistic manifestations, literature and forms of social organisation. Such subjects will contribute to an understanding of religious beliefs as they are subjectively experienced by their congregations…”[3]

The fifth seminar was held in Kazan in the Russian Federation in February 2006, under the title “Dialogue, tolerance and education: the concerted action of the Council of Europe and the religious communities”. It was stressed here that in most Council of Europe member states, the younger generations were not given an education which allowed them to know their own heritage and, by extension, that of others. As a result, it was proposed to set up an institute, which could help to devise curricula, methodologies and teaching materials for use by the member states.

E.         European Commission against Racism and Intolerance

The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) takes a human rights based approach, and covers all necessary measures to combat violence, discrimination and prejudice faced by persons or groups of persons, notably on grounds of race, colour, language, religion, nationality or national or ethnic origin. Issues related to freedom of conscience and religion as well as the situation of religious groups are dealt with by ECRI through its statutory activities, which are its country-by-country monitoring reports and its General Policy Recommendations.

ECRI’s General Policy Recommendation N° 10 on combating racism and racial discrimination in and through school education recommends that the governments of member states ensure that school education plays a key-role in the fight against racism and racial discrimination in society, inter alia, “by ensuring that human rights education is an integral part of the school curriculum at all levels and across all disciplines, from nursery school onwards”, “by ensuring that pupils are given an instruction on religion which complies with the scientific neutrality essential in any educational approach” and “by ensuring that, where public schools provide denominational religious education, easy procedures of discharge are in place for children for whom an exemption is requested”.[4]

F.         Conference of INGOs of the Council of Europe

In April 2005, a study day on “Education that takes account of religion; how can this contribute to democratic citizenship” was organised during the session of INGOs, upon initiative of the representative of the Inter European Commission on Church and School and the INGOs’ Human Rights Grouping.

The event showed—in the words of the Chair—that “to deny the religious aspect of our cultures is likely to play the game of tensions between identities and, therefore, of anti-democratic forces.” He underlined that “in a world where cultural and religious diversity risks leading to a fallback on oneself, the discovery of each other’s religions and beliefs, if handled intelligently, can be a decisive factor supporting a peaceful society.”[5]

On 3-4 October 2007, the Conference of INGOs organised a symposium on “Social cohesion in a multicultural Europe : the role of schools of thought and religions”. The symposium noted that the increasing pluralism in Europe, whether cultural, religious or convictional, and its democratic context meant that, while religions and schools of thought could and should express themselves, none could claim to impose their will on other groups or capture and control the machinery of the state or vice versa. “The law protects religion provided that religion does not seek to lay down the law”. In this respect, history has shown that while the link between religion (or schools of thought) and state has been a source of cohesion for the followers of state religions or beliefs, it results in the exclusion of other groups and is therefore unsuitable for building cohesion in a multicultural and multi-belief society.

The symposium emphasised that such cohesion could only be established within the context of what the Council of Europe calls “European laicity”, i.e. separation of the profane and the sacred, separation of the spiritual and the secular, freedom of conscience, thought and religion, equal rights and duties for everyone regardless of religious or other beliefs and mutual autonomy of states and religious communities. The Council of Europe adds that the fundamental values on which Europe is based, namely human rights, democracy and the rule of law, are not negotiable in relation to religions and schools of thought.

Appendix
APPENDIX

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Recommendation 1720 (2005)[6]

Education and religion

1. The Parliamentary Assembly forcefully reaffirms that each person’s religion, including the option of having no religion, is a strictly personal matter. However, this is not inconsistent with the view that a good general knowledge of religions and the resulting sense of tolerance are essential to the exercise of democratic citizenship.

2. In its Recommendation 1396 (1999) on religion and democracy, the Assembly asserted: “There is a religious aspect to many of the problems that contemporary society faces, such as intolerant fundamentalist movements and terrorist acts, racism and xenophobia, and ethnic conflicts.”

3. The family has a paramount role in the upbringing of children, including in the choice of a religious upbringing. However, knowledge of religions is dying out in many families. More and more young people lack the necessary bearings fully to apprehend the societies in which they live and others with which they are confronted.

4. The media – printed and audiovisual – can have a highly positive informative role. Some, however, especially among those aimed at the wider public, very often display a regrettable ignorance of religions, as shown for instance by the frequent unwarranted parallels drawn between Islam and certain fundamentalist and radical movements.

5. Politics and religion should be kept apart. However, democracy and religion should not be incompatible. In fact they should be valid partners in efforts for the common good. By tackling societal problems, the public authorities can eliminate many of the situations which can lead to religious extremism.

