Textbooks for rural Serbian students link history with a Brighter Future
5/4/2010
Some 12,000 primary school children across Serbia will soon enjoy new ‘Youth Bible Curriculum’ (YBC) textbooks in their theology classes, produced by the Serbian Orthodox Church and World Vision, in partnership with Gospel Light Worldwide.
‘Our Lives with God (part 2)’ for children 7-8 years and ‘God is with Us (part 1)’ for ages 11-12, were produced in the second cycle of the joint YBC project, which aims to help the Church reach the younger generation in an age-appropriate and culturally meaningful way. YBC also aims to promote and support spiritually stable and strong rural families that live in accordance with Christian values.
Orthodoxy is the largest single religious faith in Serbia with 6,371,584 adherents or 84% of the population and in Montenegro with 460,383 or 74% of the population*. Years of communist rule and religious oppression had a drastic impact on the nation, when church attendance plummeted, as it did elsewhere across Eastern Europe. Young people today however are returning to their roots and schools are seeking relevant curriculum to support students’ religious education.
Mr James Morgenroth, World Vision Regional Director for YBC presented the programme to Serbian theology teachers during a training session organised by the Serbian Orthodox Church in late March at the St Vasilije Ostroski Church in Belgrade.
The host, His Grace Bishop Atanasije, Administrator of the Diocese of Raska and Prizren, welcomed World Vision representatives and said the YBC programme has been accepted by the highest officials of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
The books, translated into the Serbian language by the Serbian Orthodox Church, will be a valuable supplement to basic learning materials for theology classes in Serbian primary schools, specifically in rural areas where World Vision operates.
The first cycle of the programme implemented in cooperation with World Vision Bosnia and Herzegovina produced two books with 20,000 copies. Children and teachers alike have responded positively to the curriculum distributed so far.
World Vision, with its microfinance subsidiary AgroInvest, has to date invested US$83,000 in the programme, which aims to provide books to all children and all age groups in Serbia.
YBC provides age-appropriate learning materials for Orthodox Christian youth in Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Georgia, and Lebanon.