MEETING WITH CATHOLIC EDUCATORS
ADDRESS OF HIS
HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
Conference Hall of the Catholic University
of America in Washington, D.C.
Thursday, 17 April 2008
Your
Eminences,
Dear Brother Bishops,
Distinguished Professors, Teachers and Educators,
“How beautiful are the
footsteps of those who bring good news” (Rom 10:15-17). With these words
of Isaiah quoted by Saint Paul, I warmly greet each of you – bearers of wisdom
– and through you the staff, students and families of the many and varied
institutions of learning that you represent. It is my great pleasure to meet
you and to share with you some thoughts regarding the nature and identity of
Catholic education today. I especially wish to thank Father David O’Connell,
President and Rector of the Catholic University of America. Your kind words of
welcome are much appreciated. Please extend my heartfelt gratitude to the
entire community – faculty, staff and students – of this University.
Education is integral to the
mission of the Church to proclaim the Good News. 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.
The dynamic between personal
encounter, knowledge and Christian witness is integral to the diakonia
of truth which the Church exercises in the midst of humanity. God’s revelation
offers every generation the opportunity to discover the ultimate truth about
its own life and the goal of history. This task is never easy; it involves the
entire Christian community and motivates each generation of Christian educators
to ensure that the power of God’s truth permeates every dimension of the
institutions they serve. In this way, Christ’s Good News is set to work,
guiding both teacher and student towards the objective truth which, in transcending
the particular and the subjective, points to the universal and absolute that
enables us to proclaim with confidence the hope which does not disappoint (cf. Rom
5:5). Set against personal struggles, moral confusion and fragmentation of
knowledge, the noble goals of scholarship and education, founded on the unity
of truth and in service of the person and the community, become an especially
powerful instrument of hope.
Dear friends, the history of
this nation includes many examples of the Church’s commitment in this regard.
The Catholic community here has in fact made education one of its highest
priorities. This undertaking has not come without great sacrifice. Towering
figures, like Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton and other founders and foundresses,
with great tenacity and foresight, laid the foundations of what is today a
remarkable network of parochial schools contributing to the spiritual
well-being of the Church and the nation. Some, like Saint Katharine Drexel,
devoted their lives to educating those whom others had neglected – in her case,
African Americans and Native Americans. Countless dedicated Religious Sisters,
Brothers, and Priests together with selfless parents have, through Catholic
schools, helped generations of immigrants to rise from poverty and take their
place in mainstream society.
This sacrifice continues
today. It is an outstanding apostolate of hope, seeking to address the
material, intellectual and spiritual needs of over three million children and
students. It also provides a highly commendable opportunity for the entire
Catholic community to contribute generously to the financial needs of our
institutions. Their long-term sustainability must be assured. Indeed,
everything possible must be done, in cooperation with the wider community, to
ensure that they are accessible to people of all social and economic strata. No
child should be denied his or her right to an education in faith, which in turn
nurtures the soul of a nation.
Some today question the
Church’s involvement in education, wondering whether her resources might be
better placed elsewhere. Certainly in a nation such as this, the State provides
ample opportunities for education and attracts committed and generous men and
women to this honorable profession. It is timely, then, to reflect on what is
particular to our Catholic institutions. How do they contribute to the good of
society through the Church’s primary mission of evangelization?
All the Church’s activities
stem from her awareness that she is the bearer of a message which has its
origin in God himself: in his goodness and wisdom, God chose to reveal himself
and to make known the hidden purpose of his will (cf. Eph 1:9; Dei Verbum, 2). God’s desire
to make himself known, and the innate desire of all human beings to know the
truth, provide the context for human inquiry into the meaning of life. This
unique encounter is sustained within our Christian community: the one who seeks
the truth becomes the one who lives by faith (cf. Fides et Ratio, 31). It
can be described as a move from “I” to “we”, leading the individual to be
numbered among God’s people.
This same dynamic of communal
identity – to whom do I belong? – vivifies the ethos of our Catholic
institutions. A university or school’s Catholic identity is not simply a
question of the number of Catholic students. It is a question of conviction –
do we really believe that only in the mystery of the Word made flesh does the
mystery of man truly become clear (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 22)? Are we ready
to commit our entire self – intellect and will, mind and heart – to God? Do we
accept the truth Christ reveals? Is the faith tangible in our universities and
schools? Is it given fervent expression liturgically, sacramentally, through
prayer, acts of charity, a concern for justice, and respect for God’s creation?
