The Rationalist Society of Australia

Rationalist Society of Australia

Project 1. Supporting a high quality, universal and secular education system

Update 12.03.2012

RSA president Meredith Doig spoke on behalf of the RSA before the NSW parilamentary inquiry into Ethics Classes.  See her written submission which was also presented here.

Update 16.11.2011

Click here to see article from president Meredith Doig regarding a meeting of ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) who want to determine the role of religion and education in Australian schools.

Update 23.10.2011

RSA president Meredith Doig, sent a letter to Peter Garrett, offering the assistance of the RSA as an advisory body to assist with the implementation of changes to the School Chaplaincy Program.

Click here to see a copy of the letter.

The Rationalist Society welcomes the fact that the Australian Government recognises the controversial nature of the National School Chaplaincy Program.  With 99% of chaplains being provided by religious organisations that publicly assert an evangelical mission, it is little wonder many Australians have become increasingly concerned about the creeping imposition of religious doctrine on young minds.

The Rationalist Society does not object to religious chaplains per se.  But parents should have a genuine choice between a religious chaplain and a non-religious pastoral care worker.

A pool of appropriately qualified and trained non-religious pastoral care workers should be funded so this choice is genuinely available to all parents and school communities.

If a religious chaplain is preferred by parents of a school community, proselytising or evangelising[1] should continue to be prohibited.  School principals should be accountable for ensuring this does not happen but independent auditing should also be introduced.

Read our second submission to the Review of the National Schools Chaplaincy Program here.

[1] Proselytise = convert or attempt to convert (someone) from one religion, belief, or opinion to another.   Evangelise = the spreading of the Christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness (Oxford Dictionaries online).

Comments (6)

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written by Rex Williams, March 07, 2011

This is an excellent response for this survey. I trust that that it receives serious consideration

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written by Ravi Samson, March 07, 2011

We need a new set of ethics that reflect the changes brought about in our society by science. When we live longer and all our children also reach adulthood, unlike the past, it follows that we need to control our reproductive rates.
Grandiose ideas of out-populating the others by groups that fancy themselves should also be addressed. This activity does have consequences in a democracy.

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written by Mark Matthews, March 07, 2011

Nice work. As a parent with kids in primary school I wholeheartedly agree with your submission

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written by Norman Heath, March 08, 2011

Well done, a good response. This issue must be of great concern not only to parents but also to teaching staff. It removes some control from teachers and gives it to an unknown quantity. In certain instances it could be akin to putting Dracula in charge of the Blood Bank!
The service should not be available to private religious school systems, and I strongly condemn not only government payments to these institutions but also tax benefits. An example of this is Notre Dame University in the city of Fremantle which has taken up numerous buildings in that city.

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written by Gabriel Roy (no hard copy journal), March 12, 2011

Thank you RSA for your firm and strong statement to the National School Youth Support Program (aka Chaplaincy Program). We all know that we live in a mostly religious community. But we also live in a secular legal constitution. Therefore any part of the government apparatus must provide secular benefits and moreover being seen as providing secular benefits to the community. Religion is outside its intrinsic realm. Henceforth providing equal opportunity to secular children to attend Youth Support should be the main concern of the "State". Churches and homes should live according to their own values in churches and homes. Thank you again RSA. This country needs you. Gabriel Roy

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written by Sean the Blogonaut, June 27, 2011

If prosletyzing is banned why do we need to appoint someone with a stated religious affiliation. Would it not be better simply to have a pastoral care program that could be staffed by anyone (hindu buddhist, catholic, sda, athesist etc) who has met the legal/counselling requirements.

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