A nine-minute video that depicts boys and girls of different ages spontaneously talking about how they perceive their religion and other religions, and how they relate with the other who embraces a different religion, was ordered to be screened in Egyptian schools by Egypt’s Education Minister Tarek Shawki.
Since Egypt is almost exclusively dominated by Islam and Christianity, with Christians constituting over 15 per cent of the population, the children in the video were Muslim and Christian Egyptians. Their pleasant, spontaneous, unblemished remarks indicated an obvious acceptance of religious differences, and their non-categorisation of others according to religion. It was obvious they have friends that belong to the other religion, and that they were almost oblivious of religious identity. The strong impression the video made was that antagonistic attitudes towards other religious were introduced later in life as the children’s innocent thoughts were corrupted by indoctrination.
The Education Minister said the video promotes citizenship concepts, religious tolerance, and acceptance of the other. He underscored that this was the very philosophy the Ministry of Education adopts.
The video was first screened on 6 January 2019, double opening of al-Fattah al-Aleem Mosque and the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ in Egypt’s New Administrative Capital by Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi.
Link to the video footage:
Watani International
26 February 2019