Bulgaria Considers Introducing “Religion and Ethics” Course in Schools

Bulgaria is currently debating amendments to the Law on School and Preschool Education. On July 30, the parliamentary Committee on Education spent over three hours reviewing three draft laws, with particular attention given to a proposal to introduce a new subject titled “Virtues and Religion” in schools. The final vote was postponed to July 31, though it is expected that a decision may be delayed until the autumn. This was reported by the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, including Metropolitans Gavriil of Lovech, Serafim of Nevrokop, and Pahomiy of Vidin. The Holy Synod of the BOC expressed general support for introducing the subject but proposed renaming it to “Religion and Ethics.” According to the Church hierarchy, this title better reflects the content of the discipline, as “ethics” is a broader scientific concept than “virtues” and has historical roots in religious tradition.

Two members of the political party “Democratic Bulgaria” also expressed their views on the proposal. Despite the discussion, no consensus has been reached yet, and further consideration remains open.

Earlier, we reported that the head of the OCU, Epiphaniy Dumenko, criticized the Local Orthodox Churches that did not support the Ukrainian church movement. According to him, some Churches are “undecided and waiting for the end of the war,” while others “depend on the Kremlin regime.”