Argentinean bishops call for new education law that does not exclude God

Buenos Aires, Argentina, Nov 13, 2006 / 22:00 pm

As the Argentinean Congress prepares to debate a new law on education, the bishops of Argentina said this week “a comprehensive notion of education necessarily includes the transcendent dimension of man” and they insisted that the country’s new laws do not exclude God.

In a letter sent out at the conclusion of their general assembly, the bishops noted, “The principle and subsidiary role of the State should cooperate with the natural and inalienable right of parents to choose for their children an education that is in accord with their own convictions and beliefs, without discrimination of any kind.  The principle of freedom of conscience as a right of families, of teachers, and of students must be upheld.”

As debate on the new law approaches, the bishops recalled that “a comprehensive notion of education necessarily includes the transcendent dimension of man” and they pointed out that children and young people in Argentina deserve laws that not only take into account the “social, labor and scientific dimensions of the person,” but also the “cultural spiritual and religious” ones as well.

The bishops also stressed that the State is charged with providing financial assistance to both public and private schools, and they warned against excessive intervention in local school systems by the federal government.