Syllabus Introduction

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION AT THE FITZWIMARC SCHOOL

INTRODUCTION

The Schools Council Working Paper 36, in recognising the difficulty of adopting an adequate definition of religion, expressed the view that "religion has to do basically with discernment and commitment. Religions claim to discern the meaning and purpose of life; they also commit their adherents to action appropriate to the discernment." As an oversimplified definition, the Working Paper continued to say that "religion is that insight for which a person gives his life." The Durham Report (1970) expressed a similar dual definition:

"By religion we mean some pattern of belief and behaviour related to the question of man's ultimate concern."

These definitions seem to integrate two ways of looking at religion. Religion may be seen by some as IMPLICIT, being found in those elements of secular experience such as wonder, guilt and love, which evoke questions about life's ultimate significance, its values, meaning and purpose. Others may tend to look upon religion as EXPLICIT, that is, religion as a phenomenon. The former definition, in tending to be inclusive, carries the danger "that it may end up by claiming everything for religion and drown in its own inclusiveness." The explicit form of the latter definition, on the other hand, tends to exclusiveness and although it may promote enquiry into religious phenomena in an objective way, it does run the risk, when applied to Religious Education, of failing to develop a pupil's own religious perspective. Religious Education must be concerned with both these fields. Certainly the one reinforces and interprets the other.

In his book, "Background to the Long Search" (1977), Ninian Smart sums the matter up admirably:

"Furthermore, the explorer of beliefs may come to clarify his own values... Thus the search for understanding occurs at two levels. One level is to do with our finding out how men see the world, and how they respond to what they see. The other level is to do with finding out the truth, as far as we can...
"There are atheists and rationalists, who see nothing but folly in religions, and they can be too easily led into thinking therefore that the exploration of religion is unimportant. This is an absurdity, since what moves men, whether it be foolish or wise, justified or unjustified, good or evil, must vitally concern us if we wish to understand man's various responses to life."

Another writer on matters of Religious Education, Edwin Cox, has stated that he is concerned that pupils should be able "to work out for themselves, and to be able cogently to defend, their own religious position or the rejection of the possibility of having one." He too is concerned with more than simply an objective study of phenomena, for his definition of religion is that it is fundamentally "a man's attempt to explain to himself the meaning and purpose of his own existence."

If 'religious thinking' is to be developed in pupils, more than a simply objective study of religious phenomena will be required. On the other hand, enquiry into the meaning of life, the problem of existence and so on, runs the risk of including more in its scope than should be understood by the term 'religious'. Of course, one does not want to close the definition too narrowly and thereby exclude large areas of religious experience. One has to find the balancing point between the two extremes and so our syllabus has been outlined with the following general purposes in mind:

To explore the spiritual dimension of experience and reflect upon one's own inner feelings, questions, thoughts and experiences.
To understand the nature of religion as a distinctive way of interpreting experience.
To acquire and develop knowledge and understanding of religious beliefs and practices, with particular reference to Christianity and the other principal religions represented in Great Britain.
To appreciate the immense influence of religion and the part that it has played, and continues to play in many people's lives.
To develop an understanding of the influence of beliefs, values and traditions on individuals, societies and culture.
To develop an appreciation of the religious and cultural diversity of contemporary society and of how such diversity enriches our national life.
To develop the ability to consider sensitively, and respect the beliefs of others.
To develop an informed critical insight into one's own beliefs.
To develop the ability to make reasoned and informed judgements about religious and moral issues.

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G. Jones:
The FitzWimarc School, Rayleigh, Essex