08 January 2010

DepEd exempts Adventists from official functions on Sabbaths

The Department of Education (DepEd) of the Philippines, in its Memorandum No. 3, Series of 2010, signed by the DepEd Secretary, provides “constitutional guarantee of free exercise of religion” to Seventh-day Adventists in their “course of the regular operations of the Department.”

The Memorandum, signed by the Honorable DepED Secretary Jesli A Lapuz, further stipulates that, “Specifically, in the case of DepEd personnel belonging to the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, they should not be required in attending seminars, examinations, trainings and other personnel development activities held on Saturdays since that day is their Day of Rest or Church Day in accordance with their religious beliefs.” Further, it mandated a “wide dissemination of this memorandum” in order to gain strict adherence to it.

This official memorandum is a welcome development amid problems confronting Adventist teachers and DepEd personnel who were, many times, required to perform duties on Saturdays against their religious beliefs and convictions.

The issuance of this memorandum followed negotiations with the DepEd by the Aangat Tayo, a sectoral party-list which is represented in the Philippine Congress by Congresswoman Daryl Grace Abayon.

Upon knowing that this new memorandum has been released, the regional education directors and field superintendents of the Seventh-day Adventists in the Philippines expressed their heartfelt appreciation to the work done on their behalf by the sector representative in congress who is also their fellow church member. Also the teachers themselves were overwhelmed with joy by this news. “We’ve been praying that we teachers in the government educational enterprise will find freedom to exercise our religious convictions—and that time has come with the signing of this memorandum,” said the teachers in government service.

The memorandum can be accessed at www.deped.gov.ph and go to DepEd Memo No. 3. [AND Staff]