mantra
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I was listening yesterday to a number of Muslims who are sending their children to Catholic Schools and this has been the choice of the child. The Catholic Schools have been accommodating and blended learning the Koran and Catechism into the curriculum. Obviously only in a small way - but a Catholic Principal said that he encourages the boys in their prayers and learning of the Koran rather than having them go elsewhere - for example an extremist Cleric.
Some countries are finding this combination very successful.
The bright cafeteria of St. Mauront Catholic School is conspicuously quiet: It is Ramadan, and 80 percent of the students are Muslim. When the lunch bell rings, girls and boys stream out past the crucifixes and the large wooden cross in the corridor, heading for Muslim midday prayer.
“There is respect for our religion here,” said Nadia Oualane, 14, a student of Algerian descent who wears her hair hidden under a black head scarf. “In the public school,” she added, gesturing at nearby buildings, “I would not be allowed to wear a veil.”
In France, which has only four Muslim schools, some of the country’s 8,847 Roman Catholic schools have become refuges for Muslims seeking what an overburdened, secularist public sector often lacks: spirituality, an environment in which good manners count alongside mathematics, and higher academic standards.
AsiaNews.it
THAILAND
Catholic schools in Thailand, places of excellence and inter-faith dialogue by Weena Kowitwanij
Cardinal Kitbunchu, archbishop of Bangkok, has promoted high level education programmes and schools where most students are Buddhists or Muslims. Each year 60 new bursaries are handed out to guarantee a “free and ethical” education. The Pope sends his “special blessing”.
Bangkok (AsiaNews) – The Catholic Church in Thailand plays a fundamental role in the educational development of students thanks to its network of institutions ranging from elementary schools to university. In addition to an excellent level of education Catholic schools promote “inter-faith dialogue” and “peaceful coexistence between young people from different religions” so much so that in many cases Catholics students are a minority with respect to Buddhists and Muslims.
http://www.wakeupfromyourslumber.com/node/8415
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