engleski

Images of the Religious Other in the Religious Instruction s Textbooks in Croatia

According to the Programme of Catholic religious instruction (1991, 1999), Catholic religious instruction emphasizes an integral education and upbringing of man, and having in mind the religious dimension, the promotion of personal and social general human and believers’ values. The principles of the school religious instruction are following: devotion to God and man, ecumenical openness and openness to a dialogue and correlation of religious upbringing and education and an intercultural approach to religious instruction and education. First textbooks of religious instruction had been published between 1992. and 1994. They have been revised several times until now. In this paper the textbooks of religious education from primary schools in Croatia have been analysed. As same as syllabi, textbooks are firmly based on doctrinal teaching of Catholic church and its normative theology. From the (review) of programmes and textbooks it is visible that they emphasize formative nature of the Christian (Catholic) values in education – helping to form the Christian (Catholic) identity. As it was already said, one of the principles of school religious instruction is “ ecumenic and dialogical openness” . Respecting this principle, textbooks authors present monoteistic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) and Oriental religions (Hinduism, Budhism, Konfucianism i Taoism). Non – Catholic religions have been treated systematically and tolerantly. But, tolerant and dialogical approach gives up in the case of new religious movements which autenticity and distinctness was denied. New religious movements are presented as consequence of different shortcomings of society and the church. The use of the term « sect» and "cult" in the context of new religious movements was negativelly conotated.

religious instruction; catholic catechism; religious other; Croatia

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