What Would A Justice Kavanaugh Mean for Catholic Education?

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The nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court Justice has ignited storms of protests from the left, mostly centered around the issue of abortion. But another issue promises to be the focus of some harsh questioning in the near future — Catholic schools.

I’ve long believed that the fate of this country is tied to the strength of our faithful Catholic schools. For one to survive, the other must thrive. And let’s be honest, many many Catholic schools are currently operating on a sub-thrive basis. Why? There are many reasons including a cultural shift that not only inspires apathy about the faith but anger and ridicule. Another has been the mass exodus of nuns from Catholic schools, which forced the schools to allocate significant funds toward paying teachers which led to huge increases in tuition, thus pricing them out of many well-intentioned people’s lives. This has been a calamity for Catholic education and this country. But one of the remedies to this situation that would help families afford a Catholic education has been essentially barred by the odious anti-Catholic Blaine Amendments that exist throughout our country, preventing voucher plans from taking effect.

Here’s a very brief history: In the mid 19th century, anti-Catholic bigotry escalated in reaction to a wave of Catholic immigrants coming to America and establishing Catholic schools which requested public funding. At the time, the public school system was largely seen as protestant strongholds where children recited prayers and read the Bible. In reaction to the Catholic immigrants, many in the country became aligned with the Know Nothing movement which made one of its top priorities barring Catholic schools from receiving public funding. In 1875, President Ulysses S. Grant urged Congress to adopt a constitutional amendment to prohibit public funding of what they called “sectarian schools.” To be clear, they were talking about Catholic schools. Blaine, then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, complied vigorously with President Grant’s request by introducing an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to do just that. Thankfully, his efforts fell just short in the Senate.

But the ball was rolling downhill and it only picked up speed. Supporters of the Blaine Amendment went local, promoting their anti-Catholic agenda in state legislatures to great effect. As of right now, something akin to Blaine Amendments exist in over three dozen state constitutions which bar public aid to religious organizations, including Catholic schools.

Blaine himself rode a tide of popularity to win a Senate seat and even was the Republican nominee for the presidency where he lost one of the narrowest elections our country has seen (mainly because he alienated Catholics). But his impact continues with the amendments still acting as barriers against vouchers for education. Those who most loudly support the Blaine Amendments no longer are affiliated with the Know Nothing movement and they don’t typically concern themselves with conspiracies of the papacy staging a coup on the country. Nowadays, supporters of the Blaine Amendments express concerns about the separation of church and state as well as those who fear that vouchers would harm public schools as many parents would inevitably opt out of public schools if given the chance. Mind you, there is also a not insignificant number of anti-Christian secularists and atheists who would simply like to see religious schools starved out of existence.

But after years of court battles, there is currently a great deal of pushback concerning the constitutionality of the Blaine Amendments and the issue could end up being decided by the courts in the near future. They argue that it is the proper role of government to be neutral on religion, not discriminating against it precisely because of its religious mission.

In fact, the Supreme Court in a 7-2 decision, ruled last year that Trinity Lutheran, a church in Missouri, could receive state funding to pave its playground with recycled tires even after the state said they weren’t able to because of their state’s constitution.

While the victory was cheered by religious liberty advocates, it was ridiculously narrower than many wanted. The high court did say that “denying a generally available benefit solely on account of religious identity imposes a penalty on the free exercise of religion” but expressly added that the case was about “express discrimination based on religious identity with respect to playground resurfacing.” Thank goodness our long national nightmare over the constitutionality of the resurfacing of Christian playgrounds is finally over!Supporters of school vouchers had hoped at the time that the Supreme Court was ready to put an end to Blaine Amendments. But they didn’t take on the wider issue at all. They punted. Some believe it’s because the conservative judges on the court didn’t think they had enough votes to go ahead on the wider issue.

Enter Judge Kavanaugh.

President Donald Trump’s nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, is a product of Catholic schools who has spoken out on this very issue in favor of religious schools. In fact, before becoming a federal judge, Kavanaugh had served for a time as the co-chair of the School Choice Practice Group of the Federalist Society.

At the American Enterprise Institute in December of last year, Kavanaugh reportedly complimented Chief Justice William Rehnquist’s efforts to ensure that “religious schools and religious institutions could participate as equals in society and in state benefits programs.” He also correctly praised Rehnquist’s criticism of the modern understanding of the separation between church and state as “based on bad history.”

Vouchers have the potential to change the fate of religious schools throughout the country at a time when many are struggling financially. They can help parents whose children are trapped in underperforming schools find a way out. And finally, with Justice Kavanaugh on the bench, this country may finally cut its ties to this awful legacy of anti-Catholic bigotry.

Matt Archbold is a fellow of the Cardinal Newman Society. This article was cross-posted at The National Catholic Register.

Homeschooling as a Means to Rebuilding Catholic Culture

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The following was originally given as a talk to the Calgary Catholic Homeschooling group.

My wife and I have been teaching our kids at home for about eight years. I recall vividly when the idea of educating at home turned into a conviction. We were back in Saskatchewan, newly married, newly graduated, and preparing for graduate study in England. It was June and the days were long. My wife had recently completed her education degree and we were dreaming about how we would form our own future children. A small group of us met at a friend’s place at the edge of the city. We read together C.S. Lewis’ Abolition of Man.

On that June evening, it is not as though this was the first time we had given thought to how we would raise our children. Other people and books had formed our thinking. There was Hilda Neatby, the Canadian and Presbyterian version of Alan Bloom. Her books date from the 1950s, when John Dewey’s influence was at its height, and anticipate themes later sensationalized in The Closing of the American Mind. Dorothy Sayer’s famous essay, “The Lost Tools of Learning,” thrilled, as did Plato’s Republic, as did the books by Charlotte Mason that Anna and I read out loud together. Probably we were simply dry tinder; any number of books could’ve ignited our imaginations, but it was Lewis who threw down the first match.

I do not think every family should “homeschool”. I am grateful, I would like to add, for the seeds of faith that were planted in my young heart in the two Catholic schools I attended during my elementary years in Saskatchewan. The Church defends vigorously the natural right of parents to educate their children, and I am convinced that this may be done well among a wide variety of models. And yet, eight years into the project and our family has found homeschooling to be a beautiful means to form our children in a Catholic culture.

What makes for a Catholic culture? To build a healthy culture requires many ingredients. We need enchanting liturgies, noble art, a functioning intelligentsia, evangelical clergy, and just laws. But from the point of view of the Church, even more than these we need something more basic. From Leo XIII on, modern popes have insisted with ever-growing vigor that the health of the Church, like the health of civil society, depends upon that kingdom that is older than the Pharaohs, tougher than the nation state, more universal than the United Nations, more reliable than welfare stamps, more loving than anti-bullying clubs, and which is reborn each time a man and a woman proclaim those rash and romantic words: I do.

Those two words are our best defense against barbarism. Any culture that hopes to perpetuate itself must learn to transmit its treasure to its young. Over the last 50 years homeschooling has already proven itself a credible alternative to public and private schools; over the next 50 I predict that homeschooling will serve as a catalyst for rebuilding Catholic culture.

For the remainder, I’d like to show how the homeschooling family, as an expression of the domestic church, is uniquely situated to advance the project of Catholic culture. Just as the Catholic Church has four marks – one, holy, catholic, apostolic – so also can a Christian homeschooling family live out its educational mission by participating in these four qualities.

Just as the members of the Church are one through a common baptism and profession of faith, so also is the domestic church made one through the love of one man and one woman. A homeschooling family helps build Catholic culture by building up this unity within the family.

A couple of years ago some close friends of ours decided that they too would try the grand experiment. As you know, it is not for the faint of heart. How will I keep the kids busy? Will I know enough chemistry? What will our relatives say? And, by the way, can a homeschooled kid get into college? These questions and a dozen like them jump into the minds of parents considering the big move.

Well, for these friends of ours, what pushed them to get wet was a night at their church’s youth group. It was something of a family night. The church gym was filled with kids and parents all bustling around. One of the families present was homeschooling. My friend couldn’t take his eyes off of them. He watched how their children played with each other as friends; yes, friends who were used to spending all day together. He saw the parents speak to their kids; eye met eye; it was different from how he spoke to his. What hit him above all else was the manifest unity in this home. And he wanted it for his family too. “I wanted ours to be unified like that,” he told me; and so they jumped. That was about five years ago. And today that family, for me at least, provides a model for how a household can work together, on their property, in earning a common wage, and in educating kids.

Not everyone wants the family to be unified in this way. In fact, the farther governments slide toward totalitarianism, the less they will tolerate strong families. The logic is not difficult to follow. The more the state sees itself as the only legitimate political actor, the more that the state sees its aim as the imposition of, say, universal equality, even an equality of unbridled freedom, the more it has to target quasi-political associations. As the Marxist theory goes: as family recedes, as parents get out of the way, equality will finally advance.

The second quality of the Church is its holiness. In the biblical mind to be holy is to be set apart for some work. What is the distinctive work of the family? Obviously, it is bringing forth children. Monks and nuns can’t do that. Here again I think the homeschooling family is particularly suited to building up Catholic culture. A homeschooling family helps strengthen Catholic culture by building up an island of holiness within their parish.

Pope Benedict XVI often reflected on this theme. During his pontificate he constantly returned to the crisis of faith through which the West is suffering and proposed models for its recovery of faith. Even his papal name preached a sermon on this theme. Benedict predicted, to the consternation of some, that we would shrink before we could grow. Too many of the habits of piety had been lost, too many of the principles of free thought had been forgotten, too many of our institutions compromised for Christians to hope for a linear recovery. No, the Church in the West would have to take the longer road of suffering and purgation.

Some criticized Benedict for being overly negative. Some have said that his counsel has been one of despair, or charged that he is asking Christians to hide away in ghettos. It seems to me, rather, that he was simply expressing a basic truth: you can’t give what you haven’t got. In order to be salt of the world, Christians would need to regain their distinctive savor. What Benedict proposed is that Christians needed to form Islands of Holiness. Just as Benedict of Nursia’s sons had to regroup during the dark ages after the collapse of Rome, so also can Christians today come together in small groups to relearn the habits of piety, of modesty, of chastity, and of sanctity; only from that position of strength can we then turn again to the world.

How can a homeschool form an island of holiness?

When you homeschool every parent can be a principal. So, in your school, if you want Latin you do not need to convince a board, you can just open up Wheelock; if you want to celebrate Feast Days with gusto, you do not need to convince a committee, you can just find other families and invite them for a party; if you want to enforce a dress code, buy modest clothes; if you want your children to learn fasting, serve fish on Fridays. Teach chant, put on a Shakespeare play, take your kids on pilgrimages, say a daily decade, let them read the classics, and meet up with other like-minded parents. I say, in the spirit of Benedict: embrace the bubble! When you teach at home you can form a subculture. Your family will attract others. Islands need to be populated.

This leads to the domestic church’s and the homeschooling family’s third attribute: catholicity. Holiness does not in principle exclude others. The Church is Catholic in that it is universal. It embraces all who wish to align themselves with her creed. For every family, this openness is expressed first of all in the openness to new life.

We knew a homeschooling family whose parents could not have any children of their own. This was a cross. When we knew them, they already had more than our five. They had come to know one of the single mothers from whom they had adopted a child. And that unwed mother kept having more kids. This homeschooling family decided that they would keep adopting her children. And the kids kept coming, year after year. After a few years, the wife, now a homeschooling mom of a large brood began to think twice before answering the phone! She told us once that she didn’t realize before they started adopting in this way what “openness to life” could mean.…

Not all families are called to such heroism, but we are all called to embrace the profound intrusion upon our ego that is a new life. Children, by their irresistible otherness, by their stubborn resistance to our plans and schedules and sleep, by their generous love, by their friendships, by their neediness, naturally draw a homeschool family into a larger web of families.

You don’t need to have a large family to be “catholic”. But insofar as homeschooling habituates parents and siblings to make room for each other, they win opportunities to practice charity. By the subordination of their finances and their time and their sweat to the great project of educating their children, they are particularly suited to the building up Catholic culture in our time through embracing new life and nurturing the children that come to them.

I conclude that insofar as a family manifests unity, sanctity, and universality, it will automatically and without effort be apostolic. People will come to you: Are those all your children? You sure have your hands full? What are you doing out of school in the afternoon? As St. Peter said to the early Christians, let us always be ready to give a reasonable reply (1 Peter 3:15).

books and blackboardPhoto by Debby Hudson via Unsplash

Trojan Textbooks: Beware of Government Bearing Gifts

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New Mexico’s Supreme Court is reconsidering a 2015 ruling which ended the state funding of textbooks for private schools. Is this good news?

As a publisher of textbooks produced specifically for Catholic schools, I am conflicted in answering the question. On the one hand, state money provides a large well of cash for schools to much more easily make a decision to upgrade textbooks. After all, most of our schools are woefully budget challenged. Money to alleviate the strain is a welcome relief to those schools, I am sure. On the other hand, two problems peek out of the public funds trough. One is the looming “strings attached.” We wait for the string to be pulled, and wonder what it means for a school to keep following the money on the string – what do they have to compromise? The second problem is becoming dependent on the funding source to the point of having it dictate a school’s buying decisions, even if not necessary.

The positive side seems obvious. Catholic parents pay tuition, but also pay their fair share for public education. It is only right that some of those funds come back to benefit the educational process of their own children. It is also for the good of the state and society that Catholic schools exist, for they educate well, they form a more acute conscience-guided citizen, and they save the states billions of dollars in education spending. Archbishop Chaput offers this statistic: “Catholic and other non-public schools currently save Pennsylvania taxpayers more than $4 billion every year.”

Imagine what would happen if all those schools were to close. Tens of thousands of students, $4 billion dollars worth, would show up on the doorstep of the public schools and the state would have to educate them, with not a dime of additional resources from the public, because they already receive taxes from everyone. It would break the system! And so, it seems like sound business sense for the state education funds to keep that small trickle of good will dollars going into the private schools. Curricular aid is a perfect place to do so. Textbook assistance can provide a small but important benefit, based on a per child formula, which ensures the benefit really follows the child.

The Church has repeatedly called for governments, in justice, to aid Catholic schools in some of the expense of educating children. She realizes the state has no obligation to fund religious education, as such, but she claims there is the whole other element of education, the so-called secular subjects, which the state has a vested interest in. Again, to paraphrase Archbishop Chaput, the value to our society that a good education provides, no matter who is giving it, is priceless. For this reason, it seems that states should follow New Mexico’s response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2017 case, Trinity Lutheran v. Comer, in which it sided with a Lutheran school being able to access state funds that were made available to upgrade the safety of its playground. New Mexico saw that a basic human need was being met, even if it was on the grounds of a church.

There are other ways to look at this whole issue, however, such as from a perspective of fundamental anthropology, or liberty. Government funding has become increasingly tied to a secular, anti-religious ideological agenda. One must be very wary of moving in the direction of government funding. A common argument of advocates on all sides of the aisle is that the secular subjects are just that, secular, and not subject to ideology, so it is fine for the state to fund those books. We have our history textbooks funded by a few states due to this very reasoning.

In a recent Catholic News Agency article on the New Mexico case, Eric Baxter of the Becket Law Group stated in a perfectly well-meaning way, “A science textbook is a science textbook no matter whose shelf it’s on.” The problem is that this is not true! A science textbook is not just a science textbook. Nor is a history book just a history book. To assert, or even accept the notion that publishers like Pearson, Glencoe or Prentice Hall do not have an agenda is either a lie or terribly naïve. They do have an agenda, even an ideology, and they push it.

The standard mainstream science textbook is written from a mechanistic world view. This is flawed science because the world is not mechanistic. One can be a pure and excellent scientist and still acknowledge God, creation, and the beauty of His stamp on the world. In fact, many of the greatest scientists in history were deeply religious – many of them monks and priests. They became so interested in science, and so advanced in discovery because they wanted to understand God’s creation even better, and reveal the gifts He had locked in the intricacies of His world.

Similarly, an honest historian cannot tell history without a significant part of the story being wound up with the Church, and religious motivations for discovery, improvements of economy and government, and yes, some not-so-rosy things, too. But to write the Church’s involvement largely out of history is profoundly poor scholarship. Yet that is what they do. The Church is written out, and Ellen DeGeneres is written in, along with Harvey Milk, Jose Sarria and Gavin Newsom. These are prominent characters in the new lower elementary social studies books in California. These characters are important to history because of their stand for “gay rights”. Of all the stories to share with our children about the great arc of history, are these the ones my seven or eight year old really need to be learning? And yet, this is what we get when we follow the state textbook.

What have we done? We have traded our liberty to teach truth and form our children in right teaching, for free textbooks. Beware of states bearing gifts.

If, as in the case of a few states, your state will fund textbooks such as the Catholic Textbook Project’s history series, by all means, use those funds. That is a right and proper use of the citizens’ taxes. Just be ready to also pay for good, true and beautiful materials by yourself if the state stops funding such products. After all, most Catholic schools in the country do not benefit from state funding of textbooks anyway, and they still find ways to pay for it. It is a nice perk if you have it but please do not let it prevent you from having a textbook that is in line with the core principles of our mission of Catholic education. Sometimes liberty comes at a cost!

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

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Editor’s Note: The Cardinal Newman Society recently announced Sarah Niblock of St. Pius X Catholic High School in Kansas City, Missouri, as the winner of the Society’s second annual Essay Scholarship Contest for Catholic college-bound students.  Niblock will receive a $5,000 scholarship toward her education at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, California, this fall.  Below is the full text of Niblock’s winning essay.  More information about the Contest can be obtained here.

I closed the door to my room, sunk into my plush wicker chair, and let out a deep breath as a mixture of anger and exhaustion swirled within me. “What if I made the wrong decision?” I asked myself. My unease spread as I recounted the comments I had heard from well-meaning family and friends, after telling them that I would be attending a faithful Catholic college. “Are you sure your family can afford that?” one friend asked. “Will a Catholic school shelter you from the harsh realities of the world around you?” my dad questioned. As I replayed these scenes, I began to pray, asking God to open my heart so that I might hear His voice. After restlessly praying for a few minutes, my eyes wandered around my room until they rested on a holy card of Jesus that laid on my dresser. Staring at it for a few seconds, I recalled the words that were written on the back, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). These words seemed to pound in my ears as my eyes closed, and the details of my visit to a faithful Catholic college came rushing back with incredible vividness.

“I am the way.” Chapel bells begin to toll, and I watch as dozens of students appear from dorm rooms and classrooms, hurrying to Mass on a Wednesday afternoon. I gaze around a busy dining hall to see students bowing their head before diving into their midday meal. I listen to a chaplain preach from the pulpit, encouraging and advising students about dating. I pass by sign-up sheets for students to pray at a local abortion clinic. I glimpse an elderly priest sitting with students at lunch, laughing and asking them about their day.

“I am the truth.” My head whips back and forth as I watch two students debate Rousseau’s ideologies regarding the role of government. I hear the patter of a chalkboard as I see a young student jump up to prove a Euclid proposition. I listen to a freshman class discuss how to logically discover the validity of an argument. I pass by a student who is intently studying his Bible, doing some extra research for his theology paper. I notice a smile on my dad’s face, and tears in my mom’s eyes, as my family listens to the president address a Thanksgiving speech to students, asking them to “rededicate yourselves to what you came here for in the first place… not the triumph of your own opinions or the esteem of tutors and students, but rather things of far greater worth and enduring importance: deeper relationships with Christ our King and the beginnings of Catholic wisdom and virtue.”

“I am the life.” I see professors, along with their spouses and children, attending Sunday Mass at the campus chapel. I smile as a young man spots me heading to a classroom building, quickly pulling open the door for me to pass underneath. I overhear conversations between students, telling each other how former alumni have gone on to become doctors, lawyers, priests, sisters, engineers, and missionaries. I talk with an upperclassman who tells me her plans to become a lawyer, and how she turned down two full-ride scholarships in order to attend her dream school. I sit in a quiet dorm room as my hostess tells me that these four years have been some of the most challenging in her life, but she wouldn’t trade them for the world. Opening up to me, she tells me that through her deep friendships and the rich spiritual life on campus, she would be answering God’s call for her to enter the religious life.

I opened my eyes as these visions finally ceased flowing. Letting out a deep breath, I finally found the words that God had been whispering in my heart. “Here, at this college, you will find me. ‘I who am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.’”

National Essay Contest Winner Seeks the ‘Way, Truth and Life’ at Catholic College

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Sarah Niblock of St. Pius X Catholic High School in Kansas City, Missouri, is the winner of the Society’s second annual Essay Scholarship Contest for Catholic college students and will receive a $5,000 scholarship toward her education at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, California.

“I finally found the words that God had been whispering in my heart. ‘Here, at this college, you will find me,’” writes Niblock in her winning essay, titled “The Way, the Truth, and the Life.”

The contest was open to high school seniors in the United States who participated in the Newman Society’s Recruit Me program and used The Newman Guide, which recommends faithful Catholic colleges, in their college search. The winning scholarship must be used for education at one of the 28 Catholic colleges and higher education programs recommended in The Newman Guide for their strong fidelity and Catholic identity.

With the innovative Recruit Me program, high school students can invite Newman Guide colleges to compete for them and provide information about their programs. Rising high school seniors who wish to enter next year’s essay contest can sign up for Recruit Me online at https://cardinalnewmansociety.org/the-newman-guide/recruit-me/.

As a junior in high school, Niblock was exploring college scholarship opportunities online when she stumbled upon Benedictine College’s release about the winner of the Newman Society’s first Essay Scholarship Contest. To be eligible for the contest the following year, Niblock signed up for the Newman Society’s Recruit Me program.

It was through the Recruit Me program that Niblock first learned about Thomas Aquinas College and was contacted by the College about its various offerings. Niblock was especially impressed with the College’s Great Books program and its Socratic, discussion-style courses. In the end, Niblock decided to attend TAC and told us that she’s “very grateful for the Newman Society’s programs!”

The topic for this year’s contest was to reflect, in 500-700 words, on the following question: “How will a faithful Catholic college education prepare you for life?”

Essays were judged by how well they demonstrated appreciation for faithful Catholic education, as well as the quality of the writing.

“Sarah Niblock impressed us with the picture she painted of a faithful Catholic college in her winning essay,” said Kelly Salomon, editor of The Newman Guide. “She shows how a strong Catholic environment can provide students with the formation they need for life.”

Niblock relates how she’s faced challenging questions from well-meaning family members and friends about the value of attending a faithful Catholic college.

After finding the answers, Niblock is eager to join a campus where she is confident she will find Jesus, who is the “Way, the Truth, and the Life.”

She describes her visit to a faithful Catholic college campus:

I watch as dozens of students appear from dorm rooms and classrooms, hurrying to Mass on a Wednesday afternoon…

…I listen to a freshman class discuss how to logically discover the validity of an argument…

…I overhear conversations between students, telling each other how former alumni have gone on to become doctors, lawyers, priests, sisters, engineers, and missionaries.

The spiritual life offerings, academic environment, and overall formation provided by a faithful Catholic college convinced Niblock of its value.

Niblock’s entire essay can be read here.

Her $5,000 scholarship is made possible thanks to the generosity of Joe and Ann Guiffre, supporters of the Newman Society and faithful Catholic education.

“We are grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Guiffre for enabling this scholarship,” said Reilly. “They understand the unique value of a truly Catholic education, and they are thrilled to help a student experience all that a Newman Guide-recommended college can provide.”

Essays were submitted from students in 40 states. Most attend Catholic schools, about 30 percent are homeschooled, and the remainder attend public schools.

Students who participated in the contest applied to every U.S. residential college that is recommended in The Newman Guide, plus Holy Apostles College and the University of Navarra in Spain.

Although there can be only one winner, many students submitted outstanding essays, including Maylee Brown of Iowa City, Iowa; Celine Gaeta of Van Nuys, California; Anna O’Leary of Fredericksburg, Texas; and Isabelle Thelen of Traverse City, Michigan. These will be published by the Newman Society on its website, NewmanSociety.org.

Choosing a Catholic School Begins with Mission

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With Catholic Schools Week upon us (Jan. 28-Feb. 3), families are invited to recommit to Catholic education and register their children for the upcoming school year. Others who are exploring Catholic schools may benefit from a new Parents Guide to understanding the nature and benefits of a faithful, excellent Catholic education.

The higher graduation rates and college acceptance rates of students in Catholic schools are well-documented — but as impressive as these statistics are, they are of secondary importance. The real value of Catholic schools is not what they prepare students to do (go to college, earn high paying wages) but what they prepare them to be — a leaven to society and saints!

Because of this higher and broader horizon, parents should look not only at test scores and college admission rates but also at the strength and wholesomeness of the school’s Catholic culture and how explicitly it accomplishes its Catholic mission.

How is a parent to begin this daunting task? The Cardinal Newman Society has articulated the Church’s expectations as Principles of Catholic Identity in Education, and it has issued a Parents Guide to help families gauge the particular strengths and weaknesses of a Catholic school in key areas: curriculum, community, leadership, faculty and student outcomes. These are some highlights:

 

Curriculum

The curriculum should advance the mission of Catholic education, with abundant evidence that the faith informs all academic disciplines.

Is there evidence that the Catechism of the Catholic Church and Scripture are frequently referenced? Are textbooks supplemented with resources to help ground them in the Catholic faith and reflect a Catholic worldview?

Are students exposed to the best of Western civilization and culture, and do they understand the harmony which exists between faith and reason, especially in the study of the sciences?

Do literature selections assist the genuine development of the human person by using examples of virtue and vice, which allow students the opportunity to enter into the lives of others so as to learn examples of nobility and courage?

Does the social studies curriculum help students understand and commit to the common good, the needs of the poor, human rights and human dignity?

If human sexuality classes are taught, are they fully transparent, in line with Church teaching and respectful of parents as the primary educators?

 

Community

In Catholic education, parents are partners with the school. They participate in school liturgies and academic and extra-curricular events.

The school climate reproduces the warm and intimate atmosphere of family life, which is not only nurturing but genuinely positive and supportive.

Is an evangelical spirit of freedom and charity evident within the school? Are students challenged to strive for excellence in both human and Christian formation? Are virtues such as magnanimity, honor and modesty taught and evident? Are there opportunities and requirements for service?

Catholic education is in full communion with the Catholic Church and helps grow the Church. Are there activities, clubs and events that invite a deeper understanding of the Catholic teachings and traditions? Does the school display a concern for the life and problems of the Church, both local and universal? Are Catholic students helped to become active members of their parish communities? Is prayer a norm, and are Masses and Reconciliation frequent and reverent?

 

Leadership

Opportunities for students to encounter the living God in a Catholic school depend heavily on a faith-filled leader who sets the tone and brings the community together under a common vision and mission.

Do leaders accept and promote the teachings of the Church and moral demands of the Gospel? Do they actively participate in the liturgical and sacramental life of the school and provide an example to others who find in them nourishment for Christian living? Do they see their position as a vocation rather than a profession and attempt to fully integrate their faith life with their daily decision-making?

 

Faculty

Because a school depends chiefly on teachers to achieve its purpose, parents should give careful attention to the teachers and their effectiveness at imitating Christ, the true teacher, not only in their work but in the entirety of their lives and actions.

Are the faculty exemplary apostolic witnesses to the Catholic faith, and do they live their lives according to the teachings of the Church? Are they present at school Masses and other religious activities, and are they active in their parishes and local communities? Are they alert for opportunities to integrate culture and academic content with faith to create a synthesis of faith and life for their students?

 

Student Outcomes

Catholic education provides for the integral formation of students in body, mind and spirit. Students, once individually formed, can advance the Christian formation of the world and ultimately take their place in the eternal Kingdom.

With this dual outcome of securing both the common and individual good, parents can ask: In what ways are graduates using their formation to aid society as a whole, to assist in the building up of impoverished communities, helping the poor or in other ways facilitating the efforts of the universal Church?

 

Guiding Models of Catholic Education

It may seem daunting for parents to assess these areas on their own when selecting a Catholic school. Fortunately, some schools have proactively taken up the challenge of answering such questions related to strong Catholic identity by seeking recognition from the National Catholic Honor Roll.

The Honor Roll schools complete an extensive battery of questions after spending many hours of reflection on how effectively they are fulfilling the Church’s expectations for Catholic education. Parents may want to spend some time on these schools’ websites to get a sense of what a strong Catholic school looks like and compare them to their local schools.

