AN EMERGING APPROACH TO SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT THROUGH RELIGIOUS

EDUCATION IN MALTESE SCHOOLS

Adrian-Mario Gellel

Introduction

Spirituality is an underlying force of human existence, both at the communal level and at the

individual level. Due to its pervasive nature, there are many diverse ways in which spirituality is

experienced and expressed. So, while religion may be considered by many as the preferred way to

access and to express this fundamental dimension, it is undeniable that spirituality is also expressed

through a variety of human activities, including the arts, philosophy and even scientific enquiry.

Consequently, it is not surprising that spirituality is considered to be an essential component of a

holistic education. In this regard, the UNESCO’s Delors report (1996) established that the education

of the twentieth century should be based on four main pillars: to know, to do, to live with others,

and to be. On the latter point, the commission explicated that “education should contribute to every

person's complete development - mind and body, intelligence, sensitivity, aesthetic appreciation and

spirituality” (p.95). Similarly, in providing a general comment on the Convention on the Rights of

the Child, the United Nations Committee for the Right of the Child specified that

article 29 (1) insists upon a holistic approach to education which ensures that the

educational opportunities made available reflect an appropriate balance between

promoting the physical, mental, spiritual and emotional aspects of education, the

intellectual, social and practical dimensions, and the childhood and lifelong aspects. The

overall objective of education is to maximize the child's ability and opportunity to

participate fully and responsibly in a free society… (United Nations, 2001, note 12).

Indeed, spirituality has found its place in various curricula, including in the, then atheist,

Soviet Union where it was understood as instilling inspiration and promoting moral capacity,
courage, wisdom and social responsibility (Halstead, 1994). Social, political, historical and cultural

circumstances shape the way, and determine to what extent, schools deal with the spiritual

education of their students.

The Maltese way of dealing with the spiritual education of students is in this sense peculiar.

The pervasiveness of Catholicism in Maltese life, together with local politics, and, more recently,

secularization and globalization, are the main factors that have been shaping the spiritual education

of Maltese students.

The Maltese Context

Malta is the smallest Member state in the European Union. Its euro-centric identity was

constructed over the centuries by the dominating influences of the major Mediterranean and

European powers. Due to various historical circumstances, Catholicism has been an essential

contributor to the construction of Maltese identity, with the institutional Church playing an

important role in the political, communitarian and cultural life of the islands.

Catholic symbols are readily available in both spatial and temporal dimensions, both in public

and private spaces. Churches, niches, statues, and houses named after saints, are only a few of the

symbolic repertoire that are immediately evident to any local or foreign visitor. Social and family

life still follow the religious calendar and are thus full of religious events marked by Church,

community and/or family traditions. The public year is organized around three main moments, Lent

and Easter, the village festa, and Advent and Christmas, while the individual temporal dimension is

marked by celebrations of the sacraments as well as major rites of passage. Many parishes still

organize some seven public processions a year, usually accompanied by anywhere between thirty

and a thousand participants. Even on a national level, eight of the fourteen public holidays

commemorate religious festivities.

 Indeed, contrary to most European countries, one cannot argue that Malta is a secular society,

even though a sizable part of the population relate and operate through a secular mentality, and the

majority of the population experience reality in both secular and non-secular terms (Gellel &

Sultana, 2008). The European Union’s Social Values Survey demonstrated that, when compared to

their European counterparts, Maltese have the highest belief in God (95%), they have the lowest

non-believing group (2%), and the lowest group of believers in a life force or spirit (3%) (European

Commission, 2005). The European Values Survey has given similar results over the past thirty

years through. From the latest report it transpired that 96.1% of the Maltese population claim to be

Catholic and 90.3% feel that religion is important in their lives. The Maltese data contrasts with

data from the other EU countries. For instance, the importance Maltese attribute to God (72.6%) is

significantly higher than the EU average of 21.6%. Similarly, in contrast to the EU average,

Maltese are interested in spirituality (76.5% against 52.5%) and claim to be religious (72.9%

against 64.4%) (European Values Survey Foundation/Tilburg University, 2010). This European

‘anomaly’ can only be explained through an understanding that religion and spirituality are largely

shaped by context. This explanation is in agreement with the observations of a number of

geographers, social scientists and theologians who point to the reality of contextual difference

within the same regions and/or worldviews (see for instance Ivakhiv, 2006; Dangor, 2004).

