Sir, –John Horgan opposes what he calls the "segregation" of children in schools on background attributes such as religion, among others ("Do we need an education system more Catholic than the Pope?",September 20th).
He quotes Pope Francis lauding the French system of separation of church and state known as laicity.
However, it is important to note that the French state supports private denominational or confessional schools, most of which are Catholic. The teachers in these schools are paid by the state and the schools receive state subsidies on a similar level to those given to state-run schools for their running costs. An attempt was made by the French government in the early 1980s to abolish this system, but the attempt was dropped after stern opposition and protests.
Incidentally, La Croix is a French Catholic newspaper, not a French Catholic magazine, as Mr Horgan states. – Yours,etc,
MICHAEL O’DWYER,
Maynooth,
Co Kildare.