Catholic schools – their role in the mission of the Church and in society

Aengus Kavanagh FSP, Patrician Brother, Sydney, has been involved for many years in Catholic Schools at all levels of administration. This article is the second part of an article begun in The Swag (Autumn 2021), looking at the history and development of Catholic Schools in Australia after 200 years. This second part asks questions about where Catholic education is going, the challenges ahead and some hurdles to be overcome. [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]

Structures – New South Wales Catholic Schools

In recent years a new tier of governance has been introduced by the bishops of NSW to replace the NSW Catholic Education Commission, a structure set up in the 1970s as a centralised body to represent the Catholic sector as a whole in its advocacy and accountability in financial dealings with State and Federal Governments.

The new tier is designated – CATHOLIC SCHOOLS NSW. CSNSW states as its mission: … to support the Bishops of NSW in bringing to life the Church’s evangelising mission through Catholic schools …, including among its aims: … to improve the education and faith outcomes of students in NSW Catholic schools by creating communities of faith and learning…. Existing diocesan schools’ systems might reasonably detect duplication here and could be forgiven for sensing implicit criticism of their own commitment to what has rightly been a given in their core agenda for generations. 

CSNSW has a Board of Independent Directors comprised of personnel whose expertise derives mainly from qualifications and experience in the following roles: bishop, economics adviser, lawyer, corporate executive, civil engineer, accountant, company director, corporate manager. There are three educators among the Directors, two whose experience has been mainly at tertiary level, leaving but one Director who has had some sustained professional experience as a school and system educational leader within the Catholic sector. 

Published profiles suggest that all the Directors are highly qualified professionals of vast experience. A serious question emerges however regarding the disproportionate absence of experienced and successful Catholic school educators from among the Directors. This apparent syndrome of ‘other is better’ is likewise being reflected to a lesser degree in a trend towards increased recruitment from the corporate sector into leadership roles in diocesan systems. 

For sure, the Catholic school sector needs to be to the fore in transparency and accountability and needs to marshal good counsel and specialist support in meeting this aim. Surely though, this need not entail the sidelining of professional and competent Catholic educators who carry the story of Catholic schools in their bones and who have always viewed their roles as a vocation and a ministry. After all, Catholic schools strive to be Gospel communities and ought never to be seen as mere cogs in a corporate entity with trimmings of religiosity.

To be fair, CSNSW exercises an important role in its general promotion of the profile of the Catholic school sector and in its serious conversation with issues which impact on school education throughout NSW. Towards the end of 2020, CSNSW published a well-researched enlightened document under the title Pathway to Better, Smarter Regulation for Catholic Schools in NSW. Themes explored were applicable to most schools across the State and dealt mainly with the massive increase in regulatory requirements – red-tape – in the running of schools. An overall impact of such ‘red-tape’ is a diminishment of autonomy in schools and a crippling of school leaders and teachers in attending to their core business as educators. The document, very tangential to the espoused mission of CSNSW, is largely shaped by research academics and by the Kathleen Burrow Research Institute think-tank of CSNSW.

There is ample data to support the increased cluttering and duplication of bureaucracy emanating from State and Federal governments and negatively affecting all schools in recent years. Leaders and teachers in Catholic schools have to cope with additional layers of regulatory requirements and compliances coming from system, diocesan, and parish authorities. There seems to be a need to reclaim elements of that trust which characterised Catholic schools in less affluent times, and for a greater awareness of the multiple pressures on leaders and school staffs in contemporary circumstances. 

Structures – The Church

As an important arm of the Church, Catholic schools share in the mission of the Church, and diocesan schools are subject to the governance of the diocese in which they are located. In 2007, the bishops of NSW and ACT launched a Pastoral Statement with serious implications for the Catholic schools of their Region. The booklet statement bears the title Catholic Schools at the Crossroads. The introduction contains the affirming assertion: The Catholic school system is one of the ‘jewels in the crown’ of the Catholic community in our region, with few overseas parallels. 

The ‘crossroads’ image was used to identify two policy options for the future of Catholic schools.
Option 1 – To downsize our school system to a scale at which we can choose students who readily embrace the mission of the Catholic school.
Option 2 – We can reaffirm our commitment to the essential elements of the Catholic school while recognising, even embracing, changing enrolment patterns as ‘signs of the times’ and of a new mission for Catholic education.

