Learning about the religion and cultures of those who do not share the Catholic faith is And we know that students from less privileged backgrounds are more likely to attend college and to succeed if they attend a Catholic school. Our society as a whole benefits when our young people are formed within this framework of understanding. Given that freedom in education is an extension of freedom of conscience and freedom of religion more generally, it is important to note that the Catholic Church is not calling for privileges for Catholic parents and children. In many traditionally Catholic countries (though also in the UK) systems of Catholic education have become intertwined with the provision of free state education more generally. This means that parents can choose a Catholic education that is funded by government on the same basis as secular education. However, this freedom is not necessarily available to all parents. Furthermore, Catholic parents can be limited in their choice of schools to those the state wishes to authorise (with places and the building of new schools often being severely limited). The Catholic Church, in the authentic promotion of her teaching, does not wish to defend such arrangements as privileges. The Church believes that freedom in education should be available to all parents. It is a fundamental human right and should not merely be a special arrangement for Catholics in countries where Catholics are sufficiently numerous. The relationship between Catholic education and the state has taken a variety of forms in different countries and at different times in history. However, the "signs of the times" in which we need to think about the application of Catholic social teaching to public policy in education include as perhaps their most prominent feature a major decline in religious practice and a general indifference towards religion, especially in the upper echelons of Western political systems. At the same time, however, there has been a greater recognition in many countries that, for both practical reasons and reasons of principle, parents should have greater autonomy when choosing schools. Expanding opportunities to choose schools, however, have often been accompanied by more extensive regulation of schools. The principle of human dignity also has implications for education. Firstly, because education cannot be separated from the formation of the human person and the development of his vocation â whether secular or religious â restricting basic freedom in education is a restriction on freedom of conscience, the rights of parents and the freedom of religion more generally. Unduly restricting freedom in education and imposing the state's conception of education on all families would be to subordinate the person to society. In this respect, the right to religious freedom is paramount in the Church's social teaching. People should not be forced to act contrary to their religious convictions (Dignitatis humanae, no. I was certainly passionate about my area of study, history, and I thought I was suited to a life of study and scholarship and so I also wanted to pursue that. It was the foundation for what would become the largest network of educational institutions in the world — spanning the globe, and including Asia, Europe, and South America. A Jesuit University is also a mission of the Church, and should be a place that educates to the highest level for the purposes of engaging productively what the former Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Peter Hans Kolvenbach, called the “gritty realities” of social injustice, poverty, cultural misunderstanding, and fundamentalist intolerances of all kinds, both religious and secular.But giving our children a strong foundation needs to begin earlier than that, and this is where Catholic schools come in. Catholic schools are as inclusive as any other type of school. It is at this point that the primary importance of what we would call "virtue-oriented" formation becomes visible. As the joke goes, I guess didn’t do a bad enough job as chair of the history department — and so I was asked to become the Dean of Fordham College in 1998. They offer the pursuit of knowledge in an environment of faith, love and values. Anyone working in Catholic education will of course know that none of these things is easy. The kids, at least a lot of them, are not all right.We are not doing enough to bring the strands of our young people’s lives — their hearts and their heads — together in an integrated manner so they feel better about themselves and optimistic about the future.At Fairfield, we are very aware of this and have a number of programs in place where we address these issues. When Christ is the center of all we do, then we are enabled to redirect our focus of life towards an understanding of the world in which we live that is geared towards the promotion of human dignity and the common good. Young men and women graduating from Catholic schools and universities should have the keen understanding of being called as Christians to work for the common good and to do so through a life that is deeply rooted in Christ, combined with a vigorous desire to pursue the truth of things, to live through and with reality rather than merely being guided by constantly changing feelings and preferences. Catholic schools should let the educational endeavor be guided by a constant promotion of the virtues, especially the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. The Church states that promotion of human dignity does not just require freedom in education; it also implies that all have a right to education, as one of those things "necessary for leading a life truly human" (Gaudium et spes, no. (1) It is Sacramental To say that Catholic education is sacramental is to suggest that there is nothing that is only secular. In this way, Catholic schools instill students with morals, virtues, self-discipline, and knowledge, preparing them to succeed in further education, seek holiness, and live meaningful lives. What is really being proposed by secularist movements is that the pupil should replace whatever god he believes in with the secular god. Al Kelley, as President of Fairfield when he left in 2004, and I have been there ever since — 12 years! While stressing the importance of being inclusive of all learners, the introductory section of This Is Our Faith explains the distinctive purpose of religious education in the Catholic school. “The Catholic school’s proper function is to create for the school community a special atmosphere animated by the Gospel spirit of freedom and charity, to help youth grow according to the new creatures they were made through baptism as they develop their own personalities, and finally to order the whole of human culture to the news of salvation so that the knowledge the students … They are successful precisely because by their mission and foundation they are dedicated to human flourishing, and they hold as a promise in every dimension of their activities the conviction that each human life has a unique destiny in the eyes of God. We develop communities in our residence halls that encourage reflection and help to form real human bonds of affection and respect; we engage in difficult conversations in the classroom and in the dormitories about religious faith — and the places where faith and reason intersect. Catholic education recognizes the importance of the effects of the environment on a child. The Catholic School, # 80. I thank you for your support for Catholic schools.Thank you for listening! Certainly, it would be a religious order that would most likely allow me to pursue my intellectual interests as a historian. Notice the principal purpose of Catholic education is to form disciples — people who know Christ, follow Christ and make him known. Fairfield seemed like a very natural fit for me, having grown up on Long Island — which, incidentally, I can see from my office window at Fairfield, a strip of green and sand just across Long Island Sound.That’s my story. Jesus said, “Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Lk 18:16) Teaching about other religions is important for several reasons: 1. The Church regards the dignity of the human person as the foundation of all the other principles and content of the Church's social doctrine (Compendium of the Social Doctrine [CSD], no. This excerpt originally appeared as an Acton Commentary. It is reprinted here with permission of the Acton Institute. Christiaan Alting von Geusau, LL holds a law degree (LL.M.) Catholic School Week is an annual celebration of Catholic education in the United States. " However, arguably, more guidance has been given by the Church on this subject than on other controversial political matters. This is largely, of course, because of the relationship between evangelization, education and the formation of the whole human person and because of the vital role of the family â and especially the parents chosen by God â in both formation and education. It is at this point that the primary importance of what we would call "virtue-oriented" formation becomes visible. Catholic schools should let the educational endeavor be guided by a constant promotion of the virtues, especially the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. No matter how strong the faith of a person might be, without a certain degree of practice in the virtues, it will be hard not to be led exclusively by the emotions and impressions that constantly enter our minds. And in turn, it is through education — the formation and instruction and guidance we receive in our schooling — that we discover our potential, and are thereby enabled to engage with the world as agents of positive social change, serving our fellow men and women through our gifts.Now as a University President in a Catholic and Jesuit institution I am particularly aware of my duties and obligations to carry on this mission, and so I am also therefore aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the young men and women who enroll every year, and for whom I have responsibility.They are all wonderful — truly they are. 2): "Since all Christians have become by rebirth of water and the Holy Spirit a new creature so that they should be called and should be children of God, they have a right to a Christian education. In order for Christians to be able to effectively promote the true, the good and the beautiful, there is the vital need for coherence in word and deed. Pope Paul VI brought this strikingly to the point when he observed that "(M)odern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses" (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 1975). Young people are especially sensitive to this for they are shaped more by the concrete experiences in their lives, and thus the lived example of their teachers, than by the best of pedagogical techniques. Any form of Catholic education will ultimately fail when the student is confronted with the word being spoken not conforming to the life being lived. Catholic Education The story of how important your support is to families who yearn for Catholic Education, but cannot afford it, is a story rooted in the Gospel. But, while the Church institutionally must have the right to establish schools, the freedom to educate children ultimately belongs to parents: "Parents who have the primary and inalienable right and duty to educate their children must enjoy true liberty in their choice of schools" (GE, no. I went to public schools on Long Island, and got a great education, and then I went to Princeton — and it was in that traditionally Protestant institution that I found myself asking whether I had a vocation. Currently, Catholic schools are faced with the realization that the school’s sustainability, accessibility, and parental choice are being compromised. I want to say a little about that because I think it has something to tell us about the role and importance of Catholic schools today.Ignatius, as many of you might know, was born in 1491 to a noble family in what is now Spain. They are all curious, full-of-life, and in various ways eager to learn. 5). 133). 26). My subsequent formation as a Jesuit ran parallel to my path in higher education. Later, during the 2015 Papal visit, Pope Francis showed the world exactly how he feels about Catholic education when he visited Our Lady Queen of Angels Elementary School in East Harlem, New York. What we would want for all of our citizens is, frankly, the same experience of life that St. Ignatius had, and indeed, the same experience of life that I have been privileged to have — that there is a higher purpose to which we are called that is unique, that draws us into an ever richer appreciation of life, and deepens our capacity to love and to serve our fellow men and women. He came to understand through the course of his conversion and maturation that God was teaching him how to be his authentic self, that God was reaching down to him from above, “de arriba” at very specific moments in his life and personally forming and shaping him. We are deeply committed to supporting the proclamation of the Gospel through our primary and secondary Catholic Schools, Catholic higher education, campus ministry, certification for ecclesial ministry, and support of children and parents through advocacy and public policy in our Nation's Capital. Clearly too, the mission of Catholic schools creates a climate that has a positive impact on student achievement and wellbeing. How should Catholic social teaching approach the question of public policy in education? As in other areas of Catholic teaching on matters to do with political economy, there is no "correct" Catholic answer to the question, "To what extent should the state be involved with education? Obviously, more of their time is spent alone on the Internet, or socializing on Facebook and Twitter and so on.