GLOBAL CATHOLIC EDUCATION REPORT 2021

 

GLOBAL CATHOLIC EDUCATION REPORT

CITIZENSHIP IN CATHOLIC SCHOOL

 

      Citizenship and Education

An Historical Perspective for Catholic Schools

 

 

.                       Leonardo Franchi – University of Glasgow

 

In this post I explore Citizenship Education through the lens of Catholic teaching on Education. I also make reference to Pope Leo XIII’s teaching on Citizenship. I show that there is such a thing as a Christian ‘idea’ of citizenship. This might not sit comfortably in a society which seeks to marginalise (intentionally or unintentionally), the Christian voice.

 Citizenship, Education and Religion

How Citizenship Education in the Catholic school is both understood and taught makes it a crucial feature of the contemporary educational scene.

Citizenship Education flows from a political/civic desire to build community cohesion – universally deemed a ‘good thing’. How to promote, far less achieve, this in a multi-cultural society remains problematic.

For some, Citizenship Education is a ‘secular’ version of Religious Education: values emerge, it seems, from reason alone without a concomitant contribution from revealed religion.  Although religious belief and practice should be fundamental parts of Citizenship Education, contemporary articulations of Citizenship Education minimise discussion of the difficult issues arising from religious faith/identity. Nonetheless, the number of children of all faiths and none who are educated in Catholic schools should place the Catholic school not at the margins but at the heart of Citizenship Education.

Religions, of course, are an expression of diversity. This leads to the following question: is contemporary education a means of monopolising thought and values within a conceptual framework which purports to be inclusive but, intentionally or otherwise, fails in this objective?

 Is there a Catholic Approach to Citizenship Education?

In saying a tentative ‘yes’ to this question, it is important to offer some historical roots.  A Catholic vision of citizenship is evident in the corpus of Pope Leo XIII (Pope from 1878-1903) for whom the Catholic school is the crucible in which a ‘Catholic mind’ is formed. For Pope Leo, a well-formed Catholic is a leaven in society: the good Catholic is a good citizen.

 Pope Leo married a traditional life of piety with a recognition of the value of dialogue with people of different views - albeit in the context of a constant looking back at the sources of Christian thought. Three of Pope Leo’s Encyclicals provide examples of his desire to engage intellectually and pastorally with the challenges of the age. They encapsulate his thinking on how the good and faithful Catholic is also the ideal citizen.

 1.      In Spectata Fides (1885), a short Encyclical on Christian Education addressed to the Catholics of England and Wales, Leo sewed together the value of Christian education with a related commitment to the welfare of all: ‘for there is no better citizen than the man who has believed and practised the Christian faith from his childhood’. This highly charged sentence links pithily the traditional piety associated with childhood with the need to engage with wider society. The union of the verbs ‘believed’ and ‘practised’ reminds us that religious belief, for Pope Leo, was linked to witness in ordinary life. Note also that this Encyclical is addressed to Cardinal Henry Manning, present at the Conclave which elected Leo in 1878 and renowned for his involvement in social issues, most notably in attempts to resolve the London Dockers’ strike of 1889. This episode is an example of what Leo understood as Christian citizenship.

 2.       Spectata Fides, while a valuable indicator of Pope Leo’s vision of ‘education for citizenship’ was an overture to his more substantial Encyclical on citizenship, Sapientiae christianae (1890). This landmark Encyclical afforded him a platform from which to link once again the existence of the doctrinally well-formed Catholic with the general well-being of the nation. It is essential to place this gradual adaptation to modern (as opposed to Modernist) ways in context: dialogue was a way of explaining the Catholic approach (or solution) to particular issues as the optimal way. There is, unsurprisingly, little sense of dialogue understood as a path to a common and as yet undiscovered solution to social ills:

 From day to day it becomes more and more evident how needful it is that the principles of Christian wisdom should ever be borne in mind, and that the life, the morals, and the institutions of nations should be wholly conformed to them’ (1890: 1).

