BOTH Mr Benjamin Wee ("Religious knowledge lessons important in mission schools"; last Friday) and Mr Francis Cheng ("Religion not the only way to mould character"; Forum Online, Monday) acknowledge that religious knowledge - as distinct from the practice of religions - can help to develop the character of students.
If students attend school to get a rounded education, shouldn't they be afforded opportunities to learn about different religions - whether it is their own or not?
Apart from benefiting from the moral teachings of the various religions, they will learn to appreciate all religions.
We should embrace the unique environment that schools can offer in teaching Religion 101, covering all the major religions in Singapore.
There will not be any shortage of teachers as religious bodies would gladly offer volunteers.
True respect in a multicultural and multi-religious society like ours can best be achieved if we are truly open to one another's thinking and appreciate the good moral teachings that all religions strive towards.
The net result would be our younger generation getting an unbiased view of all the best moral teachings, which would form the crux of their moral compass in their lives.
Geoffrey Kung
*Article first appeared on ST Forums (8 Jan 2014)