Yet one should not be misled into thinking that the Maltese have been completely immune to

the secularisation process. The European Values Survey conducted over these past thirty years

reveals a noticeable decline in the religious practice of the Maltese population, with those

participating in religious celebrations at least once a week decreasing, from 92.3% in 1981 to 80.2%

in 2008. It also transpires that the Maltese have become less and less satisfied with the answers the

Church gives to issues related to moral problems, family and even spiritual needs (European Values

Survey Foundation/Tilburg University, 2010; European Values Study Group/World Values Survey

Association, 2006).
Religious and Spiritual upbringing of children

In a culture and society imbued with a Catholic worldview, it is not unreasonable to find that

spiritual nurture is normally understood to be part of religious upbringing. Following a traditional

Catholic understanding, religious upbringing in Malta is generally considered to be the

responsibility of the family, the parish community and the school. It is very normal for the nuclear

family to have frequent contacts with the extended family, especially with grandparents who

normally help in the child’s upbringing. Research conducted among 11-13 year olds revealed that a

high proportion of pre-teens (77.4%) spend some time during the week alone with their

grandparents (Barbara, 2010). It is thus plausible to assume that some form of intergenerational

learning occurs, including on a religious and spiritual level. The family is also sustained by the

wider community through its practices and activities directed towards children and the family in

general. Popular religiosity and, in particular, feasts, religious drama and processions during the

village festa, Christmas, Lent and Easter, expose children to rich religious symbolism and narrative,

while catechesis and Catholic associations, aim at the religious and social formation of the child.

Most children attend catechesis classes twice a week in the evening, at least for a year, before they

receive the sacraments of Eucharist and Confirmation at the ages of seven and eleven respectively.

Furthermore, it is also common practice for children and adolescents to be involved in Catholic

associations, such as Catholic Action or local youth groups. Two separate research projects

conducted among 11-13 and 13-16 year olds found that 37.8% and 48.3% respectively are members

of a Catholic association (Barbara, 2010; Xuereb, 2008).

By the end of 2008, the state provided for the education of 60.5% of compulsory school-aged

children, while church schools and independent schools provided for the education of 29.4% and

10.1% of school-aged children respectively (NSO, 2011). All schools have to follow the National
Minimum Curriculum and the syllabus published by the State authorities (Ministry of Education

1999). In all of these schools, children receive formal Religious Education and, in most

circumstances, schools also provide non-time-tabled spiritual/religious pastoral care as well as

religious/spiritual activities. Although the current National Minimum Curriculum makes reference

to the development of spiritual values, these are implicitly understood to be part of the Religious

Education component. A new National Curriculum Framework (Ministry for Education and

Employment, 2012) also speaks of the need to help students develop their potential as life long

learners in the areas of moral and spiritual development. However, spiritual development is only

mentioned under the Religious Education and Ethics learning area. The new curriculum also

proposes the introduction of an Ethics Education component as an alternative for those who

withdraw from the Catholic Religious Education Programme, although the National Curriculum

Framework remains silent on what this proposed programme will consist of (Ministry for Education

and Employment, 2012).

With the exception of just three independent schools which provide Muslim or Protestant

Religious Education, there are practically no differences between state, church and independent

schools in the adoption of the Catholic Religious Education (CRE) syllabus, or in the way these

lessons are inserted in the curriculum. Although parents have the constitutional right to withdraw

their children from these classes, less than 2% choose to do so (Malta, House of Representatives,

2009). In terms of the 1989 agreement between the Republic of Malta and the Holy See,1 CRE

lessons in state schools are given at least two and a half hours a week during the six years of

1
In 1989, the Holy See and the Republic of Malta recognised the contribution and place of Catholic faith in the life of

the Maltese community. Both parties also acknowledged the value of RE in the holistic formation of the individual.

