Thirteenth International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

The debate on the role of religion in Greek education is not new. Its roots can be traced back to the collapse of the military junta and the restoration of democracy (Metapolitefsi) in 1974. The redefinition of Church-State relations, the need for democratic education reforms, and the emergence of a new current of theological thought in the 1970s and 1980s raised the question of renewal in Religious Education. However, the impact of these processes on educational policymaking in religious education has attracted very little attention within the research community. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the historical framework by highlighting the key aspects that shaped education policy in religious education during the first period of the Metapolitefsi era (1974-1989). To achieve this goal, archival sources such as parliament proceedings, school curricula, government circulars, church encyclicals, union announcements, and press publications were used. The available data suggest that the first decade of the Third Hellenic Republic was a period of intense “mobility” regarding the role of religion in public education, which ushered in a new model of interaction between stakeholders that is still in use today.