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Catholic schools get high marks, set high standards

30 Jan 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Teachers are often called upon to act as peacemakers, who are among those praised and blessed by Jesus in this Sunday’s gospel account of the Beatitudes. Catholic school teachers deserve our praise for their often tireless work on behalf of young people. There is no better time to show that appreciation than this coming week (Jan. 30-Feb. 5), which is Catholic Schools Week. The theme this year is “Catholic Schools: A+ For America," celebrating the fact that Catholic schools are an added value (“a plus”) for the nation, according to the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA). Because of their traditionally high academic standards and high graduation rates, all supported by strong moral values, Catholic schools and their graduates make a definite contribution to American society, the NCEA said. “What may not be as widely recognized are the outstanding successes recorded by students of low-income families and students from the inner-city," said Karen Ristau, president of the NCEA. "That’s certainly a plus for many portions of the American population.” Marie Powell, executive director of the Secretariat of Catholic Education at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, noted: “This year nearly 30 percent of the nation’s 2.1 million Catholic school students come from minority populations. Enrollment of students who are not Catholic has increased to 14.5 percent, an indication that many diverse families seek the benefits of a quality education with moral underpinnings.” Schools typically celebrate Catholic Schools Week with Masses, open houses, and activities for students, administrators, faculty, school staff, the community, and families. The 7,094 Catholic elementary and secondary schools make up 44.4 percent of all private schools in the United States. Source: Press releases by ncea.org

beatitudes karen ristau catholic schools catholic schools week national catholic education association ncea marie powell minorities

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Catholic schools get high marks, set high standards

30 Jan 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Teachers are often called upon to act as peacemakers, who are among those praised and blessed by Jesus in this Sunday’s gospel account of the Beatitudes. Catholic school teachers deserve our praise for their often tireless work on behalf of young people. There is no better time to show that appreciation than this coming week (Jan. 30-Feb. 5), which is Catholic Schools Week. The theme this year is “Catholic Schools: A+ For America," celebrating the fact that Catholic schools are an added value (“a plus”) for the nation, according to the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA). Because of their traditionally high academic standards and high graduation rates, all supported by strong moral values, Catholic schools and their graduates make a definite contribution to American society, the NCEA said. “What may not be as widely recognized are the outstanding successes recorded by students of low-income families and students from the inner-city," said Karen Ristau, president of the NCEA. "That’s certainly a plus for many portions of the American population.” Marie Powell, executive director of the Secretariat of Catholic Education at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, noted: “This year nearly 30 percent of the nation’s 2.1 million Catholic school students come from minority populations. Enrollment of students who are not Catholic has increased to 14.5 percent, an indication that many diverse families seek the benefits of a quality education with moral underpinnings.” Schools typically celebrate Catholic Schools Week with Masses, open houses, and activities for students, administrators, faculty, school staff, the community, and families. The 7,094 Catholic elementary and secondary schools make up 44.4 percent of all private schools in the United States. Source: Press releases by ncea.org

beatitudes karen ristau catholic schools catholic schools week national catholic education association ncea marie powell minorities

