Zagreb, (IKA) – On January 23, a statement was issued from a special session of the Croatian Conference of Bishops held in Zagreb, with the following content:
In keeping with the mission of the Church and the office performed by bishops for the common good of the faithful and the society as a whole, from June to November of last year the Croatian Conference of Bishops requested a meeting and the opportunity for dialogue with the Government of the Republic of Croatia regarding issues of common interest. These requests for dialogue were particularly intense after the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports introduced health education into the Croatian schools. Since the customary procedure was not followed prior to the introduction of health education, thereby completely excluding parents, the bishops considered and continue to consider it their duty to support the legitimate demands of parents concerning the upbringing of children in accordance with their worldview. This clearly declared position of the bishops has elicited public anti-Church activity on several levels. For a two full months, the Catholic Church, its pastors and the faithful, as well as the members of other religious communities, have been subjected to the deprecation of their views by the media and an actual wave of intolerance and communication violence, including ridicule of that held most sacred in Christianity. We believe it is inappropriate to the democratic spirit for parents, as citizens and believers, to be subjected to intolerance and discrimination for expressing their convictions and seeking their rights. We share the destiny of parents and we, as the pastors of the Church, have the duty to teach and support the faithful, as well as all persons of good will, in the face of deviation cloaked in nice words of presumed progress and science (cf. Benedict XVI, Address to Participants in the Plenary Session of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, January 19, 2013). Oversimplifying serious issues, especially in the proposed fourth module of the health education curriculum, they persistently insist that the Church is opposed to health education, information about sexuality, the good of children and young people, and that it is insensitive to the reality of the times in which we live. It is quite the opposite. The Church is not opposed to health education but it shall not and cannot desist regarding the truth about the person, human sexuality, marriage and the family, which is distorted and not presented holistically in the fourth module.
Therefore, concerned about the instrumentalization of the school as an institution and the dignity of children, teachers and the future of the Croatian society, we support parents in their constitutional rights and legitimate demands. We hope that the Government of the Republic of Croatia will find the time and ways to discuss this with all the interested parties. The Croatian Conference of Bishops again expresses its readiness for dialogue concerning this and all other controversial issues that encumber relationships, with the goal of the common good in our society.