On January 26, 1999 Pope John Paul II addressed young people gathered in the Kiel Centre in St. Louis as follows:
- “We are here in the Kiel Centre where many people train long and hard in order to compete in different sports. Today, this impressive stadium has become another kind of training ground … training that will help you to live your faith in Jesus more decisively.”
Definition of a school:
To understand fully the specific mission of the Catholic school it is essential to name clearly the basic nature of a school. A school is a place that empowers students to:
- Engage in a living encounter with a cultural inheritance
- Consider absolute values in a life-context and seek to insert them into a life-framework
- Exercise their intelligence through the dynamics of understanding to attain clarity and inventiveness
- Discover the meaning of their experiences and their truths
This critical assimilation of culture ensures a formation of students which is systematic and integral. It follows, therefore, that the school must:
- Provide an educational program intentionally directed to the growth of the whole person
- Instill within its students the motivation to attain their fullest potential
- Develop inter-disciplinary strategies that promote a critical assimilation of culture
- Prepare its entire program of formation, both its content and the methods used, to achieve academic excellence
- Form a community whose values are communicated through the interpersonal and sincere relationships of all its members
- Ensure individual and corporate adherence to the outlook on life that permeates the school
Qualities of a Catholic school:
Based upon an understanding of the nature of a school, the qualities of a Catholic school can be examined.
Jesus Christ is the foundation of the whole educational enterprise in a Catholic school. His revelation gives new meaning to life and helps persons direct their thoughts, actions and wills according to the gospel, making the beatitudes their norm of life. The principles of the gospel become the educational norms, the internal motivation and the final goal of Catholic education.
The cooperation required for the realization of this aim is the duty in conscience of all members of the community – teachers, parents, students and administrative personnel. Each has his or her own part to play. The fact that all members of the school community, especially the staff, share this Christian vision makes the school “Catholic”.
It is primarily for education in faith that the Catholic school forms part of the saving mission of the church. This mission places demands on the entire school community:
- To provide an atmosphere in which the gospel can be preached, heard, known, celebrated and lived out in service
- To foster a sense of community through shared prayer, liturgy and through the search for justice, love and peace
- To integrate Catholic Christian values into the totality of the school – courses of study and operating practices
- To construct the life and activities of the school around liturgical moments, religious themes and spiritual projects
- To form students to a lived realization of a personal mission in the world
- To witness to the faith professed through lives of faithful, committed and responsible discipleship and service
- To provide training to live the faith in Jesus more decisively
Responsibilities of those in charge:
At the same time, this mission of education in faith places equally serious demands upon those directly charged with religious instruction. It is their responsibility:
- To be as well qualified and professionally prepared as possible
- To approach religious instruction as a scholastic discipline with the same systematic demands and the same rigor as other disciplines
- To present the Christian message and the Christian event with the same seriousness and the same depth with which other disciplines present their knowledge
- To engage in a necessary inter-disciplinary dialogue at that level at which every discipline forms the personality of students
In such a way, religious instruction will underpin, activate, develop and complete the educational activity of the school.
Cooperation of all in the enterprise of Catholic education – teachers, parents, students and administrative personnel – given in the spirit of the gospel, is by its very nature a witness not only to Christ as the cornerstone of the community, but also as the light which shines far beyond it.
Role of the Catholic community:
For over 40 years Catholic schools in Prince George have been called to bear witness. Their future role will be determined by the support shown by the Catholic community. The practical signs of this support are:
- Demanding the highest standards of excellence in all aspects of the school program
- Providing the leadership and financial support to achieve this goal
- Enrolling students in the Catholic system
- Receiving the support of a broad cross section of the Catholic community, indicating that the support of the schools are the responsibility of the whole, not just the part
The vision for our Catholic schools is to fulfil the promise of Pope John Paul II to the young people gathered in the Kiel Centre in St. Louis:
- ” … training that will help you live your faith in Jesus more decisively …”
We need the wisdom, insight and guidance of the entire Catholic community on this important matter.