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Exploring the word

31 Jan 2010 - Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

The wisdom of folk songs is that they gently remind us of things we already know. Graham Nash’s 1970 classic, “Teach Your Children,” recalls that children can’t possibly appreciate the hell their parents lived through and how hard-won are the values they now hold. Parents must help their children to see the world as they understand it and long for it to be. At the same time Nash says that parents can’t appreciate the hell their children face every day, and the process by which they, too, come to hold the values they clutch so dearly. So it’s up to children to teach their parents about the world they live in so both sides can walk together in shared hope toward a future neither could dream alone. As Catholic Schools Week begins, it’s good to remind ourselves that learning is a lifelong process—and growing in faith a full-time job. If we believe what we profess, learning is not even confined between cradle and grave. Both our psalmist and prophet today agree that our journey with God begins before our first breath and proceeds beyond our last. God breathes gifts into the world in every child: prophecy, teaching, leadership, wisdom, discernment. If we can’t think of another argument to safeguard the life of each child, consider what happens when these gifts are lost. Obviously it’s not enough to simply bring children into the world. We must also take responsibility for the nurturing of each precious person. Children need education, health care, moral guidance, and, most of all, unqualified love and respect. They need families that act like families, parents that follow through on their commitments, and communities that offer security, mentorship, and good example. Even those of us not actively involved in parenting are not above the service we all owe to children. If we want to know more about what each generation owes to the next, reread Saint Paul’s astonishing words to the Corinthians. If this vision sounds beautiful and noble, it is also achievable. But to the generation that does not practice this kind of love, it should expect to receive back a grim reality in later, more vulnerable years. If older folks want the respect of younger folks, the only way to get it is to respect the young and safeguard their rights, their world, and their future. It’s all too easy to dismiss young people as having nothing worthwhile to say and no useful critique to offer. They lack our experience and our seasoned worldview, after all. We might note that the same dismissal led to Jesus being nearly thrown off a cliff near Nazareth by his neighbors. If we cannot be taught, chances are we cannot teach. Related scripture links The power of a good word: John 1:1, 14, 15:7; Heb. 4:12-13 Jesus on love: Luke 6:27-36, 10:25-28; John 3:16, 13:34-35, 14:15-24, 15:9-17, 21:15-17 Isn’t this a local son?: Mark 6:1-6; Matt. 13:54-58; John 6:41-42; also Mark 3:31-35 Pearls before swine: Prov. 23:9; Matt: 7:6 Catechism links The role of the prophet: CCC 61; 64; 218; 436; 702; 2584

Authors Alice Camille

values catholic schools Respect Saint Paul

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Homily stories

17 May 2009 - Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle B

When I was a kid my brother Pat and I used to get in arguments with the neighbor kids. We went to Catholic school and they went to public school, and often the rhetoric devolved into snide comments about Catholics vs. “publics.” We may have felt that we had moral superiority on our side, but Steve, Jan, and Jeffrey held the trump card: Because they were publics they claimed exclusive ownership to the public sidewalks, which kept us trapped in our own front yard. Saint Peter seemed to be trapped in his own front yard, too, by being convinced that Jesus’ message of salvation was intended just for Jews. It’s hard to break out of a mindset that’s been drilled into you from the time you were a child. Yet for all his faults, and they were plentiful and very public, Peter was also morally resilient. He was able to open his heart to the truth that the Spirit moves in ways beyond our understanding and control. Knowing that the concepts we give our children about God and God’s ways are likely to hold sway in their hearts over the course of their lifetimes, it pays to make sure we’re conveying an honest and true image of God. Even though we and our children have been privileged to be raised in the Catholic faith, God’s ways are various and mysterious and we must let God be God–as if we had a choice in the matter!