Only in this way do we really bear witness to the meaning of who we are and
what we uphold.
From this perspective one can
recognize that the contemporary “crisis of truth” is rooted in a “crisis of
faith”. Only through faith can we freely give our assent to God’s testimony and
acknowledge him as the transcendent guarantor of the truth he reveals. Again,
we see why fostering personal intimacy with Jesus Christ and communal witness
to his loving truth is indispensable in Catholic institutions of learning. Yet
we all know, and observe with concern, the difficulty or reluctance many people
have today in entrusting themselves to God. It is a complex phenomenon and one which
I ponder continually. While we have sought diligently to engage the intellect
of our young, perhaps we have neglected the will. Subsequently we observe, with
distress, the notion of freedom being distorted. Freedom is not an opting out.
It is an opting in – a participation in Being itself. Hence authentic freedom
can never be attained by turning away from God. Such a choice would ultimately
disregard the very truth we need in order to understand ourselves. A particular
responsibility therefore for each of you, and your colleagues, is to evoke
among the young the desire for the act of faith, encouraging them to commit
themselves to the ecclesial life that follows from this belief. It is here that
freedom reaches the certainty of truth. In choosing to live by that truth, we
embrace the fullness of the life of faith which is given to us in the Church.
Clearly, then, Catholic
identity is not dependent upon statistics. Neither can it be equated simply
with orthodoxy of course content. It demands and inspires much more: namely
that each and every aspect of your learning communities reverberates within the
ecclesial life of faith. Only in faith can truth become incarnate and reason
truly human, capable of directing the will along the path of freedom (cf. Spe Salvi, 23). In this way
our institutions make a vital contribution to the mission of the Church and
truly serve society. They become places in which God’s active presence in human
affairs is recognized and in which every young person discovers the joy of
entering into Christ’s “being for others” (cf. ibid., 28).
The Church’s primary mission
of evangelization, in which educational institutions play a crucial role, is
consonant with a nation’s fundamental aspiration to develop a society truly
worthy of the human person’s dignity. At times, however, the value of the
Church’s contribution to the public forum is questioned. It is important therefore
to recall that the truths of faith and of reason never contradict one another
(cf. First Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic
Faith Dei Filius, IV: DS 3017; St. Augustine, Contra
Academicos, III, 20, 43). The Church’s mission, in fact, involves her in
humanity’s struggle to arrive at truth. In articulating revealed truth she
serves all members of society by purifying reason, ensuring that it remains
open to the consideration of ultimate truths. Drawing upon divine wisdom, she
sheds light on the foundation of human morality and ethics, and reminds all
groups in society that it is not praxis that creates truth but truth that
should serve as the basis of praxis. Far from undermining the tolerance of
legitimate diversity, such a contribution illuminates the very truth which
makes consensus attainable, and helps to keep public debate rational, honest
and accountable. Similarly the Church never tires of upholding the essential
moral categories of right and wrong, without which hope could only wither,
giving way to cold pragmatic calculations of utility which render the person
little more than a pawn on some ideological chess-board.
With regard to the educational
forum, the diakonia of truth takes on a heightened significance in societies
where secularist ideology drives a wedge between truth and faith. This division
has led to a tendency to equate truth with knowledge and to adopt a
positivistic mentality which, in rejecting metaphysics, denies the foundations
of faith and rejects the need for a moral vision. Truth means more than
knowledge: knowing the truth leads us to discover the good. Truth speaks to the
individual in his or her entirety, inviting us to respond with our whole being.
This optimistic vision is found in our Christian faith because such faith has
been granted the vision of the Logos, God’s creative Reason, which in
the Incarnation, is revealed as Goodness itself. Far from being just a
communication of factual data – “informative” – the loving truth of the Gospel
is creative and life-changing – “performative” (cf. Spe Salvi, 2). With
confidence, Christian educators can liberate the young from the limits of
positivism and awaken receptivity to the truth, to God and his goodness. In
this way you will also help to form their conscience which, enriched by faith,
opens a sure path to inner peace and to respect for others.
