Feb. 1, 2012 

Let’s celebrate and support Catholic schools

By Most Rev. James D. Conley, S.T.L., Apostolic Administrator

In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI visited with Catholic school teachers from across the United States during his pastoral visit to our country. His message was clear: “Freedom,” he said “is a participation in Being itself.”

Catholic schools should exist to set people free in order to seek the truth—the truth about God, the truth about the world and the truth about ourselves.

Catholic schools, the Holy Father said, “awaken receptivity to the truth, to God and his goodness.”

Catholic schools are a place where truth is primary. They teach that there is such a thing as objective truth, a truth that can be both known and possessed. In Catholic schools, faith and reason occupy the same space—they do not compete, they do not contradict—they complement each other in the dual pursuit of the truth.

In Catholic schools the truth God has revealed to us and the truth which we discover through our reason are like two wings of an eagle, to use a metaphor made famous by Blessed John Paul II, on which “the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves” (“Fides et Ratio,” 1998).

This week, Jan. 29-Feb. 5, is recognized in the United States as Catholic Schools Week. In the Archdiocese of Denver, where more than 10,000 students attend Catholic schools, it is an honor to recognize the importance of our school system—the largest private school system in Colorado.

Catholic schools exist not only to educate, but more importantly, to form students as human beings and as Christians. The mission of Catholic schools is to provide quality education and to provide quality formation—to help students encounter Jesus Christ and be transformed by him. Pope Benedict XVI encouraged “every Catholic educational institution” to be a place “to encounter the living God who in Jesus Christ reveals his transforming love and truth.”

On this point, Blessed John Henry Newman reflected that: “I wish the intellect to range with the utmost freedom, and religion to enjoy an equal freedom; but what I am stipulating for is, that they should be found in one and the same place, and exemplified in the same persons.”

Catholic schools should form men and women who are intellectually capable and spiritually rich. Catholic schools are successful not only when they produce scholars; they are successful when they produce saints!

The schools of the Archdiocese of Denver are working to do just that.

Academics are rigorous in our schools, equipping students with the tools to transform culture in the name of the Gospel. Last year, 100 percent of our archdiocesan high school graduates gained admission to college and were awarded $16.8 million in scholarships. For many of these students, they were the first in their family to attend college. 

More importantly, in the schools of the Archdiocese of Denver, prayer is a part of everyday life. Most students attend Mass weekly. Family life is encouraged. Teachers are not only licensed professionals but also credible witnesses to Christ and to his Church.

Obviously, Catholics in the Archdiocese of Denver value Catholic education. Last year, parents sacrificed to invest more than $30 million in tuition. The Catholic community through foundations, private benefactors and parishioners has provided more than $6 million this year to ensure the quality, affordability and accessibility of our schools. It is clear that Catholic education is a worthwhile investment for our community—and I ask you to join me in thanking all those parents and benefactors who keep our schools running. It is a worthwhile investment for our future.

To preserve the strength of our Catholic schools, however, all of us should support them. Each of us can pray for the well-being of Catholic education. Many of us can commit to greater financial support for Catholic education. Some of us can volunteer our time, or our resources, to enrich our Catholic schools.

Pope Benedict XVI reflected that in supporting Catholic education, we help children “to know and love the One we have encountered, whose truth and goodness we have experienced with joy.”

May each of us commit to this great work!.

Most Rev. James D. Conley, S.T.L., is Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Denver.