Religion is like sex education: it must permeate the whole curriculum
by Professor John Wolffe, Lapido Media:
RELIGIOUS literacy is key to solving social problems of misunderstanding and insecurity. Yet I do not see it as requiring extensive factual knowledge, and certainly do not equate it with religious commitment.
Indeed religiously committed people often lack religious literacy insofar as they can hold stereotyped perceptions of traditions other than their own.
Rather I would suggest that religious literacy is a set of skills and attitudes that enables someone to understand the nature of a religious worldview and its implications for daily life, even when the beliefs and practices in question are very different from their own.
Just as sex and relationships education should not been seen as merely a matter of biology, religious literacy is too important to be left just to RE. Its social and cultural significance needs to be explored in the context of subjects such as History, English, Geography, Politics and citizenship education.
It is equally essential for those of all faiths and none.
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