The bishops went for Option 2 stating: The bishops of NSW-ACT believe this second course is the better way forward, and we commit ourselves to it. 

This decision, to an extent, validated a trend that was already common practice in many places, but it probably also contributed to the increased proportion of students not of the Catholic faith. Depending on location and demography, Catholic secondary schools especially, may now have at least 30% of their students who are not baptised Catholics. In general, however, such students and their parents or guardians, at time of enrolment, are required to assent to alignment with the religious ethos of the school before enrolment is accepted.

Given this context, it may be more appropriate and inspiring for Catholic schools to be regarded as at frontiers rather than at crossroads. Give or take a few thousands, one way or the other, the total population of students and staff in Catholic schools in the country hovers around 800,000. 

This is probably higher than the total number of weekly Mass-goers in the whole of Australia. This statistic is worth reflecting on given that the faithful remnant of practising Catholics comprises the group that is almost the sole beneficiary of the sacramental and pastoral ministry of almost all the clergy and ministry assistants in every parish in the country. ‘Preaching to the converted’ rightfully remains the norm, but, what prospects for a future Church does this scenario hold?

Especially in the Papacy of Pope Francis, the aspiration has been strong that parishes move from maintenance to missionary mode. Pope Francis has been Pope for over seven years now and yet evidence is sparse of any impact of the Papal exhortations on parish life.

The contention that Catholic schools are at a frontier gains substance from the fact that, in general, each school is in direct contact with a whole constituency of people who have hardly any affiliation with the institutional Church. It is often said that ‘the only experience of Church’ that most students and staff in Catholic schools will ever have, will be as experienced in their schools. Most schools are aware of this and seek to make this ‘experience’ a good one. 

In varying ways, the following policies and practices are expressions of the religious dimensions in the majority of Catholic schools and are an integral part of the schools’ culture: Eucharist celebrations to mark special occasions; regular classroom prayer and prayer at staff meetings and at school assemblies; religious education for all students; display of Catholic religious art and symbols throughout the school; reflection days and retreats for senior students especially; annual Faith & Spirituality day for staff; regular dispatch of School Bulletins to parents including religious themes which highlight Church liturgical seasons and news items regarding sacramental programs, social justice outreach initiatives, etc. It devolves on each school to ensure that these ‘experiences’ are integrated within the school’s total curriculum, and are not but disjointed box-ticking add-ons, at the behest of the principal and the ‘RE God squad’, to appease expectations of authorities.

One can never gauge the impact of these experiences on students and staff. The hope is that it will lead to a deepened sense of the sacred in their lives, and that they will become more understanding and appreciative of ‘the Catholic way’. The hope too is that they may leave school with a heightened sense of awareness of, and a relationship with, Jesus, thereby giving them a sure foundation to shape the moral compass that will guide them through life. 

There probably remains scope for Catholic schools to give greater attention to the development of a social consciousness among students, who may then in their futures be strong in a commitment to social justice, thereby giving witness to Christianity in action. Pope Francis, in a message to the Vatican-sponsored Global Compact on Education (Rome Oct 15 -2020) expressed a wish that ought to find easy resonance among all Catholic educators: The value of our educational practices, will be measured not simply by the results of standardised tests, but by the ability to affect the heart of society and to help to give birth to a new culture. A different world is possible, and this calls for the involvement of every aspect of our humanity, both as individuals and in our communities. 

Sounds a bit like the oft-expressed wish in the Lord’s Prayer – Thy Kingdom Come, the growth of the reign of God in the hearts of all people? 

Most DNA Catholics would like it to be otherwise, but a reality is that almost all students of Catholic schools sever connection with the institutional Church on leaving school. The statistic is that only about 5% of baptised Catholics in the mid-teens to mid-forties age-range, attend Mass regularly. One could conclude from this that matters of faith and spirituality are just not on their agenda in this period. 

Such may be the case for many, but, teachers who regularly lead retreats for senior students in Catholic schools will readily testify to the fact that, given the right setting, surprisingly large numbers of young women and young men are quite amenable to reflection, prayer, and faith-sharing, often volunteering to act as leaders in these activities.

