The Presidency of the Polish Bishops’ Conference has responded with a strongly-worded statement to the new regulation signed by Education Minister Barbara Nowacka on 17 January on the optional teaching of religion in public schools. According to the new rules, which will come into force on 1 September, the hours of religious education will be reduced from two to one, and, in the daily timetable, they will have to be scheduled before or after compulsory educational activities. The bishops had already spoken out against this new regulation, and in a statement published yesterday, 19 January, they urged the ministry to “go back to the standards of the rule of law and refrain from actions against believers who are fully fledged citizens of the Republic of Poland”. According to the bishops, the new regulation is “an illegal act, because no statutory agreement has been reached with the Catholic Church and other religious associations concerned regarding its content”. Moreover, “reducing religious education to one hour per week limits both the right of believing parents to educate their children according to their own religious convictions” and the right of students to be accompanied “in their development towards full maturity”, also in the spiritual sphere. Finally, according to the bishops, the changes introduced affect the employment rights of religious teachers, which are guaranteed by the Constitution.