On these basis of these observations the two states signed an international agreement to regulate Catholic Religious

Education in Maltese state schools.

primary and at least one and a half hours a week during the five years of secondary education

(Republic of Malta & Holy See, 1989).

Besides the formal CRE lessons, students are nurtured in Catholic spirituality through

religious extra curricular activities organised during the scholastic year. The number of such

activities varies between Primary and Secondary education and between church and state schools.

Furthermore, all state and church schools are required to provide the service of an ordained

Religious Counsellor who takes care of the religious and moral guidance of students (Republic of

Malta & Holy See, 1989).

The Spiritual Dimension in Children’s Education

While it may appear that spirituality is being adequately catered for in children’s upbringing

and education, in reality the spiritual nurture of children has been very much weakened over the

years by the profound changes that are occurring in Maltese society. In particular, the increasing

signs of an individualistic mentality, which started in the mid-nineties (Abela, 1994; Tabone, 1995;

Tonna, 1997), has weakened a sense of community that used to be so much stronger in Maltese

society.

In analysing the European Values Survey data of these past two decades, Abela (2006)

concluded that the Maltese seem to be experiencing a communitarian-individualistic divide. On the

one hand, there is an inherited national identity which is related to people’s attachment to Church

and religion and, on the other, a growing identity which is driven by the values of individualism and

secularism. In the Maltese context, individualism (and not just individuality) and secularism have

been spurred on by economic growth and the consequent change in the standard of living and

lifestyle (Gellel & Sultana, 2008). While secularity can, and should, promote spiritual nurture,

individualism weakens collective memory, relationships, and the ability to access and use the

symbolic repertoire available.

 Given this scenario, it seems imperative to find an acceptable working definition of

spirituality and thereafter what is meant by spiritual education. The developments that have been

occurring in Western society have made it possible to conceptualise a spirituality that is separate

from religion. For instance, in a study among religious ministers of the three monotheistic religions,

Hyman & Handal (2006) demonstrated that conceptually, religion may be identified with what is

objective and external, while spirituality may be understood to be subjective, internal and involving

a relationship with, or experience of, God. Zinnbauer et al. (1997) also confirm that the major

difference between spirituality and religion lies in the former being perceived as more personal and

the latter more objective. Yet, these researchers also found significant high correlation between

self-rated spirituality and religiosity, with 74% of respondents defining themselves as both religious

and spiritual. In another study, Hill et al. (2000) concluded that the two realities are intertwined, and

that it is counterproductive to have either narrow or broad definitions, or to provide polarised terms,

as this would oversimplify the constructs.

For the purpose of this chapter, it is acknowledged that spirituality may be experienced and

expressed in and through diverse ways, and that there are a number of characteristics which indicate

its presence and nature. It is also understood that spiritual development, which is not always a linear

reality, is composed of three major cores: connectedness and belonging, awareness, and the

development of a way of life. These core components are embedded and interact with other

dimensions of human life, and use world-view, cultural and family beliefs, meta-narratives and

traditions as interpretative frameworks (Roehlkepartain et al., 2008).

As van der Hoogen (2011) argues, lived spirituality is better understood within a contextual

framework. It is through narratives, rituals, beliefs and symbol systems that the inexpressible is

given form and can thus be accessed and experienced. This necessity of contextual frameworks

leads to rich interactions and diverse ways of experiencing and understanding similar realities. This

view implies that the spiritual dimension is considered to be a human fundamental shared by
believers and non believers alike. The way spirituality is being understood here is in line with social

constructivist theory: meaning is not something given but is continuously reconstructed and

reinterpreted by a community. Thus, spirituality, and the manner in which it is sensed and

experienced, is interpreted before, during and after the same experiences through a given worldview

and cultural context (Hense, 2011).

The Situation in Schools

When browsing through Maltese school textbooks published over the past two centuries, one

is impressed by the extent to which spiritual, moral and religious education were intertwined, and

how these dimensions passed through various scholastic subjects. Thus, for instance, an early

nineteenth century Maltese reading book includes an impressive array of biblical proverbs, ancient

Greek fables, Christian moral stories, and exhortations aimed at a holistic education of students as

witnessed by the words stated by the teacher in the textbook, Ejjeu ∩andi ulŷdi; jŷn n∩allymkom ỵl

byza∩ t’Alla (Come to me, my children, and I will teach you the fear of God) (Ktyb-yl-qari, 1831).

As one might expect, with the advance of secularisation, the prominence of religious language in

textbooks, other than religious ones, has diminished considerably. Nonetheless, the Maltese primary

school reading textbooks published during the 1970s, and then re-edited during the 1980s, still

included a number of texts that saw children’s spiritual, moral and religious education as a primary

objective, even if this was to a much lesser degree than the 19th century textbooks. Thus, eight year

olds in the first few days of their fourth year in primary school were exhorted to love God, the

environment and all people since

Kull m’hawn aħwa ġod-dinja, (All that exist in this world are brothers/sisters)

Ilkoll tfal tal-Bambin (All children of God/Baby Jesus) (Meylaq, 1981)

 Maltese society is changing and so is the way people construct and interact with reality. The

fragmentation of knowledge and a labour-market oriented education have led to utilitarian curricula

that leave little or no space for spiritual education. On the other hand, the Religious Education

curricula have practically remained the same for three decades: the current RE textbooks for

primary schools were published between 1982 and 1987, while those for secondary schools were

published between 1997 and 1999. When reviewing the textbooks for Primary level, it is evident

that they were written in a particular socio-cultural milieu when the Catholic meta-narrative was

well known, and religious socialisation occurred in the family and the wider community.

Furthermore, preference is given to religious knowledge, with affective and spiritual education

occurring only sporadically, or by inference, through moral stories, para-liturgical celebrations

and/or religious information. At secondary level, RE becomes more cognitively based and aims at

helping students evaluate the Christian message and Maltese culture in an objective and critical

manner, while constructing an answer to the existential dimension of life (Kummissjoni Kateketika

Nazzjonali, n.d). In both RE cycles much depends on the teacher’s methods, approach and ability to

help students transform arid cognitive content into personally meaningful resources.

Spiritual Education As a Main Component of Religious Education

A concrete attempt to promote spiritual education in the curriculum was recently made by the

Catholic Church. As already mentioned, the state recognises that the Church is responsible for the

development of the CRE curricula, syllabi and textbooks (Republic of Malta & Holy See, 1989). In

2006, the Secretariat for Catechesis, the Church entity responsible for the curriculum development

of CRE, asked me, in my capacity of area specialist at the University, to chair and co-ordinate a

committee with the intent of analysing the current situation of RE in Malta and to propose necessary

reforms in the religious education of students attending compulsory education. A draft Policy
Document open for public consultation was published in 2008 (Gellel et al., 2008). The Policy

Document sets a definition of CRE that tries to meet the current requirements of society, students

and their families. Given that, to date, there is no formal distinction between school-based RE and

parish-based catechesis, one of the major proposals was to clearly distinguish between the two. The

document argued that while

Catechesis aims at educating the faith of the person within a faith community, Religious

Education aims at helping the student to clarify the basic human religious and spiritual

questions and needs, and at equipping the student to live the transcendental dimension in the

context of the learning community. Whilst in the former, the individual is invited to build a

deeper relationship with God, in the latter the student acquires critical understanding and the

ability to use and develop religious and spiritual language (Gellel et al., 2008, 28).

The document insists on the principle that the target population, as well as the setting where

education takes place, determine the aims and the nuances of the content presented. RE is not

understood as religious learning but as a contribution towards meaning making. According to these

recommendations, CRE should provide an intellectual approach to the content and the various

expressions of the Christian faith, as well as provide students with the language and skills necessary

to access, comprehend, express and evaluate their religious, moral and spiritual dimensions. The

policy document recommends that CRE is understood as a service

towards the understanding and development of those tools that have sustained and contributed

to the development of different generations of Maltese individuals and communities.