In the Summer 2020 issue of The Swag, an article by Melbourne priest of 50 years, Fr Terry Dean, raises an issue worthy of consideration by the Church generally, but especially in the context of  the massive drift of young people from Church:
It seems to me that our bishops look to manage rather than imagine a church of the future. For all my 50 years, the Eucharist has always been the centre of my Catholic expression of prayer and action … However, it is not the source and summit for many. Even most Catholics … so many of them find it irrelevant and uninspiring … maybe … Our insistence as Catholic church on Eucharist and the presence of the priest has meant we have not encouraged other expressions of Liturgy as well as we could have … such liturgies can be more creative and less tied to rules and regulations as in our Eucharist.

Brave of Fr Terry to articulate for The Swag readers a misgiving that is already more widely shared. The lure of the Youth Folk Mass of the 70s has long since perished. The aspiration expressed by Pope Francis in his address to the Brazílian bishops (27 July 2013) is especially apt for our lost generations: We need a Church capable of restoring citizenship to her many children who are journeying, as it were, in an exodus. More important still, the sentiment aligns with the way of Jesus, moving out through towns and villages, encountering people in their lived reality bringing them healing, relief, and hope. No hint of Jesus not caring for the ‘lapsed Jews’ who did not show up regularly at his synagogue of assignation, for Sabbath worship!! 

The Catholic school presents a favourable setting for the development and the offering of prayers and non-sacramental liturgies using themes and language relevant to the age and stage of students and inviting active participation. It is heartening to witness such events where, in many instances, students have had active roles in the preparation and celebration. No longer just the passive acquiescence that often characterises school Masses.

Partnership in mission 

Frequently, Catholic schools and parishes can appear to offer parallel models of ‘Church’, especially in the case of Catholic secondary schools. Given the common mission they share, this is a pity. Where there is good rapport between the local clergy and the school leadership, fruitful partnerships in mission are to the fore, and happily this scenario is a common occurrence. The key ingredients of this ‘rapport’ are trust and relationships. Personalities play a big part, as do different perceptions of authority and different understandings of ecclesiology. Whatever the differences, it devolves on the school principal and on the clergy involved to maintain as a priority effective school-parish(es) collaboration. It is sad to hear that occasionally building good parish-school relationships may be ‘like walking on egg-shells’.

Tellingly, on the feast of St Francis, 4 October 2020, Pope Francis launched his lengthiest encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, at Assisi. Against a world back-drop of the rise in populist nationalism, increase in extremist movements, greater polarizations in society and in Church (US Presidential election, American Catholics voted – Biden 51%, Trump 49%), the Pope’s encyclical offers a timely and compelling voice to the international discourse. 

Recurring themes include pleas for: a respect for differences, a readiness to listen to diverse opinions and to dialogue, an increased awareness that trust and mutuality in relationships are at the heart of healing and collaboration. 

In general, the Church needs to embrace these principles more fully, but they find particular application in strengthening the complementary roles of parishes and Catholic schools in the mission of the Church. Such complementarity results from commitment, not from decree.

Towards the future

Though there have been shadows and there have been glitches along the way, the story of Catholic schools in Australia has been unique, proud, and fruitful. It is important that knowledge and understanding of the story are an integral part of the induction of all who work in Catholic schools and in schools governance. 

It is particularly important that all staff are aware of the main reason underpinning the courage and the generous support of the Catholic community and generations of Catholic educators through decades of hardship, to remain a separate sector on the education landscape in Australia. 

It was not that Catholics schools might grow to be replicas of good State schools; it was to ensure that faith integration would remain a priority.

In 2014, this writer was co-author of a book titled Will Catholic Schools Be Catholic in 2030? The rather quirky title was adopted with the intention of inviting reflection and discussion on the fundamental reason for the continued existence of Catholic school education. The title itself provoked some interesting reactions: Are they Catholic now?; Who cares?; What will it be like to ‘be Catholic’ in 2030?, et al.

Despite an increase in contrary forces, many of the policies, practices, structures already in existence, have the potential for schools to maintain an authentically Catholic identity into the future. 

One decisive factor however will be the level of commitment of schools and systems to the provision and the promotion of a range of programs and opportunities, enabling the ongoing faith formation and spiritual development of staffs.

In 2016, the Executive Directors of Schools in NSW & ACT sponsored the production of a short video on the Story of Catholic schools (www.growingthestory.com.au). 

At this time of Bicentenary, the best way the Australian Church and Catholic educators can honour the rich legacy bequeathed, is by rallying together in a renewed commitment to the telling and the growing of what is best in the story. [/s2If]