Authors Tom McGrath

catholic schools Saint Peter Jesus' message jews

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Exploring the word

29 Jan 2017 - Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

Forrest Gump. Gomer Pyle. Little Orphan Annie. Linus Van Pelt. Jane Eyre. Tiny Tim Cratchit. And every other underdog of literature or film you can name. What do they have in common? A sterling goodness that more than makes up for everything they lack, including: money, ability, stature, strength, and authority. Yet somehow or other, these little ones in the world’s estimation find champions in the end, or become champions in their own right. We tell their stories because these tales make our hearts swell with hope. We want such characters to inherit the earth because, doggone it, wouldn’t it be grand if they did? Now for the downbeat: We live in a world where Linus, Annie, and Tiny Tim are more likely to be crushed than cherished. We inhabit a reverse-Beatitude realm. Here, the poor are forgotten. Those who mourn are avoided. The meek are cheated. Those hungry for justice are blamed for their disadvantages. The merciful are considered patsies. The clean of heart are viewed as narrow-minded. Peacemakers are deemed unpatriotic. Those persecuted for righteousness? If they’re beaten, jailed, or threatened, it’s only what they deserve. The reverse-Beatitude realm is a toxic place. We don’t want to be here. When we hear prophets like Zephaniah promise a future where wrongs will be righted, where the humble and lowly find refuge, we nod our heads in approval of this message. We want to live in the fantastic land where the Lord sets captives free, where the blind see and the lame dance. We want to go to sleep at night knowing the fatherless and the widows are provided for. We’d all sleep better if they were. Instead, we live in the land of bullies and prisoners, the frightened and the powerless. A lot of people go to bed hungry, and some have no beds to go to. Liberty and justice are not for all, not even here in America. This is wrong, all wrong, and we know that. So we keep telling ourselves stories about Forrest Gump outrunning his leg braces, or Jane Eyre discovering at last that she’s always been stronger and more powerful than the pathetic villains and fools who have been her keepers. We want to believe that when Gomer Pyle finally opens his mouth and sings like Jim Nabors, his whole future will be transformed for the better and he’ll get all the respect he deserves. We dream. Time to stop dreaming, and start preparing for the Beatitude world we long for. It’s Catholic Schools Week, and if we can’t change the world overnight, we can change the lives of our children one day at a time. Children are the future, and they will inherit the earth. Let’s give it to them! Related scripture links Israel as God's own possession: Exod. 3:6-10, 13:1, 15:16-17, 19:4-6, 20:1-6 Saved from the flood: Gen. 6:5-9:1, 7; 2 Pet. 2:5 Spared from Sodom: Gen. 19:1-29 God relents from wiping out the nation: Exod. 32:1-29 Catechism links The universal destination of goods: CCC 2401-2449

Authors Alice Camille

underdogs beatitudes meek catholic schools week
What is our central focus?

Short essays about observed trends in Roman Catholic life - Pastoral trends

Today, 75 percent of homes have no school-age children. Thirty years ago it was just the opposite. When a large majority of households had school-age children to be formed and raised, it was not surprising that Catholic parishes could unite around the needs of the Catholic school and CCD program. A large number of households with children had something in common. Parishes focused on “doing something for the kids,” and it worked. The model based on very high proportions of Catholics with school-age children could succeed with relatively limited leadership. The overriding need and the structures required were obvious; everything grew up organically, in a taken-for-granted style around a common need. Nothing could be more different today. At a time when most households no longer have school-age children, people bring a diversity of needs that often overwhelm parishes and pastoral leaders. Having a large number of households without children means that they have very little in common. Pastoral leaders need to make hard decisions: What common interests are to be a central focus? We may therefore see good reasons to embrace the emergence of increasingly specialized parishes—some focused on youth, others oriented toward young adults, some with a strong focus on certain kinds of musical styles. The simple truth is that a number of ministry needs cost money and valuable talent. Parishes have limited funds and can only invest strongly in some areas. Logically, this situation would lead either to a mediocre parish life that tries to be all things for all people, or a specialized parish that does something especially well. © 2005, Bryan Froehle.

Authors Bryan Froehle

catholic schools diversity school-age children

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Religious trends reflect who we are

Short essays about observed trends in Roman Catholic life - Pastoral trends

A major new study on teenagers and the life of faith led by Christian Smith of the University of North Carolina suggests that, in general, Catholic teens are less connected to their faith then teens of most other faith traditions. He suggests that this is the case because teens reflect their parents’ level of commitment. We get what we want. If we want to predict the faith life of our young people, look at the generation that is raising them and the way the faith community of which they are a part lays out its lived expectations. Excluding statistically inevitable exceptions such as deeply practicing and highly committed families whose children leave the practice of the faith, consider instead the more representative statistical average: Children whose parents sporadically attend and who themselves sporadically attend or not at all. Or children of parents who attend out of a somewhat resented habit but cannot express or share faith with their children in a credible way. Trends in religious practice reflect who we are, and what we want. Think of the young person who feels a vocation to be a priest, sister, or brother, or who wants to work for a service or justice organization and accept low wages rather than pursue a high-paying position. How many parents would discourage the former and encourage the latter? What about Catholic elementary and high schools, and colleges and universities? Catholics have surely supported those schools because they formed communities of faith, but has the real selling point for the tuition and pride often been because they give young people a leg up in the march toward success? It’s not that success is a bad thing: It’s only a question of what we really want.

Authors Bryan Froehle

teenagers young people catholic schools

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