The All-Ukrainian Council of Churches Discusses Religious and Educational Cooperation with the Minister of Education

On June 4, a working meeting took place at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (MES) with representatives of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO) and the Minister of Education and Science, Oksen Lisovyi. The meeting also involved the Public Council on Cooperation with Churches and Religious Organizations under the Ministry of Education and Science. This information was reported on the AUCCRO website.

During the meeting, a number of important issues related to state-religion relations were discussed, including the introduction of basic military training in higher education institutions, changes to the draft law on the modernization of the education network, and the possibility of obtaining third-level education in institutions of higher religious education without state orders.

The discussions also covered the prospects of introducing an educational chaplaincy institution and other issues concerning the role of religious organizations in the educational sphere of Ukraine.

The meeting from the Ministry of Education was attended by Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, Mykhailo Vynnytskyi, and other ministry representatives. On behalf of AUCCRO, the meeting was attended by: AUCCRO Chairman, Bishop Valerii Antonuk, Head of the UGCC, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, representative of the OCU, Yevstratii Zoria, Senior Bishop of the UCHVE Anatolii Kozachok, Bishop of the Church of SDA in Ukraine, Stanislav Nosov, Supreme Mufti of Ukraine, Head of the DUMU, Ahmed Tamim, and other representatives of the Churches and Religious Organizations that are members of the Council.

It is also worth noting that Ukrainian Greek Catholics and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine are jointly working to improve the quality of education in schools and universities in Ukraine. To this end, on May 14, the educational forum “Unity of Church and State Efforts: Creating a Quality Educational Environment for the Future” was held at the Lviv Theological Seminary of the UGCC. The event became a platform for exchanging experience, discussing current issues, and finding ways to effectively cooperate between the Church and the state in the field of education.