 The Encyclical demonstrates Pope Leo’s determination to see Christianity as the key driver of political, social and economic life. If you have not yet read this Encyclical, now is the time!

3.      Pope Leo’s short Encyclical to the Bishops of Scotland, Caritatis studium (1898) returned to the theme of Christian faith and citizenship. One of Leo’s first acts as Pope was to restore the Scottish hierarchy in 1878. This Encyclical shows how the Catholic Church in Scotland, while a major institution in the history of the Scottish nation, had lost influence and status after the Protestant Reformation. Leo knows of the challenges facing the small and increasingly immigrant Catholic community in Scotland. He is also aware that there is common ground between Catholics and Christians from the Reformed traditions, with both traditions under threat from religious liberalism. Leo asks the Catholic community to move away from an intellectual and cultural ghetto in order to engage with wider Scottish society. This will show that Catholicism, far from being an alien culture to Scotland, has much to contribute to the welfare of the nation: ‘nothing else contributes so much to the honourable and successful discharge of social duties’ (1898: 11).

CiCitizenship and Catholic Education Today

In Catholic educational thought, education is more than the accumulation of qualifications to enhance employability. At the heart of the vision is something radical and counter-cultural: the gradual building of the Kingdom of God  - while remaining aware that this is always a work in progress owing to the fallibility of humanity. Essentially, the good Christian citizen is first and foremost a good person - one who has responded to the grace of God impelling him or her to the love which demands sacrifice for the ‘other’.

Christian thinking accepts the notion of human virtues which, by definition, are not explicitly religious. We all want schools and wider society to be underpinned by such tolerance, good humour, fairness etc. The issue is how to define what the values mean in practice and, crucially, identify what lies at their root.

The Catholic vision of doctrinal development is one of continuity, not rupture. Catholic teaching on education and citizenship is part of this continuity. It will be interesting to follow developments in light of contemporary papal initiatives like Scholas Occurrentes and the Global Compact on Education.

 I end with two questions.

1.      A rediscovery of the link between the ‘good Catholic as the good citizen’ should encourage Catholic educators to look again at the key principles of Catholic education. How will this be done?

2.      Can the modern secular state accept Pope Leo’s claim that the good Christian is the ideal citizen?

 

A version of this post was presented at a World Union of Catholic Teachers Webinar on February 2, 2021.

 

 

 

 

 

 

                       

 

UK - CATSC - NETWORKING - Autumn 2019

CATSC - NETWORKING 

 

CEEC - NEWS LETTER - mars 2019

CEEC NEWSLETTER

www.ceec.be

 

SRI LANKA - THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH CONFERENCE ON CHRISTIAN STUDIES

Prof. John Lydon, CATSC & WUCT Treasurer,  delivers a keynote address at the First International Research Conference on Christian Studies (IRCCS) 2018 at the University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka

The first International Research Conference on Christian Studies at the University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka organised by the Department of Christian Civilisation in collaboration with the Centre for Performing Arts, Jaffna took place on 7^th-8th of December 2018. The conference theme was ‘Towards a New Christian Humanistic Ethos’ intended to develop a humanist manifesto to address the many problems that exist in the world today due to inhuman actions.  The conference opened with the lighting of the traditional old lamp, procession and welcome dance for guests.  The inaugural opening addresses were given by the Bishop of Jaffna, Rt Rev.Dr Justin B. Gnanapragasam and the Vice Chancellor of the University of Jaffna Prof. R.  Vigneswaran. 

The Conference aimed to provide a platform to document through empirical research, the efforts of Christians in local and international contexts to create a new culture based on human values. In addition, to propose in an effective way how they could still fulfil their human and social responsibilities of creating a new humanistic ethos amidst the present world beset by perennial challenges. These include, among others, conflict, violence, poverty, injustice, corruption, anti-life concepts and practice, individualism, the negative impact of globalisation and pervasive environmental challenges. Contributing to a new humanistic ethos is seen as a way articulating the social responsibility of Christians. The Conference raised awareness among those who belong to other religions to speak out and work for a better society based on shared human values. The Conference also sought ways in which Christians and the followers of other religions can work together to address issues of social responsibility that they have in common to create a new humanistic ethos.