• In 2014, more than a quarter of college freshmen said that they did not identify with any specific religion — an all-time low.• According to a Higher Education Research Institute’s survey of 2009 college freshmen, almost 80 percent said being well-off financially was the reason they were attending college, the highest number of students responding in this manner since the poll began in 1966. Therefore, Religious Education in the Diocese of Cairns seeks to promote knowledge, deep understanding and skills about the Catholic and broader Christian tradition within the broader evangelising mission of the Church (Strategic Renewal Framework for Catholic Schooling, Archdiocese of Brisbane, 2012 – 2016). We know that academic achievement is higher. “Catholic education sees the quality of education as linked to the Christian vision of man and of the world, which it receives from the faith. Graduates of Catholic high schools are more likely to vote, than graduates of public schools.Catholic schools build community — they are communities. The first part will discuss the nature of the philosophy of catholic school education. Catholic schools are places of encounters with Christ through learning. I think I can say too that I had the feeling that I was being called to something more — I was being asked to give up something comfortable for something that would be a greater challenge, a bigger stretch, one that asked for sacrifices from me in the interests of a greater good. So I applied to join the Society during my senior year in college. All the early Jesuits needed to be educated and given religious direction so that they would be able to be of service. It emphasises the centrality of Jesus Christ in the Catholic school and invites schools to provide for children and young people “structured opportunities of encounter with Jesus”. If the teachers, administrators and families who are the foundation of our Catholic schools create a climate of hope, then all of their students will benefit regardless of whether they embrace religion knowingly and explicitly, or not. The Importance of Catholic Education Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic School. "Parents who have the primary and inalienable right and duty to educate their children must enjoy true liberty in their choice of schools.". Our young people don’t even have to share our faith in the structure and aspirations of a Catholic school to benefit from its impact! 8). I didn’t go to Catholic schools. 2) and to prevent a family from educating children in the faith would be to do just that. Loading ... Pope Francis: You cannot speak of Catholic education without speaking about humanity - … " Clearly, such a right would not be fulfilled if a secular education were provided free by the government and the less-well-off lacked the means to obtain a Christian education. It is not reduced to a specific time or to a particular activity: it is present in the entire educational mission of the school or university, in such a way that the student acquires a true synthesis of faith, culture and life,” he said. The result was a very painful period of convalescence. What is the role of our schools within the greater patterning of our society and its evolution, and do our schools provide our children with the foundation they need in order to thrive? If youâve appreciated, Christian Perspectives on the Financial Crash, Catholic Social Teaching and the Market Economy, CHRISTIAAN ALTING VON GEUSAU & PHILIP BOOTH. What he discovered was that the romantic and chivalric books and stories he once found so enticing no longer filled him with pleasure. By their witness and their behaviour teachers are of the first importance to impart a distinctive character to Catholic schools. Catholic education has always been at the heart of the Catholic mission. But throughout this own life and work he always asked himself what “more” could be done to “help souls,” as he would put it; what “more” could he do in service of the greater glory of God. Excerpted from Catholic Education in the West: Roots, Reality and Revival (2013) by Christiaan Alting von Geusau and Philip Booth, the latest volume in Acton's Christian Social Thought Series. One in ten said they felt depressed, the lowest overall emotional health score since the survey began.• Back in the 1980s, about half of high school seniors reported spending about 40 hours a week hanging out with friends. Catholic schools, therefore, aspire to graduate students who will know that every person is made in God’s image and likeness and has value and that their education can help them contribute to the good of the larger community, not just themselves. The Genesis creation stories make the point that everything If culturally — through our schools and churches and universities — we are not helping young people develop a sense of direction, experience themselves as whole and connected, and leave them eager to engage with the future, then we are putting the future of our society at risk. In order to bring these rights to fruition, the Church must have the space to pursue her mission by establishing schools to serve the faithful. The Church has the right "freely to establish and to conduct schools of every type and level," the Second Vatican Council stated, and "the exercise of a right of this kind contributes in the highest degree to the protection of freedom of conscience, the rights of parents, as well as to the betterment of culture itself (GE, no. Thus, the state exists to safeguard all human beings in the exercise of their rights and freedoms and to ensure that they can live in dignity. It does not exist to acquire for itself arbitrary rights over human persons and families. As we have seen, there is a role for the state in education. But this role, following on from the principle of subsidiarity, facilitates rather than