The House education committee is looking into pushing for the abolition of the Three Hierarchs school holiday, its chairman Kyriacos Hadjiyiannis said on Monday.
Primary and high schools close every January 30, the day of the Three Hierarchs which is also celebrated as the day of Greek letters. The day commemorates three highly influential 4th century bishops who later become saints – Saint Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostomos. The three saints are revered in eastern Christianity for their wide knowledge and for shaping Christian theology.
MPs, however, believe that precisely because the day is meant to celebrate knowledge, schools shouldn’t be closed.
“We suggested for that day to be a school day but instead of classes, for other educational activities to take place that will highlight the importance of that day,” Hadjiyiannis told the Cyprus Mail. He said that this proposal concerns only high schools, and not primary schools, as it is part of the discussion concerning the reforms in secondary education.
Teachers however, he said, do not agree with this proposal.
The head of secondary education teachers’ union Oelmek, Demetris Taliadoros, expressed his sorrow over the proposal and that the committee shunned teacher unions and parents from the overall discussion in parliament concerning regulations on secondary education.
“On what criteria did the committee decide that that holiday is less important than other holidays, and decided to abolish it?” Taliadoros told the Cyprus Mail. He said that this was a deliberate attempt aiming to diminish the importance of Greek letters.
This is not the only religious holiday, aside from the Christmas and Easter seasons, for which schools are closed.
According to education ministry rules, primary schools are also closed on the name day of the patron saint of the parish where their school is located.
The name day of Archbishop Chrysostomos is also a school holiday.
Hadjiyiannis said that the issue of abolishing November 13, the archbishop’s name day, as a school holiday has not reached his committee.
Last week, a group of teachers identifying themselves as the Initiative of Teachers Against Racism launched an online petition asking the education ministry to stop celebrating the name day of the archbishop following his recent controversial comments on homosexuals.
The group said that the archbishop has “promoted racism, intolerance, hatred and inequality once more with his unacceptable statements”.
Schools, the group said, must be democratic and give a voice to all children without any discriminations.
“Such a school cannot close its doors on the name day of the archbishop, and honour a man who systematically and repeatedly violates international, European and national human rights conventions.”