Based on this overall aim, the objectives of the Research Conference were: to revisit the history of Christianity in local contexts and reflect on its influence and contribution to create a new human culture by documenting them; assess the contribution of Christians to safeguarding the values of local cultures, art, architecture and literature from destruction by the colonial powers and by the postmodern trend of globalisation; to defend the value and dignity of each individual human being as a child of God thereby contributing to a new human culture void of any discrimination; to appraise the theological contribution of modern Christianity which has formulated rich conceptual foundations to address the issues of gender, cast, political oppression and violation of human rights and to defend the liberty, equality and dignity of the women, children, differently-abled, oppressed and marginalised; to elaborate the contribution of recent Christian Theology of Religions based on the documents of Second Vatican Council and to rediscover and affirm in a new way the concept of pluralism, inter-religious living, dialogue and collaboration. Finally, to facilitate researchers, scholars, resource persons and practitioners to share their findings about the new trends in Christian thought.

A New Christian Humanism in Education

Professor John Lydon, Programme Director of the MA in Catholic School Leadership, St Mary’s University London and Treasurer of CATSC was invited to be the keynote speaker by Rev. Dr. N.M. Saveri, Director, Centre for Performing Arts, Jaffna. His paper entitled ‘Catholic Education and New Christian Humanism’ addressed developments around the concept of a new Christian humanism in the context of education. It began by articulating a brief conspectus of the Vatican’s Congregation of Catholic Education’s latest document before seeking to explore the provenance of the term humanism in a Christian context. It then continued to root the term in a Christological context, emphasising the importance of dialogue, before arguing that it is essential to refrain from ‘sloganising’ the term, suggesting that its classical origins are reflected in a modern ‘return to virtues’ as opposed to an over-emphasis on the often nebulous use of the term ‘Gospel values’. The paper concluded strongly by suggesting that ‘a new humanism’, grounded in a sacramental vision, is particularly timely in our contemporary global context.  A further address was delivered by Dr David Fincham, also of St Mary’s University, London, on Christian Humanism as a contested concept. Prof. John Lydon also chaired two parallel academic sessions on the topic ‘Christian Thinking and Humanist Ethos’.

The role played by Christianity to create a new humanistic ethos cannot be neglected. The world history bears witness to the fact that wherever Christianity stretched it roots, it toiled hard to eliminate the social evils of slavery, discriminations, superstitions and other inhuman practices and has ventured in creating a new human culture through its education and social commitments. Its contribution to bring out a decisive notion of the new humanism opened up new frontiers to the dignity of human race with its values and originality. In this milieu, this Research Conference focused on the contributions of Christians in order to assert once more the need to construct the contemporary societies on human values. In the midst of individualist, consumerist and pragmatist trends of the present globalised world, such affirmation is vital in order to safeguard the value and dignity of each individual and to initiate a better society. Christianity proclaimed its humanistic ethos based on the teachings of Jesus Christ; however, the declaration of the new humanism is beyond any religious character or motives. It is universal and it is applicable to everybody without any differences of religious, ethnic or nationality.

 Revisiting the roots of the humanistic ethos promoted by Christianity is a need of the time because the degradation of human values has greatly affected human life and society.  The theme also ventured further into other areas of human concerns. The deviation from the human values has affected the natural and environmental patterns and the whole human life situations. It has affected the family life, social life, cultural values, gender perspectives, religious convictions and educational systems; above all the whole pattern of human history has been affected. 

