On Thursday, May 7, the Polish Prime Minister visited Leo XIV. On that occasion, he falsely presented himself as a politician open to dialogue with the Church and receptive to the requests of Catholics. However, reality contradicts these statements: the coalition government headed by Tusk is the most anticlerical in Poland since the democratic shift of 1989. Tusk himself referred to the Poland governed by the previous executive—which defended the life of the fetus—as “women’s hell,” and famously asserted that one should not kneel before priests. Meanwhile, his closest collaborator urged for Catholics to be “sawn off.”

This anti-Catholic character of the government is particularly visible in the activities of the Ministry of National Education, led by Barbara Nowacka. A radical politician who identifies as an atheist, she defends the “right” to abortion, state funding for IVF, and the adoption of children by same-sex couples. She rose to prominence after participating in the organization of the so-called “black protests” against anti-abortion bills.

Currently, the Minister seeks to:

• Eliminate all patriotic content from school curricula.

• Eliminate or marginalize the hour of religious education.

• Impose a new subject called “health education,” which in practice is sex education oriented toward early sexualization and the promotion of gender ideology.

Nowacka rejects any honest dialogue with the Church, ignoring that this matter affects the Concordat between Poland and the Holy See. She also disregards the voices of parents and religion teachers. Despite Tusk’s reassuring words, these problems were discussed at the Vatican, as indicated by the Press Office communiqué which mentioned the “links between the local Church and the State, especially in the field of education and ethical issues.”

Schools in the Crosshairs of Secularists

Historically, totalitarian states (such as those in the French Revolution, Bolshevism, or Nazi Germany) have used schools to ideologically “mold” the youth. Today, certain liberal-progressive forces in Europe want to use education for a project of social engineering.

Roger Scruton distinguished between the culture of integration (freedom within a moral order) and the culture of emancipation (a break with tradition, religion, and human nature itself). The Polish reforms (2024–2026) fall into the latter category. In the Polish tradition, religion was not a mere “accessory,” but a channel for transmitting Christian civilization. What is presented today as “state neutrality” is, in reality, forced secularization.

Nowacka’s Revolution

In addition to reducing religious and ethics classes from two hours to one per week, the Minister has mandated that these classes be taught only during the first or last hour of the school day. Furthermore, grades for religious education will no longer count toward the school average.

Other changes include:

• Abolition of homework: Presented as a measure for children’s “well-being,” but it removes tools that teach responsibility and maturity.

• Renunciation of education: The school limits itself to teaching technical knowledge but stops assisting in integral growth, producing individuals more susceptible to manipulation.

• Cuts to history and literature: By reducing this content, the nation ceases to be a “community of memory” and becomes a group of individuals without the criteria to identify propaganda.

• Mandatory sex education: Under the name of “health education,” it seeks to deny parents their right as primary educators, becoming an instrument of cultural revolution.

The Catechists’ Cry for Help

The reform affects approximately 30,000 religion teachers who are at risk of dismissal. In response, the Association of Lay Catechists has written to Leo XIV to denounce the situation. In their letter, they point out that:

1. The right to religious education and freedom of worship is being limited.

2. The measures are illegal, as there was no agreement with religious institutions as required by Polish law.

3. The Constitutional Tribunal has confirmed the illegitimacy of the Ministry’s actions in three rulings, citing violations of domestic law and the Concordat.

The catechists have launched the “YES to religion and ethics in school” citizens’ legislative initiative, which already has over half a million signatures. Although the project passed the first phase in Parliament, it is currently suffering from government obstructionism.

In their missive, they request the Holy Father’s decisive support and prayers to defend the right of young people to religious education. The letter was sent on May 4, in the hope that the Pope would be informed of the real situation before receiving Tusk at the Vatican.