The Church grows when parents and schools find and support each other in the quest for excellence in Catholic education, which starts and ends with Christ and is sustained by truth and by love.

During this Catholic Schools Week, all are encouraged to renew their commitment to authentic Catholic education wherever it is found.

This article was originally published at the National Catholic Register.

Principles of Catholic Identity Overview

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Catholic Identity in Education: Principles articulates elements the Church expects to find in all Catholic schools and which distinguish them from other schools. The principles are derived from Church documents related to education, including the documents of Vatican II, documents from the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education, and the writings of various Popes. The five principles are: Inspired by Divine Mission; Models Christian Communion; Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture, and Sacraments; Integrally Forms the Human Person and Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World. Each principle includes a summary which is comprehensive, yet concise, and reflects the language found in the Church documents.

Intention for Use

The Cardinal Newman Society is dedicated to promoting and defending faithful Catholic education. These principles act as a framework to guide Cardinal Newman’s K-12 efforts and to ensure they are aligned with the Church’s guidance.

Suggestions for Use

Because these principles are directly formulated from Church teaching, anyone involved in Catholic education may find them of use in providing direction, inspiration, guidance, or evaluation of their educational efforts.[1] 

Principle I: Inspired by Divine Mission

Catholic education is an expression of the Church’s mission of salvation and an instrument of evangelization:1 to make disciples of Christ and to teach them to observe all that He has commanded.2 Through Catholic education, students encounter God, “who in Jesus Christ reveals His transforming love and truth.”3  Christ is the foundation of Catholic education;4 He journeys with students through school and life as “genuine Teacher” and “perfect Man.”5 As a faith community in unity with the Church and in fidelity to the Magisterium, students, parents, and educators give witness to Christ’s loving communion in the Holy Trinity.6  With this Christian vision, Catholic education fulfills its purpose of “critical, systematic transmission of culture in the light of faith”7 and the integral formation of the human person by developing each student’s physical, moral, intellectual, and spiritual gifts in harmony, teaching responsibility and right use of freedom, and preparing students to fulfill God’s calling in this world and to attain the eternal kingdom for which they were created.8 Catholic education is sustained by the frequent experience of prayer, Sacred Scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.9

Principle II: Models Christian Communion and Identity

Catholic education teaches communion with Christ, by living communion with Christ and imitating the love and freedom of the Trinity.10 This communion begins in the home—with the divinely ordered right and responsibility of parents to educate their children—and extends to the school community in support and service to the needs of the family.11 It unites families and educators with a shared educational philosophy to form students for a relationship with God and with others.12 The educational community is united to the universal Church in fidelity to the Magisterium, to the local Church, and to other schools and community organizations.13

The school community is a place of ecclesial experience, in which the members model confident and joyful public witness in both word and action and teach students to live the Catholic faith in their daily lives.14 In an environment “humanly and spiritually rich,” everyone is aware of the living presence of Jesus evidenced by a Christian way of thought and life, expressed in “Word and Sacrament, in individual behaviour, [and] in friendly and harmonious interpersonal relationships.”15 The school climate reproduces, as far as possible, the “warm and intimate atmosphere of family life.”16 As members of the Church community, students experience what it means to live a life of prayer, personal responsibility, and freedom reflective of Gospel values. This, in turn, leads them to grow in their commitment to serve God, one another, the Church, and society.17

All teachers and leaders possess adequate skills, preparation, and religious formation and possess special qualities of mind and heart as well as the sensitivity necessary for authentic witness to the gospel and the task of human formation.18 Teachers and leaders of the educational community should be “practicing Catholics, who can understand and accept the teachings of the Catholic Church and the moral demands of the Gospel, and who can contribute to the achievement of the school’s Catholic identity and apostolic goals.”19

Principle III: Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture & Sacrament

Rooted in Christ, Catholic education is continually fed and stimulated by Him in the frequent experience of prayer, Sacred Scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.20 The transmission of faith, catechesis, is intrinsically linked to these living encounters with Christ, by which He nurtures and educates souls in the divine life of grace and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.21 By their witness and sharing in these encounters, educators help students grow in understanding of what it means to be a member of the Church.22 Students discover the real value of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Reconciliation, in accompanying the Christian in the journey through life. They learn “to open their hearts in confidence to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through personal and liturgical prayer”, which makes the mystery of Christ present to students.23

Principle IV: Integrally Forms the Human Person

A complex task of Catholic education is the integral formation of students as physical, intellectual, and spiritual beings called to perfect humanity in the fullness of Christ.24 The human person is “created in ‘the image and likeness’ of God; elevated by God to the dignity of a child of God; unfaithful to God in original sin, but redeemed by Christ; a temple of the Holy Spirit; a member of the Church; destined to eternal life.”25 Catholic education assists students to become aware of the gift of Faith, worship God the Father, develop into mature adults who bear witness to the Mystical Body of Christ, respect the dignity of the human person, provide service, lead apostolic lives, and build the Kingdom of God.26

Catholic education forms the conscience through commitment to authentic Catholic doctrine.  It develops the virtues and characteristics associated with what it means to be Christian so as to resist relativism, overcome individualism, and discover vocations to serve God and others.27 “Intellectual development and growth as a Christian go forward hand in hand” where faith, culture, and life are integrated throughout the school’s program to provide students a personal closeness to Christ enriched by virtues, values, and supernatural gifts.28 As a child of God, made in his image, human formation includes the development of personal Christian ethics and respect for the body by promoting healthy development, physical activity, and chastity.29

In Catholic education, “There is no separation between time for learning and time for formation, between acquiring notions and growing in wisdom”; education and pedagogy, inspired by Gospel values and distinguished by the “illumination of all knowledge with the light of faith” allows formation to become living, conscious and active.30 The atmosphere is characterized by discovery and awareness that enkindles a love for truth and a desire to know the universe as God’s creation. The Christian educational program facilitates critical thinking that is ordered, precise, and responsible as it builds strength and perseverance in pursuit of the truth. 31

Principle V: Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World

In the light of faith, Catholic education critically and systematically transmits the secular and religious “cultural patrimony handed down from previous generations,” especially that which makes a person more human and contributes to the integral formation of students.32 Both educator and student are called to participate in the dialogue of culture and to pursue “the integration of culture with faith and of faith with living.”33 Catholic education imparts “a Christian vision of the world, of life, of culture, and of history,” ordering “the whole of human culture to the news of salvation.”34 This hallmark of Catholic education, to “bring human wisdom into an encounter with divine wisdom,”35 cultivates “in students the intellectual, creative, and aesthetic faculties of the human person,” introduces a cultural heritage, and prepares them for professional life and to take on the responsibilities and duties of society and the Church.36 Students are prepared to work for the evangelization of culture and for the common good of society.37

 

[1]  The Cardinal Newman Society has developed various resources in its Catholic Identity Series to expand upon the principles or to use them in specific evaluative exercises. Among them are: Catholic Identity in Education: Principles and Sources in Church Teaching; Catholic Identity in Education: Church Documents for Reflection; Catholic Identity in Education: Questions for Reflection and Assessment; Catholic Identity in Education: Faculty and Staff In-Service; Catholic Identity in Education: Board Reflection and The Catholic Education Honor Roll.

 

 

 

Principles Questions for Reflection and Assessment

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Catholic Identity in Education: Questions for Reflection and Assessment helps Catholic school leaders facilitate reflection upon those elements the Church expects to be present in all Catholic schools and which distinguish them from other schools. The questions are structured upon five principles of Catholic identity derived from Church documents related to education. The five principles are: Inspired by Divine Mission; Models Christian Communion; Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture, and Sacraments; Integrally Forms the Human Person and Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World. Each principle includes a summary which is comprehensive, yet concise and is followed by a series of questions intended to serve as a general resource to guide Catholic school leaders in their efforts to enhance and assess their school’s Catholic identity.

The first four questions of each principle follow a general pattern. The remaining questions address specific sub-topics grouped according to content.

Intention for Use

Catholic Identity in Education: Questions for Reflection and Assessment is intended to help Catholic school leaders create or inform internal self-assessments of their school’s Catholic identity. It is not structured as a stand-alone or ready- to – use evaluation tool, but may be adapted to fulfill such a purpose.

Suggestions for Use

School leaders can use the resource to begin a global analysis of the school as they begin to gain a sense of direction for school improvement. Not every question needs to be asked or answered. The purpose of the document is to open up potential lines of inquiry and spark internal conversations leading eventually to targeted areas for school improvement.

Some schools may choose to adapt elements of Catholic Identity in Education: Questions for Reflection and Assessment into a series of faculty in-service programs tailored to their school’s needs. Such an exercise might involve choosing an area of focus and then dividing the faculty into small groups for discussion and then bringing them back together for group processing. Some schools may want to assign small groups to different topics and then have them present their findings leading the entire gathering in a discussion of the target area. Whatever dynamic is selected, school administrators should be present at group discussions to answer questions as they arise and to add additional information if needed.  All individuals involved in the learning environment should be involved in process that is open, safe, and positive. A process that is slow and deliberate will allow for fruitful, honest, and nuanced discussions. These discussions might then provide the opportunity for recording strengths and weaknesses, brainstorming ideas to enhance Catholic identity, and making specific plans for growth.

Principle I: Inspired by Divine Mission

Catholic education is an expression of the Church’s mission of salvation and an instrument of evangelization:38 to make disciples of Christ and to teach them to observe all that He has commanded.39 Through Catholic education, students encounter God, “who in Jesus Christ reveals His transforming love and truth.”40 Christ is the foundation of Catholic education;41 He journeys with students through school and life as “genuine Teacher” and “perfect Man.”42 As a faith community in unity with the Church and in fidelity to the Magisterium, students, parents, and educators give witness to Christ’s loving communion in the Holy Trinity.43 With this Christian vision, Catholic education fulfills its purpose of “critical, systematic transmission of culture in the light of faith”44 and the integral formation of the human person by developing each student’s physical, moral, intellectual, and spiritual gifts in harmony, teaching responsibility and right use of freedom, and preparing students to fulfill God’s calling in this world and to attain the eternal kingdom for which they were created.45 Catholic education is sustained by the frequent experience of prayer, Sacred Scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.46

Questions to Aid Reflection or Assessment

  •  How does the school, through the mission statement, governing documents, policies, and publications, express institutional commitment to the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education?
  •  How does the school ensure members of the community (board, administration, faculty, staff, volunteers, students and parents) are committed to the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school ensure employees and volunteers have the necessary knowledge, skills, dispositions and ongoing training to fulfill the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school evaluate programs and personnel to ensure institutional commitment to the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school ensure institutional commitment to the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education, including…
    • the school is a place of encountering God and His love and truth?
    • the school has Christ as its foundation?
    • the school is a community united with the Church?
    • the school is faithful to the Magisterium?
    • the school provides frequent opportunities for prayer, reading of scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental traditions?
    • the school engages in the integral formation of the human person—spiritual, intellectual, and physical?
    • the school presents a Christian worldview of humanity and the dignity of the person?
    • the school transmits culture in the light of faith?
    • the school prepares students to be instruments of evangelization?
  • How does the school’s mission statement demonstrate a commitment to Catholic identity?
  • How does the school review its mission statement to ensure fidelity to the divine mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school review fidelity to its mission?
  • How does the school ensure each member of the governing body is informed of and committed to the responsibility to respect, promote, strengthen, and defend the Catholic identity of the school?
  • How does the school ensure each member of the governing body is a practicing Catholic?
  • How does the governing body of the school advance the school’s Catholic mission?
  • How does the governing body ensure policies, programs, and strategic planning, are guided by the Church’s mission for Catholic education?
  • How are members of the school community informed of the school’s Catholic mission and educational philosophy to ensure understanding and commitment?
  • How does the school ensure that the educational philosophy is in harmony with the Church’s teaching on the divine mission of Catholic education?
  • How aware is the broader community of the school’s Catholic mission?
  • How does the school protect the mission of Catholic education in light of new educational paradigms, consumerist demands, government interference, threats to religious freedom, secular curricular standards, and societal expectations?

Principle II: Models Christian Communion and Identity

Catholic education teaches communion with Christ, by living communion with Christ and imitating the love and freedom of the Trinity.47 This communion begins in the home—with the divinely ordered right and responsibility of parents to educate their children—and extends to the school community in support and service to the needs of the family.48 It unites families and educators with a shared educational philosophy to form students for a relationship with God and with others.49 The educational community is united to the universal Church in fidelity to the Magisterium, to the local Church, and to other schools and community organizations.50

The school community is a place of ecclesial experience, in which the members model confident and joyful public witness in both word and action and teach students to live the Catholic faith in their daily lives.51 In an environment “humanly and spiritually rich,” everyone is aware of the living presence of Jesus evidenced by a Christian way of thought and life, expressed in “Word and Sacrament, in individual behaviour, [and] in friendly and harmonious interpersonal relationships.”52 The school climate reproduces, as far as possible, the “warm and intimate atmosphere of family life.”53 As members of the Church community, students experience what it means to live a life of prayer, personal responsibility, and freedom reflective of Gospel values. This, in turn, leads them to grow in their commitment to serve God, one another, the Church, and society.54

All teachers and leaders possess adequate skills, preparation, and religious formation and possess special qualities of mind and heart as well as the sensitivity necessary for authentic witness to the gospel and the task of human formation.55 Teachers and leaders of the educational community should be “practicing Catholics, who can understand and accept the teachings of the Catholic Church and the moral demands of the Gospel, and who can contribute to the achievement of the school’s Catholic identity and apostolic goals.”56