The multi-disciplinary papers were invited from the international and local scholars in the field of Christian Studies, particularly in the areas of Biblical Studies, History of Christianity, Second Vatican Council and its Reforms, Christian Art, Architecture and Literature, Theology of Peace, Current Trends in Christianity, Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue and the Contributions of Tamil Christian scholars. The papers were based on the theme of the conference reflecting the context of the presenters (international or local). The research papers abstracts were published as the proceedings of the Research Conference and distributed on the final day of the conference. Full papers will be published shortly.

A Welcome Return and International Partnerships

Prof. Lydon was making a welcome return to Sri Lanka as he had previously been invited by  Tamil Catholic Chaplaincy in the UK, following  a visit from the then Rt Rev. Bishop Thomas Savundranayagam, Bishop of Jaffna to St Mary’s University in 2010, where he discussed the opportunity for priests from the Diocese to study St Mary’s on the MA in Catholic School Leadership programme. During that previous visit, Prof. John Lydon delivered a series of lectures and seminars to seminarians and catechists. He also met with key Catholic education figures in Colombo including Very Rev. Dr Pacidus de Silva, Rector of Aquinas University College and Fr Stephen Ashok OMI, Director of the Centre for Society and Religion, to discuss potential collaborations between the institutions.

When not delivering lectures and seminars, John spent time with the Tamil community in Jaffna, visiting schools, including one in which Rev. Fr Robinson Joseph, graduate of St Mary’s MA programme, is a Headteacher. This fruitful link has led to further Sri Lankan priests on the MA programme including this year Rev. Fr Elmo Arulnesan and next year Rev. Fr John Rexon.

Christian Humanism in Action

 Perhaps the most important and certainly the most moving part of the latest experience involved Professor Lydon, his wife Marguerite and Dr Fincham visiting various projects which can only be described as ‘Christian humanism in action’. They first visited a Salesian project which engages young people on the peripheries in training opportunities resonant with St John Bosco’s first trade schools in the 19^th century. They then visited a home for orphaned girls led by the Good Shepherd Sisters, enabling young girls to take their place in society empowered by a genuine holistic approach to education.  Their visit to the home for disadvantaged women animated by the Missionary Sisters of Charity was, undoubtedly, the most moving, made more poignant by the fact that Marguerite Lydon had met Saint Teresa in Calcutta and her sister had worked with Mother Teresa for two years. Following Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, the women put on a short concert. They rely on benefactors who pay the equivalent of £50 per day for their daily meals. 

SOUTH SUDAN - From street boys to the primary school in Kit

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/OnZzSp1XBd0

By, Roy Carlos Zúñiga Paredes.

Juba is the capital of the newest African country: South Sudan. Here, a kind of miracle happened recently. And though it could not be appreciated by all, those who witnessed it valued the event in its real import: 17 abandoned children were rescued from wandering around the streets and started the trip of their lives on the last day of February 2018. They are part of a long awaited educational project which hopefully will take them far off into a different future. That is their dream, but they are conscious that their efforts will also benefit their country, as well as, their very selves. God’s designs of peace and justice for the suffering peoples of this impoverished country can easily be ecognized in this sign of His providence.

Chelsea, uniform, education, Juba, Kit, South Sudan

“My name is Johnson” answered, in Arabic, the slender and tallest of the group of children. Wearing the blue colours of the London Chelsea soccer team, Johnson and his companions were sitting at the back of an opened four-wheel-drive vehicle. A kind of transport you must have if you want to reach anywhere in South Sudan. Anyone seeing those children dressed in blue, would have payed attention to them: it was a weird sight in a country that was supposed to be ravaged by civil conflict and stricken by poverty. “Who were they? Why were they uniformed in such a way? Were they a school team preparing themselves to beat a neighbouring school?” The answers to those questions were not simple and went beyond the appearances. Paolino, in charge of their transportation, narrated a very diverse account: those children had lived sad stories of abandonment, drug abuse, juvenile crime, poverty and a chain of unending sufferings.

Paolino Tipo Deng, South Sudanese Comboni Missionary working in Juba.