Similarly, the Maltese Catholic Community is duty bound to help individual students access,

understand and take advantage of the wisdom that different generations of believers have put

together in the quest to live the good life and develop a healthy relationship with Self, Others,

Creation and God (Gellel et al., 2008, 29).

This way of conceptualising CRE has paved the way for a less doctrinally based approach to RE,

and to acknowledge and value spiritual education as an area that merits specific attention whilst still

being an integral part of RE. While arguing that spirituality and religion are inextricably tied to

each other, the document understands spirituality to be broader than the social and cultural

dynamics of religion, and to be about sustaining one’s life journey.

Unfortunately, at the time of writing this chapter, while having the approval of the Maltese

Catholic Bishops Conference, the draft Policy Paper has not yet been formally endorsed.

Nonetheless, the principles of the draft Policy influenced the new National Curriculum Framework

(NCF) (Ministry for Education and Employment, 2012). In defining Religious Education and Ethics

as one of the eight main Learning Areas of the curriculum, the framework makes explicit the need

that

learning in this area [Religious Education & Ethics] nurtures and enhances a sense of

spiritual self…The spiritual dimension of the self should be supported by promoting

values that include justice, personal responsibility, respect, reflection and active

engagement in moral issues. (Ministry for Education and Employment, 2012 p. 35).

Following the impetus of the draft policy paper on CRE, the National Curriculum Framework

(NCF) establishes that the new CRE curriculum should be developed over four learning strands,

namely

i. Religious Language

ii. Spiritual Dimension

iii. Beliefs, (which in the document are referred to as the Word of God), and

iv. the formation of a Personal Catholic Worldview.

 It is thus positive to note that the NCF formally recognises the importance of including

specific attention to the education of students’ spirituality. While the NCF does not go into further

detail about the learning outcomes and the contents within the four identified strands, the Diocesan

Office of Religious Education had already refined the scope and objectives of these strands. The

documents prepared by the Diocesan Office of RE, although still not published, posit that the four

strands should not be understood as being independent of each other. Indeed, each contributes to the

construction of the others. They are conceptualized in such a way as to provide a balance between

the cognitive, affective and spiritual dimensions of knowledge, thus empowering students and

facilitating transformative knowledge.

In a more recent unpublished document the ‘Spiritual Dimension’ strand is understood to

comprise three main areas, namely

i. educating the sense of beauty and wonder, of emotions and of attitudes,

ii. enabling students to formulate, express, and possibly answer, fundamental existential

questions, and

iii. educating connectedness with oneself, others, all creation and God (Office of

Religious Education (2010).

Moreover, the Office of Religious Education understands that the ‘Spiritual Dimension’ strand is

further sustained through the narratives, beliefs, rituals and attitudes developed in the ‘Beliefs’ and

the ‘Personal Catholic Worldviews’ strands.

The ‘Beliefs’ strand should provide a concrete language for accessing and expressing the

spiritual by presenting the beliefs of the Catholic community through the life experiences of

individuals and communities of the Old and the New Testament period, and of various Christians in

different cultures throughout the ages.

 At the same time, the ‘Personal Catholic Worldview’ strand should foster the development of

virtues and values, as well as higher order thinking skills that enable students to evaluate and

synthesize what they would have learnt, and to critically apply this to their own lives.

The Religious Language strand should provide the necessary background to help students read

and interpret symbols and religious language, as well as help them acquire information and

encourage them to be challenged by other religions.

From theory to action

Although the CRE policy document presented for discussion in 2008 has still not been

formally endorsed, the Bishops formally approved the Syllabus for Form 1 students (Office of

Religious Education, 2010). The document which follows the guidelines and principles of the CRE

policy document was then used to design and prepare the current RE textbook for Form 1 students

(Polidano et al., 2011). The preparatory syllabus document reiterated that, through RE, students

should be able to “connect to, respond to, and express their spiritual dimension by expressing

awe, value and be committed to beauty, formulate and express fundamental questions and

connect/relate through Jesus Christ, with oneself, others, creation and God” (Office of Religious