Questions to Aid Reflection or Assessment

  • How does the school ensure that members of the community (board, administration, faculty, staff, volunteers, students and parents) are committed to modeling and teaching Christian communion?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers have the necessary knowledge skills, dispositions, and ongoing training to model and teach Christian communion?
  • How does the school ensure consistency and harmony between home and school, meaningful involvement of parents, and responsiveness to the needs of parents in teaching and living Christian communion?
  • How does the school evaluate programs and personnel to ensure that they model Christian communion?
  • How does the school ensure that formation of students is in communion with the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school instill in students a responsibility to respect, promote, strengthen, and protect the Catholic identity of the school?
  • How does the school ensure that students understand expectations for learning and behavior that reflect Catholic teaching and practice?
  • How does the school ensure that formation of students is in and for communion with others?
  • How does the school assist students to develop and nurture harmonious relationships with each other, with parents, and with employees and volunteers?
  • How does the school assist students to develop respect, kindness, mercy, and forgiveness when interacting with each other, parents, school employees, and volunteers?
  • How does the school assist students in developing virtuous ways to heal hurting or broken relationships?
  • How does the school ensure that the community is united in faith to the Catholic Church and to the Magisterium?
  • How do school leaders communicate with and support the needs of local Catholic pastors, priests, and religious?
  • How does the school community serve, support, and participate in the activities of local parishes and Catholic apostolates?
  • How does the school demonstrate respect and faithfulness to the teaching authority of the local and universal Church?
  • How does the school ensure that operations are consistent with the Code of Canon Law, Catechism of the Catholic Church, and other magisterial teachings of the Church?
  • How does the school protect Catholic moral norms in the selection of outside service providers and organizations?
  • How does the school protect Catholic moral norms in the approval of student and faculty organizations, associations, or activities?
  • How does the school ensure that the community is united in service to others?
  • How does the school support and serve the local community in fulfilling the mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school support and collaborate with other schools and community organizations in fulfilling the mission of Catholic education?
  • How does the school ensure communion with parents?
  • How are parents invited to participate in a meaningful partnership with the school and community?
  • How does the school assist Catholic and non-Catholic parents to integrate into the Catholic community and, if appropriate, formally transition into the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school ensure that non-Catholic families feel part of the community, and, if appropriate, create opportunities to further explore and understand the teachings of the Catholic Church?
  • How does the community, in a supportive role with the school, assist families who are struggling with personal challenges, difficulties, and crises?
  • How does the school make Catholic education accessible to large or economically disadvantaged families?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers live in communion?
  • How does the school assist employees and volunteers to develop and nurture harmonious relationships with each other, students, and families?
  • How does the school assist employees and volunteers to develop respect, kindness, mercy, and forgiveness when interacting with each other, parents, and members of the school community?
  • How does the school’s environment evidence a Christian way of life that reflects an extension of the warmth of family life?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers live in communion with the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school express to all employees and volunteers the expectation to respect, promote, strengthen, and protect the Catholic identity of the school?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers are practicing Catholics who understand and respect the teachings of the Catholic Church, the moral demands of the Gospel, and are committed to public witness of the Church’s teachings in both word and action?
  • How does the school monitor, assist, and hold accountable employees and volunteers to ensure a commitment to Catholic ideals, teachings and principles?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers are committed to, and participate in, the religious formation of students and catechetical ministry of the school?
  • How does the school ensure that organizations and associations to which employees and volunteers belong conform to Catholic ideals, principles, and teachings?
  • How does the school, in the rare instance when only a non-Catholic is available to fill a teaching position other than a theology class, ensure that the teacher is aware, supportive, and respectful of the school’s Catholic mission and identity?
  • How does the school ensure that only Catholic faculty are assigned to teaching positions where formal catechesis occurs?
  • How does the school ensure that employees receive ongoing professional development and formation in moral and religious principles, the social teachings of the Catholic Church, and critical issues in society today?

Principle III: Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture & Sacraments

Rooted in Christ, Catholic education is continually fed and stimulated by Him in the frequent experience of prayer, Sacred Scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.57 The transmission of faith, catechesis, is intrinsically linked to these living encounters with Christ, by which He nurtures and educates souls in the divine life of grace and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.58 By their witness and sharing in these encounters, educators help students grow in understanding of what it means to be a member of the Church.59 Students discover the real value of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Reconciliation, in accompanying the Christian in the journey through life. They learn “to open their hearts in confidence to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through personal and liturgical prayer”, which makes the mystery of Christ present to students.60

Questions to Aid Reflection or Assessment

  • How does the school ensure that members of the community (board, administration, faculty, staff, volunteers, students, and parents) are committed to providing opportunities for living encounters with Christ?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers have the necessary knowledge, skills, dispositions, and ongoing training to provide opportunities for living encounters with Christ?
  • How does the school ensure consistency and harmony between home and school, meaningful involvement of parents, and responsiveness to the needs of parents in providing opportunities for living encounters with Christ?
  • How does the school evaluate programs and personnel to ensure opportunities to encounter Christ in prayer, scripture, and the Sacraments?
  • How does the school ensure opportunities for prayer, liturgy, and the Sacraments are prioritized on the school calendar and daily schedule?
  • How does the school ensure opportunities for students to encounter Christ in:
    • personal prayer?
    • community prayer?
    • essential traditional Catholic prayers?
    • Eucharistic adoration, benediction, and procession?
    • Marian devotions?
    • days of reflection?
    • prayers for particular devotions or charisms of the school?
    • prayer in the classroom?
    • prayer during extracurricular activities and programs?
    • prayers of the liturgical season and feast days?
    • prayers for spiritual direction?
    • prayers for vocational discernment?
  • How does the school ensure that prayer is meaningful, respectful, and assists students in   deepening their relationship with God?
  • How does the school ensure opportunities for students to encounter Christ in scripture through:
    • individual reading and contemplation?
    • community reading and contemplation?
    • frequent reference to Scripture in classroom instruction?
    • instruction in authentic interpretation of Scripture through courses focused on catechesis and exegesis?
  • How does the school ensure opportunities for students to encounter Christ in the Sacraments?
  • How often does the school provide opportunities for participation in the Mass and reception of the Eucharist?
  • How does the school form students in the meaning, value, and proper participation in the Mass?
  • How does the school form students in the meaning, value, and proper reception of the Eucharist?
  • How often does the school provide students the opportunity for participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
  • How does the school form students in the meaning, value, and proper reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
  • How does the school form students in the meaning, value, and preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation?
  • How does the school ensure that liturgies and Reconciliation follow Church norms?
  • How does the school reflect on the experience of students in these encounters of prayer, scripture, and the Sacraments to ensure that they are personal and meaningful?
  • How does the school ensure that spiritual direction is available and administered by qualified and faithful priests, religious, or trained laity?
  • How does the school ensure that there is an active program to promote vocations and vocational discernment to religious life?
  • How does the school support parents, students, faculty, and parishes in sacramental preparation for Baptism, first Reconciliation, first Holy Communion, and Confirmation?
  • How often are retreats provided for students, employees, and parents?
  • How does the school ensure that opportunities for spiritual retreats are formational and effective in deepening a relationship with God?
  • How does the school ensure opportunities for employees and volunteers to encounter Christ in prayer, scripture and the Sacraments?
  • How does the school provide formation for employees and volunteers in the meaning and value of the liturgy, the Eucharist, prayer, and the Sacraments, to effectively share these “living encounters with Christ”?
  • How does the school encourage participation by employees in prayer, retreats, liturgies, and the Sacraments?
  • How does the school ensure employees and volunteer are witnesses to Gospel values?
  • How does the school provide professional development for employees to aid in the integration of scripture according to their particular duties?
  • How do school employees and volunteers assist and encourage, students and families to participate in the prayer and sacramental life of the school?
  • How frequently does the school provide opportunities for parents to encounter Christ through prayer, liturgies, and the Sacraments?
  • How does the school inform students and families about the use of sacramentals to ensure an understanding of their purpose in faith and devotion?
  • How does the school ensure that spiritual direction is available and administered by qualified and faithful priests, religious, or trained laity?
  • How does the school ensure that sacred images, icons, artwork, furnishings, and spaces are present and facilitate opportunities for living encounters with God?

Principle IV: Integrally Forms the Human Person

A complex task of Catholic education is the integral formation of students as physical, intellectual, and spiritual beings called to perfect humanity in the fullness of Christ.61 The human person is “created in ‘the image and likeness’ of God; elevated by God to the dignity of a child of God; unfaithful to God in original sin, but redeemed by Christ; a temple of the Holy Spirit; a member of the Church; destined to eternal life.”62 Catholic education assists students to become aware of the gift of Faith, worship God the Father, develop into mature adults who bear witness to the Mystical Body of Christ, respect the dignity of the human person, provide service, lead apostolic lives, and build the Kingdom of God.63

Catholic education forms the conscience through commitment to authentic Catholic doctrine.  It develops the virtues and characteristics associated with what it means to be Christian so as to resist relativism, overcome individualism, and discover vocations to serve God and others.64 “Intellectual development and growth as a Christian go forward hand in hand” where faith, culture, and life are integrated throughout the school’s program to provide students a personal closeness to Christ enriched by virtues, values, and supernatural gifts.65 As a child of God, made in his image, human formation includes the development of personal Christian ethics and respect for the body by promoting healthy development, physical activity, and chastity.66

In Catholic education, “There is no separation between time for learning and time for formation, between acquiring notions and growing in wisdom”; education and pedagogy, inspired by Gospel values and distinguished by the “illumination of all knowledge with the light of faith” allows formation to become living, conscious and active.67 The atmosphere is characterized by discovery and awareness that enkindles a love for truth and a desire to know the universe as God’s creation. The Christian educational program facilitates critical thinking that is ordered, precise, and responsible as it builds strength and perseverance in pursuit of the truth.68

Questions to Aid Reflection or Assessment

  • How does the school ensure that members of the community (board, administration faculty, staff, volunteers, students, and parents) are committed to the integral formation of students?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers have the necessary knowledge, skills, dispositions and ongoing training for the integral formation of students?
  • How does the school ensure consistency and harmony between the home and school, meaningful involvement of parents, and responsiveness to the needs of parents in the integral formation of students?
  • How does the school evaluate programs and personnel to ensure the integral formation of students?
  • How does the school ensure a strong foundation in catechesis for students to understand and appreciate the teachings and traditions of the Catholic Church?
  • How is the Catholic faith integrated into academic, co-curricular, and extracurricular programs?
  • How does the school’s catechetical program engage both the intellect and will of students?
  • How does the school’s program provide students with an understanding of the history of the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school integrate the teachings of the Church when addressing ecumenical and interreligious issues?
  • How does the school ensure students’ moral formation is faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school instill in students a desire to live the truth and practice holiness in their daily lives?
  • How does the school teach students that authentic freedom is the ability to do what God desires for them and not just what one wants to do?
  • How does the school instill in students a respect for religious freedom and a sense of responsibility for its protection and use?
  • How does the school instill in students the virtue and wisdom needed to avoid sin, the near occasion of sin, and the loss of a sense of sin?
  • How do the school’s disciplinary policies reflect a commitment to teach virtue?
  • How does the school express the reality of God’s mercy and forgiveness so students, in turn, will model mercy and forgiveness for others?
  • How does the school instill in students the Christian obligation to live lives of love and service, seek justice, and minister to the poor, marginalized, and outcast?
  • How does the school instill in students an understanding and appreciation for the moral and social teachings of the Church?
  • How does the school acknowledge and encourage virtuous behavior throughout the school community?
  • How does the school ensure a commitment to the integration of Catholic intellectual traditions throughout the academic program?
  • How does the school’s educational philosophy, standards, and pedagogy embrace knowledge for its own sake and move beyond an accumulation of knowledge for utilitarian ends?
  • How does the school provide for learning opportunities that develop creativity, reflection, critical thinking, and moral decision-making?
  • How does the school assist students to integrate faith and life?
  • How does the school provide for interdisciplinary instruction to expose underlying relationships between subject matters?
  • How does the school promote dialogue between faith and reason?
  • How does the school foster in students a love for truth and a desire for knowledge about God and His creation?
  • How does the school introduce students to the transcendentals of truth, beauty, and goodness?
  • How does the school teach students to confront materialism and relativism?
  • How does the school ensure that academic disciplines and instruction instill in students ethical and religious principles faithful to Catholic teaching?
  • How does the school ensure that students understand and appreciate man’s integral nature as both a spiritual and physical being?
  • How does the school instill in students an understanding that man is created by God, made in His image and likeness, and destined for eternal life with Him?
  • How does the school instill in students a respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life?
  • How does the school monitor human sexuality programs and teaching about other sensitive topics to ensure fidelity to teachings of the Church?
  • How does the school partner with and respect the role of parents as primary educators when introducing topics of a sensitive nature into the curriculum?
  • How does the school instill and promote in students the virtue of chastity?
  • How do the school’s expectations for decency and modesty in speech, action, and dress encourage respect for one’s body and the dignity of others?
  • How does the school prepare students to resist the temptations associated with misuse of technology and the negative influences of secular media?
  • How does the school instill in students a Christian view of family life and the vocation of marriage as an expression of Trinitarian love?
  • How does the school assist students to understand the relationship between mind, body, and soul and the importance of caring for one’s spiritual, physical, and mental well-being?
  • How does the school provide for the unique needs of students who have educational, developmental, or physical exceptionalities?
  • How does the school ensure that co-curricular and extracurricular programs provide for the integral formation of students in mind, body, and spirit?
  • How does the school ensure that students understand and appreciate the integral formation of mind, body, and soul in co-curricular and extracurricular activities?
  • How does the school approve clubs, co-curricular, and extracurricular activities that are faithful to the Church’s teaching and allow for the intellectual, physical, and spiritual formation of students?
  • How does the school’s athletic program contribute to the spiritual development of students and allow them to grow in Christian virtue?
  • How do the visual and performing arts foster the integral formation of students and aid in the development of Christian virtue?
  • How often does the school create opportunities for extracurricular service projects to allow students to build the Kingdom of God through ministry to the poor, marginalized, and outcast?
  • How do field trips enhance the intellectual, spiritual, or physical formation of students?
  • How do school dances and music selections foster the integral formation of students and aid in the development of Christian virtue?

