Excellent article. It's good to see that at least one Labor MP has the courage and integrity to point out this rank hypocrisy to the Education Minister.

The Chaplaincy program has always been insidious. It's time to rid our public schools of these proselytising godbotherers and replace them with properly qualified counsellors.

There are church schools in the community where Christians can educate their children in that faith. If the fees are too high for some families, then it's the responsibility of the church to enable a Christian education by helping out families who can't afford to pay.

It isn't the responsibility of the state to provide the means for children to be indoctrinated into any faith in public schools.

Trained counsellors, not chaplains are appropriate for public schools in our secular society, as are secular ethics classes.

I've no objection to religious classes being held in public schools strictly for children whose parents want them to attend. But they can't be only Christian because we have many other religions represented in our schools. We are a democracy. Not a hunting ground for cultist zealots.

And public schools must offer secular ethics as well to provide for children whose parents are atheists, agnostics, rationalists.

In our democracy we have the right to live FREE of religion

Meridith.
I also think that the chaplains for schools program is problematic but for different reasons. We take a great deal of care to train teachers in their subjects often to university level. However, when it comes to placing Chaplains in schools the training required is almost nonexistent. Given that there can be no separation between pastoral care and theology, why do we not insist that chaplains complete training in that subject? It seems that all of the other subjects taught in our schools require expertise but when it comes to religion all we require is enthusiasm. The church has had a bad time with enthusiasm, it tends to attract the silly and uneducated and I fear that many in the chaplaincy system are of that kind.

It is extraordinary that the one tradition that has shaped our whole culture, Christianity, is so poorly served. If it were taught properly there would be no need for a Rationalist Society since a proper understanding of the theology of the church would reveal that there is no real conflict. As it is, any religious notion, no matter how silly is baptised because we have all been told that we must respect other people’s religion. I must say I do not. Many religious ideas are injurious to the people who hold them and we should be able to have a healthy debate.

Peter Sellick

Victorian schools have had chaplains for over 50 years. My first school had one way back in 1974 - and a real asset she was too. For all of that time it was a complete non-issue. It only became an issue when John Howard decided to supply federal funding for them, telling us that the real issue is Howard hatred not the existence of chaplains themselves.

It would be great to hear from more MPs on this. School Chaplaincy is just mis-guided quackery, poisoning young minds to boot.

Sells, your attempt at ingratiating yourself into this piece is very telling indeed. I wonder (NOT) which religious notion would be foisted onto our kids under your steady hand?

Every time I see the guitar-wielding bible thumpers at my daughter's school I cringe at the thought that somehow I am subsidising their charade.

The Author

O’K is it Meredith to support the adoption of children by professing homosexual couples on the one hand, while on the other hand, and with the heavy club of secularism and the cry of “fundamentalist”, vehemently attack practising Christians (the fundamentalist society attack on Rev., Tony Costello/subject;homosexuality) for daring to step forward and instil direction, hope and the sense of belonging to those same children through a religious educational program in schools.

Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce to you for the first time in the columns of this great and respected publication, a lady that needs no introduction that better describes her agenda, aimed against tradition,morality and decency, than words from her own hands can do. Go for it Meredith.