Education, 2010, 15). The document also claimed that at least a quarter of the learning outcomes in

the Form 1 syllabus aim at facilitating students’ spiritual education. It is also positive to note that

the whole theme of the Form 1 syllabus centres on spiritual imagery. During their first year in

secondary education, students are invited to consider their life as an adventurous journey. Through

this journey they are encouraged to relate their own personal experiences with the

experiences/adventures of biblical persons and communities as well as individuals who have

experienced joys and faced challenges throughout the past two millennia. Focusing on the personal

life of the student, the syllabus encourages students, among others, to

i. reflect on, acknowledge and celebrate their uniqueness;

 ii. be open to change;

iii. foster a sense of connectedness with others and to be socially responsible;

iv. become aware of God’s active presence in their lives and develop a personal

relationship;

v. deal with existential issues (in particular, beauty, suffering and death) and draw from

the experiences of others and face life challenges; and

vi. become able to make life choices upon evaluating consequences.

The fact that these objectives are made concrete through a Catholic worldview is not a

contradiction or a limitation for the spiritual education of students, especially given that the content

and methods of the syllabus are shaped by an invitation to approach the Catholic faith with an open

mind. Indeed, the content and method of the textbook insist that there is no one way of being

Catholic, and that one may be authentic to oneself and to the message in a variety of cultures and

life situations. The invitation to reflect on one’s life issues, and to correlate them with the same

issues that other believers faced in a variety of contexts, encourages students to develop their own

language and way of life.

Concluding Reflections

In the current changing Maltese context, characterised by tension between an inherited

Catholic tradition and global secularisation, the need to equip students with tools that help them

access and express what makes them intrinsically human is urgent. There have been some notable

developments in these past few years and the very fact that the spiritual dimension has been

identified as an area that merits educational attention is positive. Yet the pace of reforms in the area

is slow, and the direction still not clear. Much has already been achieved, but considerable work is

still needed to ensure that students’ entitlement to a truly holistic education, which includes their

spiritual growth, is met. Currently the only subject that gives attention to this dimension is RE, it is
hoped that in the near future the whole of the curriculum promotes student spiritual education

through the different subjects.

References

Abela, A.M. (2006). Shaping a National Identity. International Journal of Sociology, 35(4), 10-27.

Abela, A.M. (1994). Shifting Family Values in Malta: A Western European Perspective. Floriana:

DISCERN.

Barbara, D. (2010). The religious Culture of pre-teens. Unpublihsed dissertation. Malta: University

of Malta.

Dangor, S. (2004). The many voices of Islam. Religion & Theology 11(3/4), 331-342.

Delors, J. et al. (1996). Learning: The Treasure Within – Report to UNESCO of The International

Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century. Paris: UNESCO Publishing.

European Commission. (2005). Social Values, Science and Technology. Eurobarometer 225/Wave

63.1. Brussels: European Commission. Retrieved May 15, 2012 from the European

Commission Web site:

http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf

European Values Survey Foundation/Tilburg University. (2010). European Values Study 2008, 4th

wave, Integrated Dataset. GESIS Cologne, Germany, ZA4800 Dataset Version 1.0.0 (2010-

06-30).

Gellel, A. & Sultana, M. (2008). Leaping from Non Secular to Post Secular. A Study of the Maltese

Scenario. In H.G, Ziebertz & U. Riegle (Eds), Europe as a postsecular Society:

Reflections on Religion and Societal Cohesion (pp. 111-126). Berlin: Lit Verlag.

Gellel, A., Chircop, L., Debono Curmi, M., Deguara, G., Gatt, S., Magro, E….Sultana C.M. (2008).

Religious Education in Malta: Reflections by the Catholic Community. Malta:

Archdiocese of Malta, Secretariat for Catechesis.

Halstead, J. M. (1994). Moral and Spiritual Education in Russia. Cambridge Journal of Education,

24(3), 423-439.

Hense, E. (2011). The Quest for interdisciplinary theories on spirituality. In E. Hense and F. Mass

(Eds.), Towards a theory of spirituality (pp. 5-14). Leuven: Peters.