Principle V: Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World

In the light of faith, Catholic education critically and systematically transmits the secular and religious “cultural patrimony handed down from previous generations,” especially that which makes a person more human and contributes to the integral formation of students.69 Both educator and student are called to participate in the dialogue of culture and to pursue “the integration of culture with faith and of faith with living.”70 Catholic education imparts “a Christian vision of the world, of life, of culture, and of history,” ordering “the whole of human culture to the news of salvation.”71 This hallmark of Catholic education, to “bring human wisdom into an encounter with divine wisdom,”72 cultivates “in students the intellectual, creative, and aesthetic faculties of the human person,” introduces a cultural heritage, and prepares them for professional life and to take on the responsibilities and duties of society and the Church.73 Students are prepared to work for the evangelization of culture and for the common good of society.74

Questions to Aid in Reflection or Assessment

  • How does the school ensure that members of the community (board, administration, faculty, staff, volunteers, students and parents) are committed to imparting a Christian understanding of the world?
  • How does the school ensure that employees and volunteers have the necessary knowledge, skills, dispositions and ongoing training to impart a Christian understanding of the world?
  • How does the school ensure consistency and harmony between home and school, meaningful involvement of parents, and responsiveness to the needs of the parents in imparting a Christian understanding of the world?
  • How does the school evaluate programs and personnel to ensure that they impart a Christian understanding of the world?
  • How does the school ensure the transmission of Catholic culture to allow for a Christian understanding of the world?
  • How does the school emphasize Catholic contributions to theology, philosophy, ethics, literature, science, mathematics, and the visual and performing arts?
  • How does the school ensure that students understand the impact of a Catholic worldview on language, idioms, intellectual tradition, and stories of western culture?
  • How does the school ensure that students gain cultural literacy and fluency in language, idioms, stories, civics, and knowledge that forms the American experience?
  • How does the school ensure that students gain cultural literacy and fluency in language, idioms, stories, philosophy, civics, and knowledge that forms the Western experience?
  • How does the school foster appreciation for the good and beautiful, when it can be found in a culture’s accomplishments, traditions, and arts?
  • How does the school ensure that Catholic culture is transmitted with attention to its religious dimension?
  • How does the school present a Christian anthropology of man (e.g., who man is, especially in his relationship with God and creation; man’s bodily integrity and human dignity)?
  • How does the school instill Catholic values?
  • How does the school ensure that curriculum standards, guides, texts, and pedagogy integrate truths of the Catholic faith?
  • How does the school instill in students analytical reasoning and ethics to critically evaluate culture according to Catholic moral and social teachings?
  • How does the school engage students in dialogue comparing culture and the Catholic faith?
  • How does the school encourage students to pursue an integration of culture with faith and faith with living?
  • How does the school ensure that students are prepared to evangelize culture and their fellow man?
  • How does the school form students’ intellectual, creative, and aesthetic faculties to assist in ordering culture to God’s will and truth?
  • How does the school instill in students the desire to serve the common good and promote human rights, human dignity, and religious freedom?
  • How does the school prepare students for professional life to fulfill responsibilities and duties to society and the Church?
  • How does the school explicitly encourage students to bring others to Christ and grow the Church?

 

 

 

Principles Parent Guide

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Principles of Catholic Identity in Education: Parent Guide is designed to help current and prospective parents reflect upon those elements the Church expects to be present in all Catholic schools and which distinguish them from other schools.

The reflection is structured upon five principles of Catholic identity derived from Church documents related to education. The five principles that help structure this guide and questions are: Inspired by Divine Mission; Models Christian Communion and Identity; Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture, and Sacrament; Integrally Forms the Human Person and Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World.

Part I includes a comprehensive and concise summary of each principle[1] and is followed by a series of suggested questions intended to serve as a tool for parents, as well as community members, to consider a school’s Catholic identity.

Part II provides additional quotes from Church documents for individuals who might be interested in learning more about what the Church teaches in the areas covered by the principles.

Intention for Use

Principles of Catholic Identity in Education: Parent Guide helps current and prospective parents consider the Catholic identity of a school.[2] Although essential, Catholic identity is only one of many facets which comprise a school’s operations.

Suggestions for Use

Prospective parents can use the guide while initially reviewing a school’s website and marketing literature to see if the school might be a good fit for their family. When touring the school, parents can ask a few of the most important questions from the guide which they feel are essential to their decision-making.

Current parents can use the guide to help aid the school in maintaining or improving its Catholic identity.

Part II of the guide offers additional quotes from Church documents to help parents attain a deeper understanding of what the Church teaches about her schools.

Principle I: Inspired by Divine Mission

Catholic education is an expression of the Church’s mission of salvation and an instrument of evangelization:39 to make disciples of Christ and to teach them to observe all that He has commanded.40  Through Catholic education, students encounter God, “who in Jesus Christ reveals His transforming love and truth.”44 Christ is the foundation of Catholic education;45 He journeys with students through school and life as “genuine Teacher” and “perfect Man.”46 As a faith community in unity with the Church and in fidelity to the Magisterium, students, parents, and educators give witness to Christ’s loving communion in the Holy Trinity.47 With this Christian vision, Catholic education fulfills its purpose of “critical, systematic transmission of culture in the light of faith”48 and the integral formation of the human person by developing each student’s physical, moral, spiritual, and intellectual gifts in harmony, teaching responsibility and right use of freedom, and preparing students to fulfill God’s calling in this world and to attain the eternal kingdom for which they were created.49 Catholic education is sustained by the frequent experience of prayer, Sacred Scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.50

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review

Mission and Educational Philosophy

  • Does the school’s mission statement and/or educational philosophy (typically found on the school website or beginning pages of the student handbook) reflect the mission of Catholic education to form students as disciples of Christ?
  • Does the school’s mission statement indicate and explain any of the following areas? If so, how?
    • The school is a place of encountering God and his love and truth.
    • The school has Christ as its foundation.
    • The school is a community united with the Church.
    • The school is faithful to the Magisterium.
    • The school provides frequent opportunities for prayer, sacred scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental traditions.
    • The school engages in the integral formation of the human person – spiritual, intellectual, and physical.
    • The school presents a Christian worldview of humanity emphasizing the dignity of the human person.
    • The school transmits culture in the light of faith.
    • The school prepares students to be instruments of evangelization.
  • Is the school proudly and strongly Catholic in its identity? How is this evident?

Principle II: Models Christian Communion and Identity

Catholic education teaches communion with Christ, by living communion with Christ and imitating the love and freedom of the Trinity.51 This communion begins in the home—with the divinely ordered right and responsibility of parents to educate their children—and extends to the school community in support and service to the needs of the family.52 It unites families and educators with a shared educational philosophy to form students for a relationship with God and with others.53 The educational community is united to the universal Church in fidelity to the magisterium, to the local Church, and to other schools and community organizations.54

The school community is a place of ecclesial experience, in which the members model confident and joyful public witness in both word and action and teach students to live the Catholic faith in their daily lives.60 In an environment “humanly and spiritually rich,” everyone is aware of the living presence of Jesus evidenced by a Christian way of life, expressed in “Word and Sacrament, in individual behaviour, [and] in friendly and harmonious relationships.”61 The school climate reproduces, as far as possible, the “warm and intimate atmosphere of family life.”62 As members of the Church community, students experience what it means to live a life of prayer, personal responsibility, and freedom reflective of Gospel values. This, in turn, leads them to grow in their commitment to serve God, one another, the Church, and the society.66

All teachers and leaders possess adequate skills, preparation, and religious formation and possess special qualities of mind and heart as well as the sensitivity necessary for authentic witness to the gospel and the task of human formation.67 Teachers and leaders of the educational community should be “practicing Catholics, who can understand and accept the teachings of the Catholic Church and the moral demands of the Gospel and who can contribute to the achievement of the school’s Catholic identity and apostolic goals.”68

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review

Communion in General

  • Does the school environment evidence a Christian way of life that reproduces, as far as possible, the warm and intimate atmosphere of family life? How so?
  • Does the school community appear open and inviting or overly exclusive? How so?

Communion with Parents

  • Is the school community welcoming and appreciative of parents? How so?
  • Are parents recognized as the primary educators of their children? How so?

Communion among Students

  • Do students appear to treat each other with respect and kindness? Do students engage openly and freely with each other? Do there appear to be social cliques or other restrictive groupings? If so, how is this evident?
  • Do students appear to help each other grow and flourish? Is there evidence of students showing each other compassion and acceptance? How so?
  • How has the school addressed any bullying, detraction, or belittling? Is there a Gospel-based plan to address these types of conflicts?

Communion with the Broader Community

  • Do students actively and joyfully defend the rights of the most vulnerable: the unborn, the elderly, the disabled, the homeless and shut-in, the handicapped and marginalized? How so?
  • Are students active in service programs for the school and for the community? Do they perform voluntary service? How does the school assist students in developing a concern for others and the common good?
  • How are students able to experience the universality of the Catholic Church beyond the school walls? Do students appear to feel at home in the Catholic Church and embrace it outside of the school experience?
  • Does the school interact positively with other area Catholic schools, parishes, the diocesan school office, and auxiliary efforts of the universal Church?

Christian Atmosphere

  • Does the faculty appear to enjoy their call to the apostolate of education? How is this evident?
  • Do faculty members spend non-classroom time with students? When?
  • Do faculty members interact and socialize with students in ways that are both appropriate and joyful? How?
  • Do faculty members understand and offer mercy and forgiveness to students when they fall? To parents? Examples.

Christian Vocation

  • Do teachers appear to naturally relate subject material to aspects of the Catholic faith?
  • Do all faculty members frequently, openly, and naturally pray with students in both formal and informal ways? Do all faculty joyfully attend Mass and other prayer activities of the school?

Christian Witness

  • In what ways does the faculty witness the Gospel message? Do they live the Gospel with integrity in the entirety of their lives? Are their personal witness and living consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church?
  • How does the school assist faculty and staff with opportunities to grow in faith and in virtue?
  • Since the Catholic mission of the school depends almost entirely on the faculty, does there appear to be fellowship among the faculty and unity in mission? How so?

Principle III: Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture, and Sacrament

Rooted in Christ, Catholic education is continually fed and stimulated by Him in the frequent experience of prayer, scripture, and the Church’s liturgical and sacramental tradition.69 The transmission of faith, catechesis, is intrinsically linked to these living encounters with Christ, by which He nurtures and educates souls in the divine life of grace and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.72 By their witness and sharing in these encounters, educators help students grow in understanding of what it means to be a member of the Church.73 Students discover the real value of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Reconciliation, in accompanying the Christian in the journey through life. They learn “to open their hearts in confidence to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through personal and liturgical prayer,” which makes the mystery of Christ present to students.74

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review

Below are a series of questions to facilitate reflection and to begin a discussion of how one encounters Christ in the school. Choose areas for discussion as time allows.

Prayer

  • Is prayer a norm in the school? How do you know?
  • Do students pray:
    • at the start and end of school?
    • before meals?
    •  before classes?
    • before athletic events?
    • at assemblies and events?
  • Are students required to know traditional Catholic prayers and practices?
  • Is quiet time and space provided for a peaceful encounter with Christ?
  • Are retreats available? How many? Are they appropriate and effective? Do students enjoy and attend them and grow in faith? Are they spiritually substantial and well-organized? What evidence is there for these?

Sacraments

  • How frequently do students attend Mass as a school? Is it required or voluntary? If voluntary, how many students attend?
  • Are there opportunities for Eucharistic adoration, benediction, and/or processions?
  • How often is confession available for students?
  • Is quality spiritual direction available to students? Vocational discernment opportunities?

Spiritual Life of the School

  • Does the faculty participate in the school’s spiritual life?
  • Are non-Catholic students invited to participated in the spiritual life of the school as much as they are able? Is there a program for students inquiring about joining the Catholic Church?
  • Are parents involved in the spiritual and sacramental life of the school? How?
  • How does the school celebrate the liturgical year, Holy Days of Obligation, Saints, and feast days?
  • Is the Rosary prayed and special devotion given to our Blessed Mother?
  • Is there a particular religious charism of the school that students know, understand, and practice?

Sacred Environment

  • Upon entering the school, does one experience a sense of hospitality and sacredness?
  • Are sacred works of art (paintings, statues, crucifixes, and other symbols) used to enhance the sense of transcendence and Catholic identity throughout the school?

Principle IV: Integrally Forms the Human Person

The complex task of Catholic education is the integral formation of students as physical, intellectual, and spiritual beings called to perfect humanity in the fullness of Christ, which is their right by Baptism.75 The human person is “created in ‘the image and likeness’ of God; elevated by God to the dignity of a child of God; unfaithful to God in original sin, but redeemed by Christ; a temple of the Holy Spirit, a member of the Church; destined to eternal life.”76 Catholic education assists students to become aware of the gift of Faith, worship God the Father, develop into mature adults who bear witness to the Mystical Body of Christ, respect the dignity of the human person, provide service, lead apostolic lives, and build the Kingdom of God.77

Catholic education forms the conscience through commitment to authentic Catholic doctrine. It develops the virtues and characteristics associated with what it means to be Christian so as to resist relativism, overcome individualism, and discover vocations to serve God and others.78 “Intellectual development and growth as a Christian go forward hand in hand” where faith, culture, and life are integrated throughout the school’s program to provide students a personal closeness to Christ enriched by virtues, values, and supernatural gifts.79 As a child of God, made in his image, human formation includes the development of personal Christian ethics and respect for the body by promoting healthy development, physical activity, and chastity.80

In Catholic education, “There is no separation between time for learning and time for formation, between acquiring notions and growing in wisdom”; education and pedagogy inspired by Gospel values and distinguished by the “illumination of all knowledge with the light of faith” allows formation to become living, conscious and active.81 The atmosphere is characterized by discovery and awareness that enkindles a love for truth, and a desire to know the universe as God’s creation. The Christian educational program facilitates critical thinking that is ordered, precise, and responsible as it builds strength and perseverance in pursuit of the truth.82

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review:

Philosophy

  • Is knowledge and learning celebrated for its own sake and worth, or is knowledge viewed as a means to an end, a necessary commodity to get to the next level of high school, college, or career?
  • Where and how are students formed in wisdom as opposed to simply knowledge? (Wisdom is the knowledge of ultimate causes, explanations, and principles. It addresses the big picture questions of life, such as “What is the purpose of life?” “What is a good life?” “Is there a God and how do I know He exists?”)
  • Does a Christian understanding of the human person, as an integrated body and soul created in the image and likeness of God, form the basis for a balanced approach to student formation, especially in curricular and extra-curricular course selections and opportunities? How is this evident?
  • Where and how are students exposed to concepts inherent to all of humanity, such as truth, beauty, and goodness?

Pedagogy

  • Are faculty versatile in the areas of both academic content and catechesis? Do they enrich discussions in any discipline or on any topic with a spiritual and faith-based perspective naturally and with ease? How is this evident?
  • Are different academic disciplines explicitly related to reflect the unity of truth and the interrelationships among topics?
  • Are students challenged to seek the Truth? Are there courses or programs to train students to see beyond public opinion and contemporary culture?
  • Are adequate counseling and professional services available to students with special needs or circumstances?

