Conclusion
Faith in God is an integral part of human beings. It is an indisputable fact, and modern man often becomes aware of it when he is in trouble or danger. A working slogan in communism was: Religion is the opium of the people. This is not true because the Christian religion is faith, hope and love; Islam promotes charity and zeal, the Buddhist goal is to achieve nirvana, and so on. These are all human virtues whose source is the human heart, and reminder of religion. If a man does not believe in God, yet he is born with a belief in a supreme being, then instead of believing in God he believes in his ego. Isn’t today’s most populous religion the religion of materialism or individualism whose deity is personified in the world currencies?
The most persistent opponents of religion today find their “arguments” against God in science. If the world’s most famous scientists Brache, Copernicus, Descartes, Newton, Leibniz, Pascal, Einstein, Tesla and others believed in God, why do the modern representatives of natural sciences show such obvious contempt towards doctrines of the world’s largest religion? The fact is that scientific discoveries and achievements are phenomenal and useful for human life on earth. However, theology is indispensable in finding the answers to the most important questions facing man, without which it is impossible to achieve a life with meaning and purpose. These questions are: What is the meaning of human life on earth? Why is man born and why does he die? Why does man live? Why does he have wishes and desires? Why does he work? And why does he love?
Unfortunately, one line of science does not recognize these issues and solves its independently set tasks: the experimental sciences, with the final point in physics and mathematics. The other line of science recognizes these issues but has given no response to them; it is the line of speculative sciences, with metaphysics as its finest representative.[1] If the main goal of a modern educational system for children is to receive an answer to every question that interests them, then religious education certainly meets that criterion.
Malicious and unfounded conclusions which claim that it is impossible to connect religious education with other school subjects should be faced in a manner used in apologetics.[2] First of all, there is enough evidence and enough examples proving that religion and science are not mutually exclusive areas. In addition, the experiments showed that parts of the brain which are active during religious experiences exist only in humans, but are absent in animals. It allowed scientists to assume that the evidence before them shows the uniqueness of men, because only men have inherited the tendency towards faith in God. The experiments were carried out under the direction of Professor Jordan Grafman of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders in Betesde (USA - Maryland).[3]
Unfortunately, there are still a certain percentage of people who think that religious education conflicts with other school subjects. Such people will always exist. This is not necessarily related to the post-communist period in some European countries, including Serbia, because atheists existed before communism and they exist today in all parts of the world. The best argument in favor of religious education should be its positive results. Society, after all, makes its judgments based on results.
Since the religious education has been re-introduced in public schools, educational authorities in Serbia had to modify earlier existing course in two aspects: in its status and in its character.[4] The crucial question in this context is whether religious education has been introduced to schools as a general informative course or as catechism. The courses offered in Serbian are closer to catechism, but one which is adapted to modern multi-religious circumstances. This means that children can learn that there are many different religions. For Christians, it can only mean a more frequent reminder of the essence of God's commandments—love. For Muslims, it means more tolerance and mutual respect for their neighbors, and so on. The best proof that religious education in Serbian schools today is catechistic in its character could be found in Bishop Atanasije's (SOC) statement: “The religious teachers are like new apostles who regenerate our people, enlighten them with Orthodox faith, awakening their sleeping souls”.[5]
It could be argued that general religious education would be more useful because children could gain basic knowledge about all religions, and later chose their own spiritual path. This is certainly not a bad idea, but there are many more disadvantages in this concept of religious education. First of all, in a catechistic course a child learns about a familiar faith which was introduced to him by his parents. The most important influence on future national, religious, social, cultural and political understanding of any child is made by that child's parents. This does not mean that parents are the absolute creators of the children's future, nor are they a crucial factor in their children's perception of life and the world; but rather, the way parents educate their children leaves a deep mark in their hearts and souls. This is particularly true in Southeastern European countries due to the centuries of devotion to faith and religious practices. For example, during communism, many had given up their faith in God and adherence to religious rules, but most of them still continued to practice some religious customs only because they learned them from their parents.
In fact, catechism introduced on a voluntary basis, and customized for multi-religious circumstances, has proved to be the best solution for the countries of Southeastern Europe.
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