Jan O’Sullivan 
Staff reporter
The Bishops’ Council for Education has insisted that the ethos of Catholic schools will not be altered despite the Government rescinding Rule 68.
Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan last week announced changes to the Rules for National Schools, specifically the rescinding of rule 68, which stated that “a religious spirit should inform and vivify the whole work of the school”.
Responding to the minister’s decision, the bishops’ council warned that “the status of the current Rules for National Schools is unclear”.
“The Catholic ethos of primary schools in Ireland is not based on the Rules for National Schools,” the bishops’ council stated.
“The ethos of a school is given expression in multiple ways and it informs all aspects of the life of the school. These include the programme in religious education. The minister’s announcement concerning Rule 68 does not change the teaching of religious education in Catholic schools,” the bishops said.
Noting that faith schools exist because there are parents who wish to have their children educated in accordance with their religious convictions, the bishops’ council warned that if “the ethos of these schools is undermined then the rights of such parents are compromised”.
“We wish to assure parents that the minister’s announcement does not alter the ethos of Catholic schools and that this ethos will continue to find expression in all aspects of the life of the school,” the bishops said.
