text: A sore subject indeed. Growing up in Newfoundland in the 40s and 50s, all schools were perochrial i.e., connected and funded by their church and community efforts. I personally attended high school with the son of a Chinese Resterauntier who by the way, was not Catholic.  Religeon class was taught from 11:45 AM to 12:30 PM. My fellow student mentioned above was simply excused from that last morning class thus gaining an extra 45 minutes to go home for lunch or, as we called it then, Dinner. We all went home for the noon meal as there was no such thing as school lunch rooms back in "the day".  The mission of these schools, Catholic, Methodist, Episcopalians etc., was to educate the students for adult life not to become the Whiners of todays youth and their parents. By the way, the articles of confederation when Newfoundland voted to become the tenth province of Canada, 1949, stated that the school system would remain as is. Not so, Check it out.