If you’re a dedicated Scripture or Special Religious Instruction teacher, or a parent who sends their child to a religious education class at school, here’s your chance to have your say.

Each fortnight, Open Drum, a collaboration of The Drum and ABC Open nominate a topic for discussion. The aim is to give a voice to everyday Australians through photo, video and written submissions. This week, they’re asking Australians to share experiences of religious education in primary schools.

“Are you a scripture teacher or the parent of a child attending these classes? What impact does this have on young minds and their evolving worldview? Is the teaching of Ethics or Comparative Religions a better option?” asks the project on Open Drum.

All contributions that meet the Open Drum standards will be published on the website. But, as a topic that has historically attracted more rants than many others on social media, organisers have warned rants won’t be accepted here. Preferred instead is “considered opinion based on lived experience – not invective.”

Submissions are being published every few hours, with several pieces already written by ethics teachers about their own experiences. Eternity would love to encourage scripture and special religious education teachers around the country to contribute their own stories.

Submissions for the ‘God in Schools’ topic end at midday Monday, Marcy 9. The best submissions will be considered for publication on The Drum.

ABC also wants your stories of faith

The ABC is also calling for portraits of everyday Australians that tell a story about their beliefs.

Portraits: I Am A Believer is a project run by ABC Open, an initiative seeking to collate videos, photos and written stories from regional Australians.

Other projects currently running include Mother Tongue, an opportunity to share stories of Australia’s first languages and Snapped: Water, inviting photography contributions that show the importance of water to life.

“Australia is a country where all religions are practiced freely,” reads the description of the I Am A Believer project on the ABC Open website. “What is it that makes someone believe and go on to make that belief part of their everyday life?”

The I Am A Believer project has just begun, with 16 submissions so far. Published submissions so far include stories of an Eckankar believer (a religion of the “light and sound of God”), a Jehovah’s Witness, an atheist, a Muslim, two Buddhists, a Greek Orthodox priest and a Hindu priest.

Also amongst them are the stories of Christian believers including the story of Ruth, a chaplain and active member of the Anglican Church in the tiny town of Carmila in Queensland (population 430). Ruth’s story has been shared by Laurie Anne King, a psychic medium also from Queensland, who sat down with Ruth to hear her faith story.

“I asked her what sustains her cherished belief in God. Her answer touched me profoundly,” writes King. You can read Ruth’s full story here.

Stories of the faith of Christian Ford, a priest at St Matthew’s Anglican Church in Townsville and “Gail” from St Monica’s Cathedral in Cairns have also been shared. But ABC Open wants more.

Do you have a faith story you’d like to share? Or know someone with a powerful story of Christian faith? Check out the ABC Open website to find out how to submit a story.