Spiritual Development

  • Does the school’s catechetical effort appear well thought out and focused on the development of a fully integrated faith life which engages the students’ intellect and will and finds expression in their day-to-day lives?
  • Is religion class required each year for all students?
  • Are students required to know the basics of the Catholic faith and doctrine appropriate to their grade level?
  • Where and how are foundational principles of Catholic Social Teaching explicitly taught?
  • Are all Catholic materials presented in catechetical coursework without any doctrinal error and completely faithful to Catholic teaching as presented in the Catechism of the Catholic Church?
  • Is the Catechism of the Catholic Church listed as a textbook for religion classes? Other classes?
  • Are there mixed signals that “some” Church doctrine is in error, can be ignored, or is not as important as others? How is this evident?
  • Is Sacred Scripture an integral part of students’ school life? How is this evident?

Moral Development

  • Does the school teach and emphasize living a life of virtue? How and where?
  • Is the discipline/formation program virtue based? Is the program developmentally sensitive and focused on human dignity and the flourishing of the person?
  • Does the school incorporate the Catechism of the Catholic Church into all programs of moral development?
  • Does the school have a program (separate or integrated into its theology program) advocating purity of life and chastity in all relationships?
  • Are parents informed of and involved in all human sexuality programs administered by the school?
  • Are parents allowed to opt out their students from these programs or other sensitive programs or initiatives of the school?
  • Does the school address contemporary moral issues (such as gender identity and homosexuality) from a faithful Catholic perspective or do they give in to societal pressures?
  • How does the school address the possible misuse of technology by students?
  • Does the school make it a point to address the moral and ethical flashpoints between Catholicism and the common culture? Is instruction and personal witness by adults clear on the issues of the dignity of all human life and the particular evils of abortion and euthanasia; the sanctity of natural marriage as the in-dissolvable lifelong union of one man and one woman; the beauty and fullness of human sexuality which can only be properly exercised by married couples in the service of both love and life? Where and how is this evident?
  • Where does the school discuss issues of objective truth and moral relativism?

Physical Development and Expression

  • Are there sufficient programs in place to address the physical development and expression of students?
  • Do these programs support the integral formation of students by bringing in spirituality, intellectual growth, and maturing discernment? How so?
  • Do extra-curricular programs assist students in developing into the fullness of their humanity in Christ? How so?
  • Is there a protocol in place for the evaluation of new programs, or additional components to existing programs, to ensure they further the mission of Catholic education?
  • Does the school offer dances or other social gatherings where students are instructed in aspects of appropriate social behavior, showing respect and dignity for members of the opposite sex, their peers, and adults?
  • Is the school known for its sportsmanship and Christian witness both on and off the court or field?
  • Are sports programs balanced with other curricular and extra-curricular activities of the school?
  • Does the school have a pro-active, formative outlet to assist students who may be found struggling with drug, alcohol, or mental addictions?
  • How does the school support at-risk students: those students living in poverty or with single parents or guardians?

Principle V: Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World

In the light of faith, Catholic education critically and systematically transmits the secular and religious “cultural patrimony handed down from previous generations,” especially that which makes a person more human and contributes to the integral formation of students.83 Both educator and student are called to participate in the dialogue with culture and to pursue “the integration of culture with faith and faith with living.”84 Catholic education imparts a “Christian vision of the world, of life, of culture, and of history,” ordering “the whole of human culture to the news of salvation.”85 This hallmark of Catholic education, to “bring human wisdom into an encounter with divine wisdom,”86 cultivates “in students the intellectual, creative, and aesthetic faculties of the human person,” introduces a cultural heritage, and prepares them for professional life and to take on the responsibilities and duties of society and the Church.87 Students are prepared to work for the evangelization of culture and for the common good of society.88

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review – Traditions, Values, and Evangelization:

Catholic Culture

  • Does the school exude a Catholic culture? How? (For example emphasis on Catholic traditions, stories, symbols, language, music, artwork.)
  • Do students appear comfortable within this Catholic culture?

Common Culture

  • Do students have opportunities to interact with the best of common human culture? Are they exposed to the best of contemporary culture’s music, drama, art, and dance? Are students exposed and formed in the best of culture’s social etiquette (e.g., manners, politeness, and other social graces)?
  • Are students challenged, equipped, and supported to stand strong against harmful elements of popular culture?
  • Does there appear to be harmony between the school’s culture and the Catholic faith, between faith and everyday living? Does the school “walk the walk” and not just “talk the talk”?

Culture and Curriculum

  • Does the school attempt to integrate disciplines or concepts between one academic discipline and another?
  • Has the school conformed to any educational paradigms or societal norms which jeopardize or dilute its mission of Catholic education?
  • Do secular school standards (such as the Common Core, International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement, etc.), in whole or in part, inform the curriculum? What particular Catholic standards are offered instead of, or in addition to, secular standards in each discipline so as to further Catholic culture and a rich intellectual life?

Evangelization

  • Does the school address interreligious issues in theology classes, religious instruction, and throughout academic disciplines in a way that remains faithful to the evangelistic mission of the Church?
  • Is emphasis placed on equipping students to transform and evangelize the common culture?
  • Are teachers, through their personal daily witness, capable of providing an attractive example of faithful Christian living for students?

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review – History, Literature, & the Arts:

Literature Curriculum

  • Is literature selected that teaches by positive or negative example what it means to be genuinely and fully human and ethical as understood by the Catholic Church and as modeled by the one perfect man, Jesus?
  • Is literature used to develop a general awareness of a lived Catholic worldview and approach to life? Does the literature we use accurately portray Catholics and the Catholic experience?
  • Is literature selected to assist students to move beyond the “self”? Are sufficient examples of nobility, imagination, and healthy adventure presented to students for their inspiration and emulation?
  • Are literature selections appropriate for the development and sensibilities or growth in virtue for students?
  • Is literature selected to develop a general cultural literacy and familiarity with the great works of the world? Where, and how, do students gain cultural literacy of the great books which have influenced western thought?
  • Is literature and reading promoted for the sheer joy and creativity of the experience? Are the imaginations of students properly feed with excellent works letting them grow in wonder and delight?
  • Is there a written process explained within the parent/student handbook or website allowing for parental concerns to literature selections?

History Curriculum

  • Does the school present history from a Catholic worldview? If secular textbooks are used, how are they supplemented to achieve this?
  • Does the school’s program include an account of the history of the Catholic Church and its impact in human events? How and where does the program include the stories of important Catholic figures and saints in the development of human history?
  • How are students challenged to evaluate history in light of Catholic moral norms so as to improve their own moral life and decision-making?
  • How is history used to discover the motivating values that have informed particular societies and how these motivating values correlate with Catholic teaching?
  • Does the social studies curriculum help students understand and commit to the common good, particularly the needs of the poor, injustices, human rights and dignity, and threats to religious freedom?

Music and Arts Curriculum

  • Does the school have a robust music and visual arts program? How active is it?
  • In what ways does the school help students develop a discriminating taste for art or music?
  • Does the school’s program nurture healthy creativity, mirroring that part of humanity that makes us in the image and likeness of God?

Questions to Aid Discernment and Review – Science and Math:

Science Curriculum

  • Is it evident that the Catholic faith is integrated into the science curriculum?
  • Does the science curriculum promote the unity of faith and reason, instilling confidence there exists no contradiction between the God of nature and the God of faith? How? Where?
  • Does the science curriculum develop in students a deep sense of wonder about the natural universe and the beauty and goodness of God? How is this evident?
  • Does the science program use any additional faith-based materials, or does the school provide a separate scientific topics course or class time, to discuss complex issues of creation, evolution, care for the environment, and respect for the human person (and the human body) from a Catholic perspective?
  • Does the science program present the significant contributions of the Catholic Church and Catholic scientists such as Mendel, Lavoisier, Pasteur, Galileo, Gregor, Volta, and Copernicus?

Mathematics Curriculum

  • Does the mathematics program assist students to see beauty within the academic discipline?
  • Does the school use mathematics as a tool to develop intellectual discipline and a love of order?
  • Is mathematics seen as a tool to open the mind to the wonders of creation? Is a sense of wonder developed about mathematical relationships and the glory and dignity of human reason as both a gift from God and a reflection of Him?
  • Are students guided in developing their reason for precise, determined, and accurate questioning and inquiry in the pursuit of infinite and ultimate knowledge and Truth?

Part II

Further Reflection on What the Church Teaches About Principle I – Inspired by Divine Mission

Vatican II describes a Catholic school’s mission as one of leading all students to salvation by helping them become prayerful, moral, and Christ-like individuals to build the Church on earth, evangelize the world, and contribute to the common good.

A Christian education does not merely strive for the maturing of a human person as just now described, but has as its principal purpose this goal: that the baptized, while they are gradually introduced the knowledge of the mystery of salvation, become ever more aware of the gift of Faith they have received, and that they learn in addition how to worship God the Father in spirit and truth (cf. John 4:23) especially in liturgical action, and be conformed in their personal lives according to the new man created in justice and holiness of truth (Eph. 4:22-24); also that they develop into perfect manhood, to the mature measure of the fullness of Christ (cf. Eph. 4:13) and strive for the growth of the Mystical Body; moreover, that aware of their calling, they learn not only how to bear witness to the hope that is in them (cf. Peter 3:15) but also how to help in the Christian formation of the world that takes place when natural powers viewed in the full consideration of man redeemed by Christ contribute to the good of the whole society.89

This notion is carried forth in subsequent documents which again emphasize the evangelizing mission of Catholic education for personal sanctification and social reform.

Catholic education is an expression of the mission entrusted by Jesus to the Church He founded. Through education, the Church seeks to prepare its members to proclaim the Good News and to translate this proclamation into action. Since the Christian vocation is a call to transform oneself and society with God’s help, the educational efforts of the Church must encompass the twin purposes of personal sanctification and the social reform in light of Christian values.90

How a school accomplishes this mission includes many elements, but chief among them are a focus on Christ, especially his life and his teachings. Church documents on education consistently emphasize a Christocentric dimension for the school’s existence.

Christ is the foundation of the whole educational enterprise in a Catholic school. His revelation gives new meaning to life and helps man to direct his thought, action and will according to the Gospel, making the beatitudes his norm of life. The fact that in their own individual ways all members of the school community share this Christian vision makes the school “Catholic”; principles of the Gospel in this manner become the educational norms since the school then has them as its internal motivation and final goal.91

In a Catholic school, everyone should be aware of the living presence of Jesus the “Master” who, today as always, is with us in our journey through life as the one genuine “Teacher,” the perfect Man in whom all human values find their fullest perfection. The inspiration of Jesus must be translated from the ideal into the real. The gospel spirit should be evident in a Christian way of thought and life which permeates all facets of the educational climate.92

We also need to ensure our students encounter His presence in Scripture, in the Sacraments, in prayer, in each other, and in their studies. As Pope Benedict XVI noted:

First and foremost every Catholic educational institution is a place to encounter the living God who in Jesus Christ reveals his transforming love and truth (cf. Spe Salvi, 4). This relationship elicits a desire to grow in the knowledge and understanding of Christ and his teaching. In this way those who meet him are drawn by the very power of the Gospel to lead a new life characterized by all that is beautiful, good, and true; a life of Christian witness nurtured and strengthened within the community of our Lord’s disciples, the Church.93

This helps create a distinctive Catholic school experience in culture, climate, and community.

The Catholic school pursues cultural goals and the natural development of youth to the same degree as any other school. What makes the Catholic school distinctive is its attempt to generate a community climate in the school that is permeated by the Gospel spirit of freedom and love…The Council, therefore, declared that what makes the Catholic school distinctive is its religious dimension, and that this is to be found in a) the educational climate, b) the personal development of each student, c) the relationship established between culture and the Gospel, d) the illumination of all knowledge with the light of faith.94

A further distinctive element to the mission and experience of a Catholic school is its dedication to integral formation. This integral formation is the unique way the Church responds to the complex and real crisis of the age facing her children and facing the world as a whole.

Education today is a complex task, which is made more difficult by rapid social, economic, and cultural changes. Its specific mission remains the integral formation of the human person. Children and young people must be guaranteed the possibility of developing harmoniously their own physical, moral, intellectual and spiritual gifts, and they must also be helped to develop their sense of responsibility, learn the correct use of freedom, and participate actively in social life (cf. c. 795 Code of Canon Law [Law]; c. 629 Code of Canons for the Eastern Churches [CCEO]). A form of education that ignores or marginalises the moral and religious dimension of the person is a hindrance to full education, because “children and young people have a right to be motivated to appraise moral values with a right conscience, to embrace them with a personal adherence, together with a deeper knowledge and love of God.95

In summary, Catholic education is part of the saving mission of the Church.

She establishes her own schools because she considers them as a privileged means of promoting the formation of the whole man, since the school is a center in which a specific concept of the world, of man, and of history is developed and conveyed. The Catholic school forms part of the saving mission of the Church, especially for education in the faith. Remembering that, “the simultaneous development of man’s psychological and moral consciousness is demanded by Christ almost as a pre-condition for the reception of the befitting divine gifts of truth and grace”. The Church fulfills her obligation to foster in her children a full awareness of their rebirth to a new life. It is precisely in the Gospel of Christ, taking root in the minds and lives of the faithful, that the Catholic school finds its definition as it comes to terms with the cultural conditions of the times.96

It must never be forgotten that the purpose of instruction at school is education, that is, the development of man from within, freeing him from that conditioning which would prevent him from becoming a fully integrated human being. The school must begin from the principle that its educational program is intentionally directed to the growth of the whole person.97

Further Reflection on What the Church Teaches About Principle II – Models Christian Communion and Identity

Part 1 – Encourages and Participates in Christian Communion

The Church teaches that education cannot be accomplished in isolation but finds success when all those responsible for the education of the child work together.