6. Education is essential for combating ignorance, stereotypes and misunderstanding of religions. Governments should also do more to guarantee freedom of conscience and of religious expression, to foster education on religions, to encourage dialogue with and between religions and to promote the cultural and social expression of religions.

7. School is a major component of education, of forming a critical spirit in future citizens and therefore of intercultural dialogue. It lays the foundations for tolerant behaviour, founded on respect for the dignity of each human being. By teaching children the history and philosophy of the main religions with restraint and objectivity and with respect for the values of the European Convention on Human Rights, it will effectively combat fanaticism. Understanding the history of political conflicts in the name of religion is essential.

8. Knowledge of religions is an integral part of knowledge of the history of mankind and civilisations. It is altogether distinct from belief in a specific religion and its observance. Even countries where one religion predominates should teach about the origins of all religions rather than favour a single one or encourage proselytising.

9. In Europe, there are various concurrent situations. Education systems generally – and especially the state schools in so-called secular countries – are not devoting enough resources to teaching about religions, or – particularly in countries where there is a state religion and in denominational schools – are focusing on only one religion. Some countries have prohibited the carrying or wearing of religious symbols in schools. These provisions have been judged as complying with the European Convention on Human Rights.

10. Unfortunately, all over Europe there is a shortage of teachers qualified to give comparative instruction in the different religions, so a European teacher training institute for that needs to be set up (at least for teacher trainers), which could benefit from the experience of a number of institutes and faculties in the different member countries that have long been researching and teaching the subject of comparative religion.

11. The Council of Europe assigns a key role to education in the construction of a democratic society, but study of religions in schools has not yet received special attention.

12. The Assembly observes moreover that the three monotheistic religions of the Book have common origins (Abraham) and share many values with other religions, and that the values upheld by the Council of Europe stem from these values.

13. Accordingly, the Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:

13.1. examine the possible approaches to teaching about religions at primary and secondary levels, for example through basic modules which would subsequently be adapted to the various educational systems;

13.2. promote initial and in-service teacher training in religious studies respecting the principles set out in the previous paragraphs;

13.3. envisage setting up a European teacher training institute for the comparative study of religions.

14. The Assembly also recommends that the Committee of Ministers encourage the governments of member states to ensure that religious studies are taught at the primary and secondary levels of state education, on the basis of the following criteria in particular:

14.1. the aim of this education should be to make pupils discover the religions practised in their own and neighbouring countries, to make them perceive that everyone has the same right to believe that their religion is the “true faith” and that other people are not different human beings through having a different religion or not having a religion at all;

14.2. it should include, with complete impartiality, the history of the main religions, as well as the option of having no religion;

14.3. it should provide young people with educational tools that enable them to be quite secure in approaching supporters of a fanatical religious practice;

14.4. it must not overstep the borderline between the realms of culture and worship, even where a country with a state religion is concerned. It is not a matter of instilling a faith but of making young people understand why religions are sources of faith for millions;

14.5. teachers on religions need to have specific training. They should be teachers of a cultural or literary discipline. However, specialists in another discipline could be made responsible for this education;

14.6. the state authorities should look after teacher training and lay down the syllabuses which should be adapted to each country’s peculiarities and to the pupils’ ages. In devising these programmes, the Council of Europe will consult all partners concerned, including representatives of the religious faiths.

Reply adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 24 May 2006 at the 965th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies

1. The Committee of Ministers has examined Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1720 (2005) on education and religion with great interest. It considers the subject matter to be in keeping with the fundamental aims of the Council of Europe. It also notes that the recommendation is in line with the general thinking underlying most Council of Europe activities, including those of its Steering Committee for Education (CDED), especially its work on education for democratic citizenship.

2. The recommendation follows the same logic as the Declaration on “Intercultural education: managing diversity, strengthening democracy” adopted by the Standing Conference of European Ministers of Education at its 21st session in Athens in 2003. In this context, the Committee of Ministers would also refer to the project carried out by the CDED on “The new challenge of intercultural education: religious diversity and dialogue in Europe”, which reflects both the aim of promoting intercultural education and the need for schools to deal specifically with the aspect of religion. The Committee of Ministers draws attention to the outcome of the work carried out under this project and the publications and teaching materials produced for use by teachers, particularly the “Compendium of successful activities related to the religious dimension of intercultural education in schools”.

3. The Committee of Ministers refers to the declaration adopted at the Third Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe, in Warsaw, in May 2005, in which the Heads of State and Government reiterated their “commitment to the common values and principles which are rooted in Europe’s cultural, religious and humanistic heritage”.

