Development of christian ethics of children in the Ukrainian preschool at the beginning of the XX century

Abstract

Formation of the spiritual world of the child is an important problem of today. One of the factors which drive this complex process is Christian ethics. The task of modern education is to restore Christian ideals, moral and ethical foundations, and adapt them to contemporary reality and to those current challenges of pedagogical education. The principle of Christian humanism, in the light of which the child itself has the greatest value, is the main principle of Christian education, which in turn is the pedagogy of love to the child.
The article analyzes the development of Christian ethics of children in the Ukrainian preschool of Galicia in the early XX century. The contribution of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, priest and teacher Yulian Dzerovych, women’s monastic congregations, educational and public figures in the process of education and upbringing of children, their physical and moral development, spiritual formation, development of patriotic aspirations, is disclosed. The activity of Ukrainian public organizations in this field is outlined. The organizational structure of the Ukrainian public preschool is characterized. The authors argue for a close connection between national and Christian (religious) education in the Ukrainian preschool. The child received basics of religious and ethical education from the mother in early childhood (teaching prayers for children, first explanation of Christ and the saints, teaching behavior in the church, etc.); then it was expanded and deepened by a tutor who was to teach prayers, carols, and to preach about the mercy and good that the Lord professed. Through the prism of their experiences and feelings, the children learned the basics of Christian truth.