displaces the initiative of the family. Catholic schools and parents share “in the central mission of the Church, which is to proclaim Jesus and His Gospel in the world today and, in so doing, hand on our faith to our children” (Bishop Frederick Henry, Diocese of Calgary - Education Liaison, Alberta Conference of Catholic Bishops). Sponsored by the National Catholic Educational Association, schools observe the week with Masses, open houses, and other activities for students, families, parishioners and community members. But I also think that we have to acknowledge that the cultural conditions at the moment mean that many of our young people come to University needing a great deal of assistance from us.Here are few thoughts to consider:• According to a recent major study by UCLA involving 227 colleges and universities, more than half of college students say they have experienced “overwhelming anxiety” in the past year. Rev. Then in 1547, the town leaders of Messina in Sicily asked Ignatius if he would found a school there to educate their young men — and St. Ignatius after some thought, agreed to found and staff a school.That is how Jesuit education began, over 450-years ago. What a pleasure and an honor it is to have been asked to speak with you all today on a subject for which we all share a great passion and commitment — the advancement of Catholic schools and education.My own journey through Catholic education has led me into higher education and to Fairfield University — a Jesuit University of about 4000 undergraduates and 1500 graduate students in Fairfield, Connecticut where I am privileged to serve as President. Jeffrey P. von Arx, S.J., President of Fairfield University, An address on the occasion of the Archbishop of Hartford’s St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast, March 17, 2016. I’m sure all of you are aware of what a remarkable job our Catholic schools are doing —despite facing difficult financial and cultural challenges. Christ as a model – The goal of a Catholic education is to help children mature into Christ-like people. The question I ask myself, to be blunt (and with a nod to The Who!) Pope Benedict fittingly calls it the duty of the educator to be led by 'intellectual charity' which is inspired by the recognition that leading the young to truth is an act of love. The relativistic mindset that reigns at most schools and universities, including many of those calling themselves Catholic, proclaiming that all truths are equal and the secular truth more equal than others, tells us that religion and education need to be separated because they have nothing to do with each other. What is really being proposed by secularist movements is that the pupil should replace whatever god he believes in with the secular god. Catholic educators however should be able to identify this ruse and know that the only proper way to educate is by providing a formation that centers on Christ alone. It is the only way to enable the student to beat out a coherent path of life by being guided by the one and only God who created heaven and earth. That was another moment of discernment for me. A Catholic education means giving a student the opportunity to learn about the Holy Scriptures. He did that rather well until 1521 when a cannon ball struck both of his legs at the battle of Pamplona. A remarkable 99 percent of students who go to Catholic high schools graduate, and of those, 86 percent go on to college. If the teachers, administrators and families who are the foundation of our Catholic schools create a climate of hope, then all of their students will benefit regardless of whether they embrace religion knowingly and explicitly, or not.Our Catholic schools and Universities therefore, are more important to the vitality and strength of our nation than they have ever been. 160). Because of the dignity of each human person from the moment of conception "the social order and its development must invariably work to the benefit of the human person, since the order of things is to be subordinate to the order of persons and not the other way round" (Gaudium et spes, no. This does imply that, if there is insufficient support from a family's own means or from charity or the Church to provide all children with a basic education, then government funds could be used for this purpose. However, we are warned that this should not be seen merely as a right to a secular education (Gravissimum Educationis [GE], no. The specific purpose of a Catholic education is the formation of boys and girls who will be good citizens of this world, loving God and neighbor and enriching society with the leaven of the gospel, and who will also be citizens of the world to come, thus fulfilling their destiny to become saints. It highlights the unique role of Catholic schools in providing exceptional instruction rooted in the Catholic faith. 26). "For this reason neither his life nor the development of his thought, nor his good, nor those who are part of his personal and social activities can be subject to unjust restrictions in the exercise of their rights and freedom" (CSD, no. I spent sixteen years on the faculty there including six years as chair of the department — and it was quite a diverse and complex department at Georgetown since history was a large component of Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service. “Developing a meaningful philosophy of life” which used to be the reason most students said they attended college, has dropped to its lowest reported level. Welcome to the Catholic Education website. © 1996-2019 Catholic Education Resource Center | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer | Sitemap, CERC is an entirely reader-supported web site and non-profit charity. 6). This freedom belongs to parents because of our God-given nature and the gift of free will that is given to us: Government, in consequence, must acknowledge the right of parents to make a genuinely free choice of schools and of other means of education, and the use of this freedom of choice is not to be made a reason for imposing unjust burdens on parents, whether directly or indirectly. Besides, the right of parents are violated, if their children are forced to attend lessons or instructions which are not in agreement with their religious beliefs, or if a single system of education, from which all religious formation is excluded, is imposed upon all (Dignitatis humanae, no. The religious formation of children begun at home is continued in Catholic school and college, its... 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