4. The Committee of Ministers would also refer to the Faro Declaration on the Council of Europe’s Strategy for Developing Intercultural Dialogue, adopted in November 2005 at the closing conference of the 50th anniversary of the European Cultural Convention, in which the Ministers:

- emphasised that the Organisation has an essential role to playin the systematic development of intercultural dialogue advocated at the Third Summit;

- expressed their commitment “to ensuring that diversity is a source of mutual enrichment, by promoting political, intercultural and interreligious dialogue”;

- called for new dialogue between Europe and its neighbouring regions, i.e. the southern shores of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Central Asia, particularly by developing human rights, democratic citizenship and civil participation education programmes and promoting knowledge of history, cultures, arts and religions.

 

5. The Committee of Ministers would like to highlight the importance of the Declaration of Intent signed by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and the Director General of UNESCO on the setting up of an open platform of inter-institutional co-operation for intercultural dialogue and of the co-operation agreements with the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for Dialogue between Cultures and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (ALECSO).

6. Furthermore, the Committee of Ministers has adopted and transmitted to the Parliamentary Assembly in early April 2006 “Guidelines for drawing-up the White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue”. It is expected that the White Paper will be ready in time for the European year of Intercultural Dialogue in 2008.

7. Finally, the Committee of Ministers refers the Assembly to the comments of the Chair of the Steering Committee for Education contained in his opinion on Recommendation 1720 (2005), set out in the appendix to this reply.

Appendix to the reply

Opinion of the Chair of the Steering Committee for Education (CDED) on Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1720 (2005) on education and religion

The Chair of the Steering Committee for Education (CDED):

1. having taken note with great interest of Recommendation 1720 (2005) on education and religion, adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly;

2. considers the subject to be in keeping with the Council of Europe’s fundamental aims and to be one of the priority issues it deals with;

3. welcomes the fact that the recommendation is in line with the general thrust of the Steering Committee for Education’s activities, particularly those on education for democratic citizenship and human rights;

4. notes with great satisfaction that the recommendation is consistent with the Declaration on “Intercultural education: managing diversity, strengthening democracy” adopted by the Standing Conference of European Ministers of Education at its 21st session in Athens in 2003;

5. refers to the declaration adopted at the Third Summit in Warsaw in May 2005, in which the Heads of State and Government reiterated their “commitment to the common values and principles which are rooted in Europe’s cultural, religious and humanistic heritage”;

 

6. calls to mind the Faro Declaration on the Council of Europe’s Strategy for Developing Intercultural Dialogue, adopted in November 2005 at the closing conference of the 50th anniversary of the European Cultural Convention;

7. refers to the Declaration of Intent signed by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and the Director General of UNESCO on the setting up of an open platform of inter-institutional co-operation for intercultural dialogue and the co-operation agreements with the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for Dialogue between Cultures and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (ALECSO);

8. with regard to paragraph 13 in particular:

- refers to the Action Plan of the Third Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe, held in Warsaw in May 2005, which calls for the enhancement of all opportunities for the training of educators in the fields of education for democratic citizenship, human rights, history and intercultural education;

- stresses the importance of the “Pestalozzi” programme for the training of trainers and education professionals, which will include training activities on intercultural education and religious diversity;

- points out that a more specific project in the CDED activity programme entitled “Policies and practices for teaching socio-cultural diversity” will examine the initial education provision for teachers, taking account of diversity, including religious diversity, in a number of higher education institutions in member states;

- reiterates the interest of CDED in setting up a network, a centre or a pole of excellence for the training of education staff in the Council of Europe’s spheres of competence such as education for democratic citizenship and human rights, history teaching and intercultural education. Training for teachers on education about religion could be featured more prominently in the centre’s programme;

 

9. endorses the criteria, listed in paragraph 14 of the recommendation, on the basis of which governments should be encouraged to ensure that religious studies are taught. In order to foster impartiality (paragraph 14.2), governments could also be encouraged to promote teaching of different ways of thinking, as the purpose of this type of education is to provide a balanced general education and develop open-mindedness and critical-mindedness, which will help when practicing democratic citizenship and respect for human rights;

10. refers in this context to the CDED project on the “New intercultural challenge to education: religious diversity and dialogue in Europe”, whose title reflects both the goal of intercultural education and the specific efforts in this context to cater for religion in schools. Attention should be drawn here to the results of the activities, publications and material for teachers produced under the project, particularly “Religious diversity and intercultural education: a guide for schools”, which is to be published in 2006. At the end of the project, the CDED will submit a draft recommendation on the management of religious diversity in schools to the Committee of Ministers;

11. with regard to paragraph 14.1, stresses that the theme of cultural and religious diversity has been incorporated into a new CDED project on “The Image of the Other in History Teaching”, which will be launched in 2006.