by Joseph Quinn
LONDON; Wednesday APLEA to end the clash between state educa
tion and parental freedom of choice opened the World Union of Catholic Teachers' fifth international conference, when 250 delegates from 40 nations met yesterday in London University's Institute of Education.
The plea came from the Union's general secretary, Dr. Lorenzo Giorcelli. A solution to "the apparent opposition between centralised, stateplanned education and the freedom of choice," he said, "is essential to the continuance of democracy."
The conference theme is the cooperation necessary between parents and teachers if we are to move forward with current trends in centralised education at national and international levels, while safeguarding the rights of parents over their children's upbringing.
HOLY SEE
The Holy See was represented at the conference by Mr. Richard Cunningham, Secretary of the Catholic Education Council of England and Wales. Representatives also came from the Ministry of Education, the London County Council, UNESCO, the International Labour Organisation, and other educational bodies.
Last night, at Lancaster House, Sir Edward Boyle. Minister of Education, gave an informal reception for the delegates, At the inaugural session, Bishop Beck of Salford presented the insignia of the Knighthood of St. Gregory to Dr. Albert Van den Berghe, the Union's President. The Bishop read a message from Pope Paul VI, in which the Pontiff welcomed the choice of theme for the conference.
Pope Paul urged that the delegates should be guided "by the Church's teaching, e as set out clearly in the encyclicals and pronouncements of our venerated predecessors, regarding the prior natural rights of the family in the
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