Rigour and respect” “

The report of the Bernard Stasi Commission was presented in France on Thursday, 11 December. The Commission was given the task of listening to and taking into examination the views of French citizens on the lay State, in the light of the debate opened in France due to the ever-growing presence of communities of different faiths and cultures in the country. An intransigent and respectful form of non-confessionalism. “So groups of extremists – says Bernard Stasi in the introduction to the report – are at work in our country”, and are also trying to “incite the young to reject France and its values. The international situation and, in particular, the conflict in the Middle East, are concurring to aggravate the tension and foment conflicts in some of our cities”. In this context, many French citizens are asking for greater “authority” from the State, especially in schools. The results of the Commission reflect “the diversity of the political, religious and philosophic convictions in the country”. But the Commission also reaffirms in a unanimous way the view of a form of non-confessionalism that is “at once intransigent in the application of the principles of the Republic and respectful of religious faiths and philosophic beliefs”. On this question, the Council of the Christian Churches had written a joint message to the President of the Republic, asking that the State be the guarantor of freedom of religion and the promoter of real integration, starting out from the outskirts of the big cities. Fostering community life and social peace. According to Msgr. Stanislas Lalanne, general secretary of the French Bishops’ Conference, the document of the Stasi Commission “is rich in significance and demands to be studied. On a first reading, it seems to us guided by the dual concern of vigilance and acceptance, essential conditions for community life and social peace”. The French Catholic Church, however, will evaluate the appropriateness of the proposals only once the conditions for their implementation have been decided. Meeting in episcopal council, the archdiocese of Strasbourg has also issued a statement, focusing in particular on the educational system in Alsace. The diocesan Church approves the proposal made by the Commission for provision to be made “in the school curriculum for specific courses of religion for students of Moslem religion”, but also asks that “alternative courses for students who have asked to be exempted from religious teaching” be programmed in a serious way. Proper training of teachers. The Protestant Federation of France has also given the work of the Commission a positive welcome. It “has permitted – the Federation says in a communiqué – the principles of the lay State in the France of the 21st century to be clarified. The report confirms that the lay State gives scope to all religions and confers on them the same rights and duties”. The Federation appreciates the way in which the Commission has tackled the question of the non-confessional State, by underlining the principle of “living together” in harmony in society and in particular in schools. It regards as fundamental, to this end, the “reinforced campaign against racism and anti-Semitism”, the acceptance of “differences in diet” and the “symbolically strong recognition of new holidays for students” of other faiths. The Protestant Federation also supports the proposal of introducing Islam into the teaching of religion in schools in Alsace and Moselle, “so long as the student’s freedom to choose or not to choose this teaching be guaranteed”. In this regard, however, the Federation calls for the “proper training of teachers”.