Because its aim is to make man more man, education can be carried out authentically only in a relational and community context. It is not by chance that the first and original educational environment is that of the natural community of the family. Schools, in their turn, take their place beside the family as an educational space that is communitarian, organic and intentional and they sustain their educational commitment, according to a logic of assistance.98

Through the building up of interpersonal relationships between colleagues, students, and families as well as between the school community and universal Church and

By giving witness of communion, the Catholic educational community is able to educate for communion, which, as a gift that comes from above, animates the project of formation for living together in harmony and being welcoming. Not only does it cultivate in the students the cultural values that derive from the Christian vision of reality, but it also involves each one of them in the life of the community, where values are mediated by authentic interpersonal relationships among the various members that form it, and by the individual and community acceptance of them. In this way, the life of communion of the educational community assumes the value of an educational principle, of a paradigm that directs its formational action as a service for the achievement of a culture of communion.99

This community facilitates openness for the sharing of values and must not remain an ideal but become a lived and felt reality.

The school must be a community whose values are communicated through the interpersonal and sincere relationships of its members and through both individual and corporative adherence to the outlook on life that permeates the school.100

How is this done?

Some of the conditions for creating a positive and supportive climate are the following: that everyone agree with the educational goals and cooperate in achieving them; that interpersonal relationships be based on love and Christian freedom; that each individual, in daily life, be a witness to Gospel values; that every student be challenged to strive for the highest possible level of formation, both human and Christian. In addition, the climate must be one in which families are welcomed, the local Church is an active participant, and civil society—local, national, and international—is included. If all share a common faith, this can be an added advantage.101

So while the community of the school builds on the family and is lived and nurtured within its walls, the students should also experience a sense of belonging to the community of the universal Church.

Concretely, the educational goals of the school include a concern for the life and the problems of the Church, both local and universal. These goals are attentive to the Magisterium, and include cooperation with Church authorities. Catholic students are helped to become active members of the parish and diocesan communities. They have opportunities to join Church associations and Church youth groups, and they are taught to collaborate in local Church projects.102

Finally, this ecclesial community is destined not for itself but to be of service to the common good of the world through evangelization and service.

More than any other program of education sponsored by the Church, the Catholic school has the opportunity and obligation to be unique, contemporary, and oriented to Christian service; unique because it is distinguished by its commitment to the threefold purpose of Christian education and by its total design and operation which foster the integration of religion with the rest of learning and living; contemporary because it enables students to address with Christian insight the multiple problems which face individuals and society today; oriented to Christian service because it helps students acquire skills, virtues, and habits of heart and mind required for effective service to others.103

Part 2 – Models Communion in Christ

The community of a Catholic school begins with its faculty and staff and is fostered by its board. Teachers play a special role in creating an enriching atmosphere throughout the school.

In the Catholic school, “prime responsibility for creating this unique Christian school climate rests with the teachers, as individuals and as a community”. Teaching has an extraordinary moral depth and is one of man’s most excellent and creative activities, for the teacher does not write on inanimate material, but on the very spirits of human beings. The personal relations between the teacher and the students, therefore, assume an enormous importance and are not limited simply to giving and taking. Moreover, we must remember that teachers and educators fulfill a specific Christian vocation and share an equally specific participation in the mission of the Church, to the extent that “it depends chiefly on them whether the Catholic school achieves its purpose.”104

For this reason, Catholic educators need a “formation of the heart”: they need to be led to that encounter with God in Christ which awakens their love and opens their spirits to others, so that their educational commitment becomes «a consequence deriving from their faith, a faith which becomes active through love. In fact, even care for instruction means loving. It is only in this way that they can make their teaching a school of faith, that is to say, a transmission of the Gospel, as required by the educational project of the Catholic school.105

The success of the faculty and staff in creating a community that assists in leading students to communion with Christ and His Church depends upon their authentic witness and faithfulness in both word and action.

The more completely an educator can give concrete witness to the model of the ideal person [Christ] that is being presented to the students, the more this ideal will be believed and imitated.106

In light of this, the Church insists

Instruction and education in a Catholic school must be based on the principles of Catholic doctrine, and the teachers must be outstanding in true doctrine and uprightness of life.107

Because authentic and lived teaching and living in communion is so critical to a Catholic school’s mission, the board needs to hire a faithful and practicing Catholic principal who in turn is capable of identifying and hiring Catholic teachers willing to participate in the mission of Catholic education to the fullest extent possible.

Under the direction of the pastor or the duly elected or appointed school board, the principal of the Catholic school plays a crucial role in achieving the catechetical objectives of the parish…Therefore, the principal of a Catholic school must be a practicing Catholic in good standing who understands and accepts the teachings of the Church and the moral demands of the Gospel.108

As a catechetical leader in the Catholic School, the principal is called to recruit teachers who are practicing Catholics, who can understand and accept the teachings of the Catholic Church and the moral demands of the gospel, and who can contribute to the achievement of the school’s Catholic identity and apostolic goals…As a catechetical leader in the Catholic school, the principal is called to provide opportunities for ongoing catechesis for faculty members…The distinctive Catholic identity and mission of the Catholic school also depend on the efforts and example of the whole faculty…All teachers in Catholic schools share in the catechetical ministry… While some situations might entail compelling reasons for members of another faith tradition to teach in a Catholic school, as much as possible, all teachers in a Catholic school should be practicing Catholics.109

Further Reflection on What the Church Teaches About Principle III – Encounters Christ in Prayer, Scripture, and Sacrament

The community comprising the Catholic school finds its source of nourishment in the Word, in the Sacraments, and in the traditions of the Church.

No Catholic school can adequately fulfill its educational role on its own. It must continually be fed and stimulated by its Source of life, the Saving Word of Christ as it is expressed in Sacred Scripture, in Tradition, especially liturgical and sacramental tradition, and in the lives of people, past and present, who bear witness to that Word.110

In a Catholic school, prayer and Gospel values facilitate harmony and a desire for service.

Within such communities, teachers and pupils experience together what it means to live a life of prayer, personal responsibility and freedom reflective of Gospel values.  Their fellowship helps them grow in their commitment to service God, one another, the Church and the general community.111

This ardent and vibrantly lived life of prayer and faith must not be hidden but freely and naturally expressed.

From the first moment that a student sets foot in a Catholic school, he or she ought to have the impression of entering a new environment, one illumined by the light of faith, and having its own unique characteristics.112

Moreover, the Catholic school is well aware that the community that it forms must be constantly nourished and compared with the sources from which the reason for its existence derives: the saving word of God in Sacred Scripture, in Tradition, above all liturgical and sacramental Tradition, enlightened by the Magisterium of the Church.113

The characteristics of a rich faith life include easily identifiable representations of the spiritual life such as crucifixes, statues, or pictures of saints, and a place set aside for prayer. It also involves introducing students to traditional Catholic prayers, traditions of the Church, and spiritual devotions, especially Marian devotions.

An awareness of Mary’s presence can be a great help toward making the school into a “home”. Mary, Mother and Teacher of the Church, accompanied her Son as he grew in wisdom and grace; from its earliest days, she has accompanied the Church in its mission of salvation.114

As important as these Catholic devotions are, an essential element to any Catholic school is a rich and faithful sacramental life.

An understanding of the sacramental journey has profound educational implications. Students become aware that being a member of the Church is something dynamic, responding to every person’s need to continue growing all through life. When we meet the Lord in the Sacraments, we are never left unchanged. Through the Spirit, he causes us to grow in the Church, offering us “grace upon grace”; the only thing he asks is our cooperation. The educational consequences of this touch on our relationship with God, our witness as a Christian, and our choice of a personal vocation.115

Especially important in the Church documents is a rich Eucharistic component.

The essential point for students to understand is that Jesus Christ is always truly present in the Sacraments which he has instituted, and his presence makes them efficacious means of grace. The moment of closest encounter with the Lord Jesus occurs in the Eucharist, which is both Sacrifice and Sacrament. In the Eucharist, two supreme acts of love are united: Our Lord renews his sacrifice of salvation for us, and he truly gives himself to us.116

In the life of a Catholic school, the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation become frequent, lived, and loving encounters with God.

The teacher will assist students to open their hearts in confidence to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through personal and liturgical prayer. The latter is not just another way of praying; it is the official prayer of the Church, which makes the mystery of Christ present in our lives—especially through the Eucharist, Sacrifice and Sacrament, and through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Religious experiences are then seen, not as something externally imposed, but as a free and loving response to the God who first loved us. The virtues of faith and religion, thus rooted and cultivated, are enabled to develop during childhood, youth, and in all the years that follow.117

As with all elements of the integral formation of its students, the authentic and lived example of the faculty and staff play a critical role in the success of the school’s mission.

As a visible manifestation of the faith they profess and the life witness they are supposed to manifest, it is important that lay Catholics who work in a Catholic school participate simply and actively in the liturgical and sacramental life of the school. Students will share in this life more readily when they have concrete examples: when they see the importance that this life has for believers. In today’s secularized world, students will see many lay people who call themselves Catholics, but who never take part in liturgy or sacraments. It is very important that they also have the example of lay adults who take such things seriously, who find in them a source and nourishment for Christian living.118

Further Reflection on What the Church Teaches About Principle IV –  Integrally Forms the Human Person

 Part 1- Integral Formation Focused on Intellectual Development

The Catholic intellectual tradition is about more than simply maximizing intellectual skills; it is about ensuring the intellect is authentically human, integrated, and oriented toward wisdom.

Catholic schools are encouraged to promote a wisdom-based society, to go beyond knowledge and educate people to think, evaluating facts in the light of values.119

This intellectual work unites all three elements of truth, beauty, and goodness in a pursuit of wisdom, but especially a virtuous and rigorous search for truth.

Within the overall process of education, special mention must be made of the intellectual work done by students. Although Christian life consists in loving God and doing his will, intellectual work is intimately involved. The light of Christian faith stimulates a desire to know the universe as God’s creation. It enkindles a love for the truth that will not be satisfied with superficiality in knowledge or judgment. It awakens a critical sense which examines statements rather than accepting them blindly. It impels the mind to learn with careful order and precise methods, and to work with a sense of responsibility. It provides the strength needed to accept the sacrifices and the perseverance required by intellectual labor.120

We do not just seek knowledge for the sake of power and utility, but rather for complete human flourishing and complete human formation.

In the Catholic school’s educational project there is no separation between time for learning and time for formation, between acquiring notions and growing in wisdom. The various school subjects do not present only knowledge to be attained, but also values to be acquired and truths to be discovered.121

The Church does not shy away from a bold claim to know and teach the truth in a modern relativistic culture. St. John Paul II encouraged American educators to realize,

The greatest challenge to Catholic education in the United States today, and the greatest contribution that authentically Catholic education can make to American culture, is to restore to that culture the conviction that human beings can grasp the truth of things, and in grasping that truth can know their duties to God, to themselves and their neighbors. The contemporary world urgently needs the service of educational institutions which uphold and teach that truth is “that fundamental value without which freedom, justice and human dignity are extinguished.122

Part 2 – Integral Formation Focused on Spiritual Development

All schools focus on developing the intellect, but Catholic schools have a long history of particularly excelling in this academic enterprise. We have the added advantage of being able to actively form all aspects of the human person, especially the spiritual dimension. The spiritual life we model and the spiritual truths we teach must be completely faithful to the Church and should permeate and sit proudly alongside all academic disciplines of a school’s program.

The integration of religious truth and values with life distinguishes the Catholic school from other schools. This is a matter of crucial importance today in view of contemporary trends and pressures to compartmentalize life and learning and to isolate the religious dimension of existence from other areas of human life.123

One component of this integral development is the teaching of Catholic doctrine.

Educational programs for the young must strive to teach doctrine, to do so within the experience of Christian community, and to prepare individuals for effective Christian witness and service to others.  In doing this they help foster the student’s growth in personal holiness and his relationship with Christ.124

The presentation of Catholic doctrine via religious instruction is not the whole of the school’s efforts; a catechetical component is also involved.

Religious instruction is appropriate in every school, for the purpose of the school is human formation in all of its fundamental dimensions, and the religious dimension is an integral part of this formation. Religious education is actually a right—with the corresponding duties—of the student and of the parents. It is also, at least in the case of the Catholic religion, an extremely important instrument for attaining the adequate synthesis of faith and culture that has been insisted on so often.  Therefore, the teaching of the Catholic religion, distinct from and at the same time complementary to catechesis properly so called, ought to form a part of the curriculum of every school.125

An result of this process is a religious formation that leads to an active and lived life of faith and worship.

The life of faith is expressed in acts of religion. The teacher will assist students to open their hearts in confidence to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through personal and liturgical prayer. The latter is not just another way of praying; it is the official prayer of the Church, which makes the mystery of Christ present in our lives—especially through the Eucharist, Sacrifice and Sacrament, and through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Religious experiences are then seen, not as something externally imposed, but as a free and loving response to the God who first loved us. The virtues of faith and religion, thus rooted and cultivated, are enabled to develop during childhood, youth, and in all the years that follow.126

Part 3 – Integral Formation Focused on Moral Development

The intellectual and spiritual formation we provide our students assists them in living a life of virtue guided by a well-formed Catholic conscience and a consistent moral ethic.

…the Catholic school tries to create within its walls a climate in which the pupil’s faith will gradually mature and enable him to assume the responsibility placed on him by Baptism. It will give pride of place in the education it provides through Christian Doctrine to the gradual formation of conscience in fundamental, permanent virtues—above all the theological virtues, and charity in particular, which is, so to speak, the life-giving spirit which transforms a man of virtue into a man of Christ. Christ, therefore, is the teaching-centre, the Model on Whom the Christian shapes his life. In Him the Catholic school differs from all others which limit themselves to forming men. Its task is to form Christian men, and, by its teaching and witness, show non-Christians something of the mystery of Christ Who surpasses all human understanding.127

In an age of pluralism and relativism, the Catholic school holds out fundamental goods and teaches clearly about what is right and what is wrong.

Cultural pluralism, therefore, leads the Church to reaffirm her mission of education to insure strong character formation. Her children, then, will be capable both of resisting the debilitating influence of relativism and of living up to the demands made on them by their Baptism. It also stimulates her to foster truly Christian living and apostolic communities, equipped to make their own positive contribution, in a spirit of cooperation, to the building up of the secular society. For this reason the Church is prompted to mobilize her educational resources in the face of the materialism, pragmatism and technocracy of contemporary society.128

In forming the moral compass of our students based on Catholic truths, the school works closely with the student’s primary educators, the parents.

