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The
Guardian Saturday February 24, 2007
Church in Spain has right to fire religion teachers over private
life.
The verdict, delivered on Thursday, ended a six-year legal battle by a former teacher of Catholic church dogma who was fired from a Canary Island school for "having a sentimental relationship with a man who was not her husband, from whom she had separated", according to the decision.
The teacher, María del Carmen Galayo, claimed the church's dismissal violated her constitutional right to privacy and religious freedom, and her lawsuit questioned the church's traditional control over religious teachings in state-funded schools.Ms Galayo is one of 14 teachers who sued the state after the church hierarchy fired them for supposed personal transgressions such as "living with a divorced man" or "going out for a couple of drinks", said Alfredo Sepúlveda, head of the USIT-EP union representing 14,000 Catholic religion teachers in state schools.
"This verdict legitimises the persecution of religion teachers in a way that is inconceivable in a state governed by the rule of law," Mr Sepúlveda said.
In its 41-page decision, the constitutional court upheld the church's power to appoint Catholic religion teachers based on what it considers moral criteria, arguing that the catechism job is not "a usual business" and the job requirements, therefore, may include offering "testimony of living a Christian life". It cites a 1979 agreement between the Spanish government and the Vatican, which was written into the Spanish constitution and ensured that Catholicism would continue to be taught for free in state schools after the death of dictator Francisco Franco and the advent of religious freedom.
"If the teaching of a determined religion were to be found contrary to the constitution, whether for the content or teaching requirements, what would have to be questioned is the agreement under which religion is to be taught, not the way chosen to do so," the decision read.
State-supported schools in Spain offer free classes in Catholic dogma for students aged six to 16. Under a recent law, non-Catholics may take a history of religion class or independent study.