Paolino Tipo Deng is a South Sudanese Comboni missionary priest whom was deeply struck at seeing those children living in such an appalling condition. So, he took upon himself the task of doing something to change their situation and prayed that God may help him in his purpose. Now he oversees an educational project which hopefully will take at least a hundred children out of the streets and will give them back an opportunity to study and enjoy their childhood for the first time in their lives. The “dine–and–out house” from where Paolino rescues those boys is a half – ruined place. It used to be a religious formation house, but after several years of war and strife, the building is all but a comfortable home –in fact, it lacks many services– , but for around a hundred street boys, it is the only home they know: a place where they may shelter by night, be fed during the day and, after some recent works of maintenance, have a decent shower as well.

Street children playing in front of the orphanage, Juba, South Sudan.

Some days back, two Comboni missionaries had visited that “house” and they were struck just by the look of it. They had found the children kicking around a deflated soccer ball and when they had seen the visitors, all the street boys had come to greet them surrounding their car:

“What are you doing here?” one of the missionaries had asked, very curious, in Arabic.

“This is the orphanage”, one of them, smiling, had managed to answer him in English.

Street children at the orphanage need still proper accomodation. Juba, South Sudan.

Later, one of those missionaries was given the chance to accompany Paolino and the first group of street children in their trip to the village of Kit and their new home: “Brother Augusto Memorial Primary School”, an educational boarding facility run by the Saint Martin de Porres Brothers, a local congregation founded by two famous Comboni Missionaries: Bishop Sixto Mazzoldi and Fr. Giovanni Marengoni.

After 40 minutes, including a short stop to refresh the passengers with some soft drinks, the group arrived at the Good Shepherd Peace Centre in Kit, a newly made Comboni facility, furnished with a chapel, a refectory and accommodation for up to 35 retreatants and cared for by a religious community under the umbrella of “Solidarity with South Sudan”, an inter – congregational initiative to foster peace and justice in the country.

The Good Shepherd Peace and Spirituality Centre. Juba, Kit, South Sudan.

The children were impressed by the beauty of the compound. As they came down from the car, one of the missionaries asked them:

• “What do you think?”, waiting expectantly for their reply.
• “This is our new home”, said happily one of them while he downloaded his “sunduk”, a kind of metal trunk they were given to keep their belongings.

Father Paolino gave them the keys and a padlock to keep all the stuff they were given for a start. From then on, they were made responsible for their own toiletries and educational materials. Before they didn’t have anything, now all their hopes were kept and symbolized by that trunk. They spent some nights at Kit Peace Centre before their new huts were readied nearby their school.

Father Paolino foresees that he will need great financial support to continue helping the street boys. He is always pointing at the advancement of those youngsters:

• “When I first saw those children, forsaken and roaming around the streets of Juba town, I knew I could not witness their situation and do nothing about it”, says Father Paolino convinced that he is doing the right thing.

Among other things, Father Paolino will have to improve the living conditions at the orphanage in Juba, then he has a plan to build proper boarding accommodation for around 100 children near the primary school. But the big issue is not only to put up structures but to be able to run them. He is quite becoming the foster parent of all them.

• “At present, I can only keep 18 children at school. I need more resources to be able to bring more. The 17 boys we brought will join the one that came earlier. His companions call him John the Baptist”

Paolino giggles remembering the wit of the children, whom were able to call thus their forerunner in faith and in human development.

Some of the new comers posing for the journalist.

Before the day was ended, the missionary assembled the newcomers and gave them some advice. He told them not lose their opportunity. He spurred them to be brave, because the road ahead would be challenging and difficult. He encouraged them to be the future leaders of the nation and reminded them that the success of the project was in their hands:

• “Among you I can see the new president of South Sudan and the future ministers of our country. Do not disappoint the great expectations we have put on you all.”, said Father Paolino looking at them intently.