Partnership between a Catholic school and the families of the students must continue and be strengthened: not simply to be able to deal with academic problems that may arise, but rather so that the educational goals of the school can be achieved. Close cooperation with the family is especially important when treating sensitive issues such as religious, moral, or sexual education, orientation toward a profession, or a choice of one’s vocation in life. It is not a question of convenience, but a partnership based on faith. Catholic tradition teaches that God has bestowed on the family its own specific and unique educational mission.129

Part 4 – Integral Formation Focused on Physical Development and Expression

The Catholic Church teaches there is an intimate unity between body and soul. We are incarnate beings whose physical lives and bodily expression should be in deep and natural accord with our souls and our spiritual life and dispositions. The Catholic school seeks to develop all these facets of the human person.

Since true education must strive for complete formation of the human person that looks to his or her final end as well as to the common good of societies, children and youth are to be nurtured in such a way that they are able to develop their physical, moral, and intellectual talents harmoniously, acquire a more perfect sense of responsibility and right use of freedom, and are formed to participate actively in social life.130

This understanding of the human person is based on a Christian anthropology which acknowledges our complete human nature, including our dignity and our brokenness:

Students should be helped to see the human person as a living creature having both a physical and a spiritual nature; each of us has an immortal soul, and we are in need of redemption. The older students can gradually come to a more mature understanding of all that is implied in the concept of “person”: intelligence and will, freedom and feelings, the capacity to be an active and creative agent; a being endowed with both rights and duties, capable of interpersonal relationships, called to a specific mission in the world.131

The human person is present in all the truths of faith: created in “the image and likeness” of God; elevated by God to the dignity of a child of God; unfaithful to God in original sin, but redeemed by Christ; a temple of the Holy Spirit; a member of the Church; destined to eternal life.132

It also means the cultivation of intellectual and spiritual gifts in a spirit of respect for oneself and others includes physical health and a life lived chastely.

Not a few young people, unable to find any meaning in life or trying to find an escape from loneliness, turn to alcohol, drugs, the erotic, the exotic etc. Christian education is faced with the huge challenge of helping these young people discover something of value in their lives…We must cultivate intelligence and the other spiritual gifts, especially through scholastic work. We must learn to care for our body and its health, and this includes physical activity and sports. And we must be careful of our sexual integrity through the virtue of chastity, because sexual energies are also a gift of God, contributing to the perfection of the person and having a providential function for the life of society and of the Church. Thus, gradually, the teacher will guide students to the idea, and then to the realization, of a process of total formation.133

Further Reflection on What the Church Teaches About Principle V – Imparts a Christian Understanding of the World

Part 1- Traditions, Values, and Evangelization

The Church teaches that the task of a school is to provide,

fundamentally a synthesis of culture and faith, and a synthesis of faith and life: the first is reached by integrating all the different aspects of human knowledge through the subjects taught, in the light of the Gospel; the second in the growth of the virtues characteristic of the Christian.134

Both the current common culture and aspects of cultural history giving rise to it are to be explored and critically analyzed in the light of the Catholic faith. Positive elements that can be brought into harmony with the faith are to be celebrated and expanded. Elements appearing in contradiction to the faith are to be challenged and critically analyzed. This is a role to which Catholic schools are particularly suited.

A school uses its own specific means for the integral formation of the human person: the communication of culture…if the communication of culture is to be a genuine educational activity, it must not only be organic, but also critical and evaluative, historical and dynamic. Faith will provide Catholic educators with some essential principles for critique and evaluation; faith will help them to see all of human history as a history of salvation which culminates in the fullness of the Kingdom. This puts culture into a creative context, constantly being perfected.135

In addition to critically examining and transmitting those best elements of human culture in general, the school also embodies and imparts a specific Catholic culture: that has an integrated pattern of knowledge, values, beliefs, behaviors, and traditions that celebrate and pass on to a new generation the unique contributions of the Church in the arts and the intellectual life, enriching the social and faith lives of our students with the great patrimony of the Catholic Church.

Catholic schools provide young people with sound Church teaching through a broad-based curriculum, where faith and culture are intertwined in all areas of a school’s life. By equipping our young people with a sound education, rooted in the Gospel message, the Person of Jesus Christ, and rich in the cherished traditions and liturgical practices of our faith, we ensure that they have the foundation to live morally and uprightly in our complex modern world. This unique Catholic identity makes our Catholic elementary and secondary schools “schools for the human person” and allows them to fill a critical role in the future life of our Church, our country, and our world.136

Through this transmission of culture, students become Christ for others and work to evangelize others both inside and outside the school community.

The mission of the Catholic school is the integral formation of students, so that they may be true to their condition as Christ’s disciples and as such work effectively for the evangelization of culture and for the common good of society.137

Part 2- Literature, History, and the Arts

The school’s curriculum is the vehicle for examining various cultural elements.

From the nature of the Catholic school also stems one of the most significant elements of its educational project: the synthesis between culture and faith. The endeavor to interweave reason and faith, which has become the heart of individual subjects, makes for unity, articulation, and coordination, bringing forth within what is learned in a school a Christian vision of the world, of life, of culture, and of history.138

A Catholic school curriculum examines issues of culture, meaning, faith, and value in the light of the Gospel. Literature, history, and the arts lend themselves readily to this enterprise.

Literature and the arts are also, in their own way, of great importance to the life of the Church. They strive to make known the proper nature of man, his problems and his experiences in trying to know and perfect both himself and the world. They have much to do with revealing man’s place in history and in the world; with illustrating the miseries and joys, the needs and strengths of man and with foreshadowing a better life for him. Thus they are able to elevate human life, expressed in multifold forms according to various times and regions.139

Not only is history analyzed for its content and facts but also for its comportment to reality and truth. Catholic schools are free to discuss and unravel the numerous historical circumstances where God’s hand is seen interjecting itself in temporal affairs. These opportunities are vast and plentiful and add an additional dimension to the study of historical timelines.

Teachers should guide the students’ work in such a way that they will be able to discover a religious dimension in the world of human history. As a preliminary, they should be encouraged to develop a taste for historical truth, and therefore to realize the need to look critically at texts and curricula which, at times, are imposed by a government or distorted by the ideology of the author…they will see the development of civilizations, and learn about progress…When they are ready to appreciate it, students can be invited to reflect on the fact that this human struggle takes place within the divine history [of] universal salvation. At this moment, the religious dimension of history begins to shine forth in all its luminous grandeur.140

The study of human historical and social realties in a Catholic school occurs in the context of a permanent philosophical heritage which must be understood.

Every society has its own heritage of accumulated wisdom. Many people find inspiration in these philosophical and religious concepts which have endured for millennia. The systematic genius of classical Greek and European thought has, over the centuries, generated countless different doctrinal systems, but it has also given us a set of truths which we can recognize as a part of our permanent philosophical heritage.141

This heritage includes a rich patrimony of social justice which should also be reflected in the curriculum.

The curriculum must help the students reflect on the great problems of our time, including those where one sees more clearly the difficult situation of a large part of humanity’s living conditions. These would include the unequal distribution of resources, poverty, injustice and human rights denied.142

Especially in the arts, both auditory and visual, Catholic schools have a rich tradition to draw from for discussions of beauty and harmony and that fulfills a human soul.

Literary and artistic works depict the struggles of societies, of families, and of individuals. They spring from the depths of the human heart, revealing its lights and its shadows, its hope and its despair. The Christian perspective goes beyond the merely human, and offers more penetrating criteria for understanding the human struggle and the mysteries of the human spirit. Furthermore, an adequate religious formation has been the starting point for the vocation of a number of Christian artists and art critics. In the upper grades, a teacher can bring students to: an even more profound appreciation of artistic works: as a reflection of the divine beauty in tangible form. Both the Fathers of the Church and the masters of Christian philosophy teach this in their writings on aesthetics—St. Augustine invites us to go beyond the intention of the artists in order to find the eternal order of God in the work of art; St. Thomas sees the presence of the Divine Word in art.143

Part 3 – Science and Mathematics

The school’s science and math curriculum is the vehicle not just for examining standard scientific content found in non-Catholic schools, but also for introducing students to the Catholic intellectual tradition as well as the specific contributions of Catholics to the world of math and science. It can help the students see the limitations of materialism and open them up to the depths of wonder held in God’s creation.

The Catholic school should teach its pupils to discern in the voice of the universe the Creator Whom it reveals and, in the conquests of science, to know God and man better.144

By not ignoring the religious dimension, Catholic schools

…help their students to understand that positive science, and the technology allied to it, is a part of the universe created by God. Understanding this can help encourage an interest in research: the whole of creation, from the distant celestial bodies and the immeasurable cosmic forces down to the infinitesimal particles and waves of matter and energy, all bear the imprint of the Creator’s wisdom and power, The wonder that past ages felt when contemplating this universe, recorded by the Biblical authors, is still valid for the students of today; the only difference is that we have a knowledge that is much more vast and profound. There can be no conflict between faith and true scientific knowledge; both find their source in God. The student who is able to discover the harmony between faith and science will, in future professional life, be better able to put science and technology to the service of men and women, and to the service of God. It is a way of giving back to God what he has first given to us.145

Education in science includes the relationship of science to other disciplines in the life of the intellect.

Furthermore, when man gives himself to the various disciplines of philosophy, history and of mathematical and natural science, and when he cultivates the arts, he can do very much to elevate the human family to a more sublime understanding of truth, goodness, and beauty, and to the formation of considered opinions which have universal value. Thus mankind may be more clearly enlightened by that marvelous Wisdom which was with God from all eternity, composing all things with him, rejoicing in the earth and delighting in the sons of men. In this way, the human spirit, being less subjected to material things, can be more easily drawn to the worship and contemplation of the Creator. Moreover, by the impulse of grace, he is disposed to acknowledge the Word of God, Who before He became flesh in order to save all and to sum up all in Himself was already “in the world” as “the true light which enlightens every man” (John 1:9-10). Indeed today’s progress in science and technology can foster a certain exclusive emphasis on observable data, and agnosticism about everything else. For the methods of investigation which these sciences use can be wrongly considered as the supreme rule of seeking the whole truth. By virtue of their methods these sciences cannot penetrate to the intimate notion of things. Indeed the danger is present that man, confiding too much in the discoveries of today, may think that he is sufficient unto himself and no longer seek the higher things.146

This notion is in line with the Catholic intellectual tradition in which

Catholic schools strive to relate all of the sciences to salvation and sanctification. Students are shown how Jesus illumines all of life—science, mathematics, history, business, biology, and so forth.147

As God is the source of all reality and because all things live, move, and have their being in Him, an understanding of all aspects of creation can assist in understanding and glorifying God in whom all truths converge.

 

[1] A more complete exposition of the principles is available in these resources: Principles of Catholic Identity in Education: Church Documents for Reflection and Principles of Catholic Identity in Education: Principles and Sources in Church Teaching.

[2] The Cardinal Newman Society has also created other assessment tools for schools including: Principles of Catholic Identity in Education: Faculty and Staff In-Service and our Catholic Education Honor Roll.

 

Storm Clouds Ahead for Youth Synod?

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As a follow up to the controversial 2014-15 Synod on the Family, the Vatican is preparing to convene a new Synod on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment next October.

And for the first time, they have invited the faithful—in particular young people aged 16-29—to fill out a questionnaire to help shape the Synod’s direction.

Newman Society staff has already begun to review the Synod’s Preparatory Document and questionnaire. Even at this early stage, we are concerned about the direction the Synod could be headed.

In part, our concerns stem from questions about flagrant manipulation of process and reporting raised by a number of bishops attending the last Synod. We’re also seeing red flags in the Vatican’s distribution of an inappropriate and ill-conceived sex-ed program written in Spain. The Cardinal Newman Society—and other Catholic groups—have raised concerns about the explicit material in this misguided project.

More specifically, however, we are troubled by what is in and—perhaps more importantly—not in the Preparatory Document and the questionnaire.

According to the Preparatory Document, “the Church has decided to examine herself on how she can lead young people to recognize and accept the call to the fullness of life and love, and to ask young people to help her in identifying the most effective ways to announce the Good News today.”

That sounds like an important topic for the Church to address, but at first read the Synod’s initial documents would seem to be more interested in community organizing, activism, and worldly concerns than the formation of young people in the truths of our faith—i.e., Catholic education.

In late September, organizers issued a news release adding a note about “the importance of education in the formation of a complete identity,” but we will have to wait and see what that means.

The planning documents gloss over some of the most serious problems facing youth today, including the rise of atheism, attacks on the family, how to live the faith in a hyper-secular world, the collapse of marriage as a societal norm, the rise among young people of serial fornication and so-called “shacking up” as a replacement for marriage, and myriad other issues which put the souls of young people at risk.

Instead, the documents focus on issues such as employment, politics, social media, and the environment—important topics which are perhaps better suited for think tanks, academics, or public officials than a Church Synod on “Faith and Vocational Discernment.” These are also comfortable topics to which youth have a natural affinity. Will we have the courage to challenge them on the topics they really struggle with: truth, fidelity, chastity, humility, faithfulness, self-sacrifice, and life-long commitment?

And it’s important to note that the Synod defines “vocation” not as we would think of it, but more broadly as a “vocation to love.” This broad definition could open the door to a wide range of problematic topics.

Consider that at a planning seminar convened by Synod organizers in September, Catholic News Service reported that one delegate, self-described as a “philosopher and sexologist,” advocated discussion of “sexuality and affectivity.” Another reportedly said, “‘It’s important to open up and talk’ about sex, sexuality and sexual orientation…. ‘And it’s central to vocation.’”

A professor from England reportedly lamented that it was “‘hard to figure out’ what the Vatican wanted from the seminar. ‘Is it to listen to young people? Does that mean they are willing to change something? Are they willing to change the criteria for ministry?’”

Given what happened at the last Synod, the fact that these issues are being raised by delegates at a planning seminar is cause for concern.

Fortunately, the Vatican has offered the questionnaire, giving the faithful a way to influence the Synod’s direction. It is imperative that you, as Cardinal Newman Society Members, let Synod organizers know what you think. To that end we have created a page on our website for you to access various Synod documents and the questionnaire: NewmanSoc.org/YouthSynod

Please visit the site, encourage well-formed youth to fill out the questionnaire, and spread the word to your family and friends.

We will provide a more thorough analysis of the Synod in the coming months. In the meantime, please pray that the upcoming youth Synod will uphold timeless Church teachings, recognize the importance of faithful education to the formation of children, and help lead souls to Christ.

Saints John Bosco and John Paul II, ora pro nobis!