Hill, P.C., Pargament, K., Hood, R.W., McCullough, M.E., Swyers, J.P., Larson, D.B., & Zinnbauer

B.J. (2000). Conceptualizing Religion and Spirituality: Points of Commonality, Points of

Departur. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 30(1), 51-77.

Hyman C. & Handal P.J. (2006). Definitions and Evaluation of Religion and Spirituality Items by

Religious Professionals: A Pilot Study. Journal of Religion and Health, 45(2), 264-282.

(1831). Ktyb-yl-Qari, ∩at-Tfal. Malta.

Ivakhiv, A. (2006). Towards a Geography of “Religion”: Mapping the Distribution of an Unstable

Signifier, Annals of the Association of American Geographers 96(1), 169–175.

Kummissjoni Kateketika Nazzjonali. (n.d.). Sillabu tar-Reliġjon għall-Klassijiet I, II, III - Prinċpji

gwida. Malta: Author.

Malta, House of Representatives. (2009). Tfal eżentati mit-tagħlim tar-reliġjon: Parliamentary

Question 11995. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from Maltese parliament Web site:

http://www.pq.gov.mt/PQweb.nsf/10491c99ee75af51c12568730034d5ee/c1256e7b003e1c2dc

1257669004e4bea?OpenDocument.

Mejlaq, M. (1981). Inħobbu ’l Alla. In V. Fenech, L. Scerri, J.L. Camilleri, P. Mifsud eds. Id-

Denfil, Ir-Raba’ Ktieb, 2nd ed., (p. 6). Malta: Dipartiment tal-Edukazzjoni.

Ministry of Education and Employment. (2012). A Curriculum Framework for All. Malta: Author.

NSO. (2011). Education Statistics 2006/2007, 2007/2008. Malta: Author.

Polidano, D., Gerada, V., Gellel, A.M., Micallef, S. & Gatt, K. (2011). L-Avventura ta’ Ħajti. Ktieb

tar-Reliġjon għall-ewwel sena tal-iskola sekondarja. Malta: Segretarjat għall-Katekeżi.

Office of Religious Education. (2010). Sillabu tal-Ewwel Sena (Sekondarja): L-Avventura ta’ Ħajti.

Malta: Office of Religious Education, Secretariat for Catechesis unpublished document.

Republic of Malta and Holy See. (1998). Accordo tra la Repubblica di Malta e la Santa Sede per

meglio ordinare l’istruzione e l’educazione Religiosa Cattolica nelle Scuole statali (1989).

Acta Apostolicae Sedis 90(1), 30-41.

Roehlkepartain, E.C., Benson, P.L., Scales, P.C., Kimball, L. and Ebstyne King, P. (2008). With

Their Own Voices: A Global Exploration of How Today’sYoung People Experience and

Think About Spiritual Development. Minneapolis: Search Institute. Retrieved March, 22,

2010 from Search Institute Web site: http://www.search-

institute.org/system/files/with_their_own_voices_report.pdf

Tabone, C. (1995). Maltese Families in Transition. Malta: Ministry for Social Development.

Tonna, B. (1997). The Sign of the Here & Now Criterion. DISCERN: Malta.

United Nations. (2001). Convention on the Rights of the Child. Appendix General Comment 1

(2001): The Aims of Education. Retrieved May, 10, 2012 fro, UNHCHR Web site:

http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/(symbol)/CRC.GC.2001.1.En?OpenDocument

Van der Hoogen, T. (2011). Elements of theory about 'Lived Spirituality'. In E. Hense and F. Mass,

(Eds.), Towards a theory of spirituality (pp. 15-27). Leuven: Peters.

Xuereb, D. (2008). Emerging Trends amongst Maltese adolescents: A qualitative Study into

Taylor’s Culture of Authenticity. Unpublished dissertation. Malta: University of Malta.

Zinnbauer, B.J., Pargament, K.I, Cole, B.C., Rye, M.S., Butter, E.M., Belavich, T.G.,… Kadar, J.L.

(1997). Religion and spirituality: Unfuzzying the fuzzy. Journal for the Scientific Study of

Religion, 36(4), 549-564.