It comes as no surprise, then,
that not just our own ecclesial communities but society in general has high
expectations of Catholic educators. This places upon you a responsibility and
offers an opportunity. More and more people – parents in particular – recognize
the need for excellence in the human formation of their children. As Mater
et Magistra, the Church shares their concern. When nothing beyond
the individual is recognized as definitive, the ultimate criterion of judgment
becomes the self and the satisfaction of the individual’s immediate wishes. The
objectivity and perspective, which can only come through a recognition of the
essential transcendent dimension of the human person, can be lost. Within such
a relativistic horizon the goals of education are inevitably curtailed. Slowly,
a lowering of standards occurs. We observe today a timidity in the face of the
category of the good and an aimless pursuit of novelty parading as the
realization of freedom. We witness an assumption that every experience is of
equal worth and a reluctance to admit imperfection and mistakes. And
particularly disturbing, is the reduction of the precious and delicate area of
education in sexuality to management of ‘risk’, bereft of any reference to the
beauty of conjugal love.
How might Christian educators
respond? These harmful developments point to the particular urgency of what we
might call “intellectual charity”. This aspect of charity calls the educator to
recognize that the profound responsibility to lead the young to truth is
nothing less than an act of love. Indeed, the dignity of education lies in
fostering the true perfection and happiness of those to be educated. In
practice “intellectual charity” upholds the essential unity of knowledge
against the fragmentation which ensues when reason is detached from the pursuit
of truth. It guides the young towards the deep satisfaction of exercising
freedom in relation to truth, and it strives to articulate the relationship
between faith and all aspects of family and civic life. Once their passion for
the fullness and unity of truth has been awakened, young people will surely
relish the discovery that the question of what they can know opens up the vast
adventure of what they ought to do. Here they will experience “in what” and “in
whom” it is possible to hope, and be inspired to contribute to society in a way
that engenders hope in others.
Dear friends, I wish to
conclude by focusing our attention specifically on the paramount importance of
your own professionalism and witness within our Catholic universities and
schools. First, let me thank you for your dedication and generosity. I know
from my own days as a professor, and I have heard from your Bishops and
officials of the Congregation for Catholic Education, that the reputation of
Catholic institutes of learning in this country is largely due to yourselves
and your predecessors. Your selfless contributions – from outstanding research
to the dedication of those working in inner-city schools – serve both your
country and the Church. For this I express my profound gratitude.
In regard to faculty members
at Catholic colleges universities, I wish to reaffirm the great value of
academic freedom. In virtue of this freedom you are called to search for the
truth wherever careful analysis of evidence leads you. Yet it is also the case
that any appeal to the principle of academic freedom in order to justify
positions that contradict the faith and the teaching of the Church would
obstruct or even betray the university's identity and mission; a mission at the
heart of the Church’s munus docendi and not somehow autonomous or
independent of it.
Teachers and administrators,
whether in universities or schools, have the duty and privilege to ensure that
students receive instruction in Catholic doctrine and practice. This requires
that public witness to the way of Christ, as found in the Gospel and upheld by
the Church's Magisterium, shapes all aspects of an institution’s life, both
inside and outside the classroom. Divergence from this vision weakens Catholic
identity and, far from advancing freedom, inevitably leads to confusion,
whether moral, intellectual or spiritual.
I wish also to express a
particular word of encouragement to both lay and Religious teachers of
catechesis who strive to ensure that young people become daily more
appreciative of the gift of faith. Religious education is a challenging
apostolate, yet there are many signs of a desire among young people to learn
about the faith and practice it with vigor. If this awakening is to grow,
teachers require a clear and precise understanding of the specific nature and
role of Catholic education. They must also be ready to lead the commitment made
by the entire school community to assist our young people, and their families,
to experience the harmony between faith, life and culture.
Here I wish to make a special
appeal to Religious Brothers, Sisters and Priests: do not abandon the school
apostolate; indeed, renew your commitment to schools especially those in poorer
areas. In places where there are many hollow promises which lure young people
away from the path of truth and genuine freedom, the consecrated person’s
witness to the evangelical counsels is an irreplaceable gift. I encourage the
Religious present to bring renewed enthusiasm to the promotion of vocations. Know
that your witness to the ideal of consecration and mission among the young is a
source of great inspiration in faith for them and their families.
To all of you I say: bear
witness to hope. Nourish your witness with prayer. Account for the hope that characterizes
your lives (cf. 1 Pet 3:15) by living the truth which you propose to
your students. Help them to know and love the One you have encountered, whose
truth and goodness you have experienced with joy. With Saint Augustine, let us
say: “we who speak and you who listen acknowledge ourselves as fellow disciples
of a single teacher” (Sermons, 23:2). With these sentiments of
communion, I gladly impart to you, your colleagues and students, and to your
families, my Apostolic Blessing.
©
Copyright 2008 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana