Faith erected (Canada, Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly)

In Quebec , the Catholic Church played a central role in education until the 1960s. It ran denominational schools , established curricula , and trained teachers. It was not until 1964 , with the creation of the Quebec Ministry of Education , that the secularization of the school system began, driven by the Quiet Revolution.

In this photo, two symbols intersect : the church of Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly , built in 1788 in a neoclassical style with three identical bell towers —a rare configuration in Quebec—and a yellow school bus , the universal image of the modern public school. One represents the ancient spiritual power , the other the educational Republic .

Together, they embody a historic turning point: the transition from a religious and hierarchical education system to a public, accessible and secular system. A profound change, still visible today in the tensions between religious heritage and modern educational values .