Madrid
The Spanish government announced this week that religion would be a required subject in high school. Students must take either a course on Catholicism, taught by Catholic priests, or a survey course on religious thought. Catholic bishops have been lobbying for the official addition to the curriculum for years. But some parents groups and Spain’s main teacher organization see the change as a troubling breach of church-state separation enshrined in the country’s 1978 constitution. Former culture minister Jose Sole Tura, who helped draft the constitution, called the religion requirement “absurd, stupid, and a serious mistake—a return to the Franco era.” Under the dictatorship of Gen. Francisco Franco, Catholicism was the state religion.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Quiz of The Week: 15 – 21 NovemberQuiz Have you been paying attention to The Week’s news?
-
Can the UK do more on climate change?Today's Big Question Labour has shown leadership in the face of fraying international consensus, but must show the public their green mission is ‘a net benefit, not a net cost’
-
The Week Unwrapped: Will US Catholics rebel against the Pope?Podcast Plus what are the ethics of freezing your late partner?