The children listened to their mentor with much attention, they filled their souls with great ideals, with hope and faith. But while they were learning also some other Christian values they had never heard before, the smallest one in the group raised up his hand to pose a demand:

• “Are we going to watch TV also?”, he said rather concerned.
• “We came here to study and not to watch TV”, retorted Johnson immediately, before even Paolino could reply.

Br. Santrina is a teacher at Br. Augusto Memorial Primary School in Kit, where 18 street children are now studying.

Some days after, Brother Santrina, one of the teachers at the Brother Augusto Memorial Primary School, informed the missionaries that the new comers had settled down quite well and they were not giving any special trouble to the school personnel. Moreover, they all seemed to be very happy with their new school life.

(If you are interested in helping in this educational project: please, contact Father Paolino Tipo Deng, at this e-mail address: paolitipo@yahoo.es )

Read:  FROM STREET BOYS

 

EDUCATION IN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS AS PUBLIC THEOLOGY

Education in Catholic Schools as Public Theology (Conference)

Date: Tuesday 24 May 2016

Location: Soeterbeeck Conference Center, Ravenstein

Description

A sponsored event hosted by: The Center for Catholic Studies &the Faculty of Philosophy, Theology, and Religious Studies at Radboud University Nijmegen

  

This conference will address the current challenges and opportunities in Catholic Education across the UK and Europe. The target audience of this event is a representative group of Catholic Educators in the UK and Europe (for postgraduate teachers of Religious Education, Head Teachers of Religious Education, as well as inspectors of Catholic schools).

The event will be organized around two sessions with leading figures in Catholic Education and will offer an informal setting for Educators to engage them in Q&A sessions. This event is also ideal for teachers in philosophy, theology, and spirituality in the Catholic tradition, and will provide them with the opportunity to get to know colleagues from different contexts and gain a better sense of recent developments in their field.........

SCHEDULE

GLASGOW - THE CATHOLIC SCHOOL AS A COURTYARD OF THE GENTILES

The Catholic School as 

a Courtyard of the Gentiles

Leonardo Franchi -

 University of Glasgow

The Courtyard of the Gentiles, an initiative moved forward by Pope Benedict  XVI, has provided the Catholic Church with an official forum for dialogue with atheists. The intellectual energy surrounding this initiative can be harnessed to focus on how the contemporary Catholic school addressed its responsibilities to the Catholic community while offering a good education to people of other religious traditions. The Courtyard initiative is an opportunity for the Catholic educational community to re-consider its purpose as an ecclesial agent in a plural society. This article argues that the distinctive content and pedagogy it employs in this endeavor is a bold manifestation of contemporary radicalism in education.

Two key challenges facing the Catholic school today are its uneasy relationship with aspects of contemporary educational thought and the pressing issues arising from the changing demographic of the contemporary Catholic school population (Baumfield, Conroy, Davis, & Lundie, 2012). The Church’s ongoing reflection on the aims and purposes of Catholic education in a plural society is an expression of contemporary radicalism that often runs counter to the progressive norms which drive education policymakers (cf. Rymarz, 2012; McDonough, 2009). Additionally, the substantial number of non-Catholic students attending Catholic schools—15.9% of total  student enrollment in 2012-2013 (National Catholic Education Association, 2013)—challenges those within the Catholic community who assume that the Catholic school should be reserved for students from Catholic families.

Given these crucial socio-cultural factors, it is incumbent upon advocates of Catholic education to find fresh conceptual frameworks to express how the Catholic worldview and its associated educational vision can continue to contribute towards building a good society.

Two projects, both emerging from the pontificate of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, provide resources for maintaining the distinctiveness of …..

           

                    The Catholic School as a Courtyard of the Gentiles

Reclaiming the Piazza

AMERICAN GIRL CATHOLIC SCHOOL UNIFORM

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS ARE IN VOGUE .......







Read:
     AMERICAN GIRL CATHOLIC SCHOOL UNIFORM

The catholic school as a safe harbour

The catholic school as a safe harbour

La scuela catòlica como puerto seguro

L'ecole catholique comme un havre sur