By John-Henry Westen
TORONTO, September 11, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Public funding for faith-based schools has become a hot topic in the Ontario election with the Conservative Party proposal to provide such funding. Even with the unwelcome condition that in order to receive public funds, all faith based schools must adhere to the Ontario curriculum and have accredited teachers, Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities are backing the proposal.
This week the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops has reiterated its long-standing support for public funding of all faith-based schools, Catholic and non-Catholic alike.
“Our commitment to the best education for all students impels us to respect and support the wishes of parents in other faith communities for religious education in the public school system or for alternative schools which will reflect their values and beliefs,” says the Bishops’ statement. “The primacy of parental rights in education is a value which should be realized not only by Catholic parents but also by others. We have publicly committed ourselves to support the concept of the development of alternative schools for people of other faith communities.”
Bishop James Wingle, the President of the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops concluded, “We continue to support the position we expressed in 1989, although we leave it to others to determine the methods for giving effect to these important rights.”