The release of new religious instruction textbooks in Greece has sparked outrage, with certain sectors of the community claiming the content endangers faith in Orthodox Christianity.

In response, some 2,000 people took to the streets of Athens in protest, marching to the Greek parliament on Sunday to deliver a petition to the parliament.

Rather than focusing on Orthodoxy, Greece’s official religion, the textbooks are said to have more space devoted to other Christian denominations and other religions – a contrast to past religious textbooks, which usually only gave a short, and generally negative, overview of other faiths, reports The Washington Post.

A peaceful protest, attendees let their banners do all the talking, with slogans denouncing the authors of the book, dubbing them traitors of Greece.

Among those protesting were a number of Greek Orthodox priests and bishops.

Greek Orthodox priests take part in a rally against the use of the new school books for religious studies, in central Athens, Greece. Photo: AAP via EPA/YANNIS KOLESIDIS