Religion in school

According to Norman Bonney (Letters, 16 September), “something is clearly profoundly wrong with the involvement of religious groups in Scottish education” and he complains that “churches that have unscientific beliefs central to their doctrines are allowed to be involved in school activities”.

Here the absolutist tendency in the secularist movement is clearly demonstrated: all schools must be exclusively secular institutions, naïvely assuming that the value system of secular humanism is somehow “scientific”.

If Mr Bonney wishes to exclude “unscientific” views from education, that’s all moral teaching out of the window for a start.

Theological and philosophical debate flourishes in our culture, so why should schools fail to reflect this diversity of thought? Secular liberals usually want a bland lowest common denominator morality taught in schools, not because it is the “neutral” option, but because the values thus taught reflect their own.

Let debate flourish in schools, and let children hear diverse points of view, enabling them to build up a positive value system for themselves.

Richard Lucas

Broomyknowe

Edinburgh