In today's reading from the Gospel of Luke, Jesus speaks to us about the need for perseverance in prayer and about the need for humility when we approach the Lord .Just like the lady who approaches an unwilling judge to give her justice through her constant pleading , so too, without any despair in our heart, we should pray to God constantly. It is our perseverance that is important. Our Lord will never abandon us. Our hearts should not be puffed up with notions of our righteousness. Before God we are all sinners and have no right to be considered holy. We have to present ourselves as we are before God. God in his mercy and compassion will grant our requests.
How good it is to remember these lessons. Often, we come to prayers, making our requests based on our merits and what we have done as faithful disciples. That is the wrong attitude to adopt in prayer. Before God's infinite holiness, we are nothing.
Lord, grant me this sense of humility. Help me in my times of weakness. I am nobody before you. You alone have the power. Have mercy one me. I cannot do anything of my own. Have mercy on me.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Epiphany Reflections,Jan.30,12,Mt.18:23-35
In today's Gospel, Jesus explains the nature of God's kingdom.Using the parable of the king who forgives his debtors , he reminds his listeners that in the kingdom of God, one would experience mercy and forgivness. He also points out through the parable of the meriless official how cruelty and lack of mercy would be punished by God. It is a reminder to each one of us to be forgiving and merciful because God is full of forgivenss and mercy towards us.
In life, what is important is not our material possession but what we give to others. What we have gained as wealth and glory from the world has no meaning in the eyes of God. God wants us to reflect his mercy and love in our dealings with our fellow-brethren.
In life, what is important is not our material possession but what we give to others. What we have gained as wealth and glory from the world has no meaning in the eyes of God. God wants us to reflect his mercy and love in our dealings with our fellow-brethren.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The Church in India,Growth in Vocations
Jeff Ziegler has written very extensively about developments and growth of the Catholic Church in the Catholic World Report.One of his most recent articles deals with the growth and vitality in the American Church because of the presence of Spanish Catholics.In other issues of the Report , he has written beautifully about the growth of the Chruch in India and the major role played by the Syro-Malabar Church.
In the following article, a few quotes from his Reports about the Church in Kerala are given.
A Source of Hope: The Catholic World Report,Feb.2010.
"At the end of 2007,India's Catholic population ranked 16th in the world...India has more seminarians(14,120) than any other nation. Between 1999 and 2007, the number of Indian seminarians increased by an astounding 40 percent.Nearly 64 of India's seminarians will be ordained for religious orders...
"Between 1999 and 2007, the number of diocesan priests ministering in India rose by 24 percent, from 10690 to 13,290, while the number of religious order priests rose by 33 percent, from 8248 to 11003.
India has more nuns than any other nation(except Italy) and will soon rank first in the world..
"Institutional presence is also unmatched anywhere in the world.India has 10,240 Catholic elementary schools with more than 3 million students--More than any other nation in the world.India has more than 5000 high schools with over three million students.
There are more Catholic hospitals in India than in all of North America.Indeed , the Church in India has more hospitals(754),medical dispensaries(2504),leprosaria(220) and orphanages(2,327) than any other nation."
Jeff also writes about the persecution of Christians in India.He notes: "Although India is a secualr nation whose constituion respects religious freedom, five of India's 29 state governments have enacted anti-conversion laws,and some states have turned a blind eye to the persecution of Christians.Anti-Christian persecution in India attracted world wide attention in 2008 when violence in the northeastern state of Orisaa left 90 dead and fifty thousand homeless.
Speaking aboout the Women's relgious orders, Jeff observes that some of the largest women's congregations are in India."Each has more members than the Benedictines,Dominicans, Sisters of Mercy,the School Sisters of Notre Dame, and other well-known women's communities."
"The greatest threats to the dynamism of the Church in India....are Western-style secularism and smaller families."
In another e article called " Nuns World Wide", Jeff speaks about the decline of vocations among women in the Western world and the increase in vocation among women in India."With five of the 10 largest women religious institutes now headquartered in India--where only 1.6 percent of the world's Catholics live--India has become the worldwide center of women's religious ocations.The number of professed women relgious in India grew by 9,398 between 2002 and 2007.While India has neary 50 million fewer Catholics than the United States does, it has over 30,000 more women relgious.
"If St.Louis is sometimes called the "Rome of the West" because of the number of religious who once served there, it would be far truer to call Ernakulam-Angamaly in Kerala the "Rome of the East.'...Although the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church has 200,000 fewer Catholics than the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, it has 30,000 sisters--more than half of them members of the Franciscan Clarist Congreagtion, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel, and the sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament."
In the following article, a few quotes from his Reports about the Church in Kerala are given.
A Source of Hope: The Catholic World Report,Feb.2010.
"At the end of 2007,India's Catholic population ranked 16th in the world...India has more seminarians(14,120) than any other nation. Between 1999 and 2007, the number of Indian seminarians increased by an astounding 40 percent.Nearly 64 of India's seminarians will be ordained for religious orders...
"Between 1999 and 2007, the number of diocesan priests ministering in India rose by 24 percent, from 10690 to 13,290, while the number of religious order priests rose by 33 percent, from 8248 to 11003.
India has more nuns than any other nation(except Italy) and will soon rank first in the world..
"Institutional presence is also unmatched anywhere in the world.India has 10,240 Catholic elementary schools with more than 3 million students--More than any other nation in the world.India has more than 5000 high schools with over three million students.
There are more Catholic hospitals in India than in all of North America.Indeed , the Church in India has more hospitals(754),medical dispensaries(2504),leprosaria(220) and orphanages(2,327) than any other nation."
Jeff also writes about the persecution of Christians in India.He notes: "Although India is a secualr nation whose constituion respects religious freedom, five of India's 29 state governments have enacted anti-conversion laws,and some states have turned a blind eye to the persecution of Christians.Anti-Christian persecution in India attracted world wide attention in 2008 when violence in the northeastern state of Orisaa left 90 dead and fifty thousand homeless.
Speaking aboout the Women's relgious orders, Jeff observes that some of the largest women's congregations are in India."Each has more members than the Benedictines,Dominicans, Sisters of Mercy,the School Sisters of Notre Dame, and other well-known women's communities."
"The greatest threats to the dynamism of the Church in India....are Western-style secularism and smaller families."
In another e article called " Nuns World Wide", Jeff speaks about the decline of vocations among women in the Western world and the increase in vocation among women in India."With five of the 10 largest women religious institutes now headquartered in India--where only 1.6 percent of the world's Catholics live--India has become the worldwide center of women's religious ocations.The number of professed women relgious in India grew by 9,398 between 2002 and 2007.While India has neary 50 million fewer Catholics than the United States does, it has over 30,000 more women relgious.
"If St.Louis is sometimes called the "Rome of the West" because of the number of religious who once served there, it would be far truer to call Ernakulam-Angamaly in Kerala the "Rome of the East.'...Although the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church has 200,000 fewer Catholics than the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, it has 30,000 sisters--more than half of them members of the Franciscan Clarist Congreagtion, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel, and the sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament."
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Reflections on the Leadership of Moses in the Old Testament
After reading the books of the Old Testament upto the end of Dueteronomy, one finds that the person who makes the greatest impact on us is Moses. It is Moses who is the domineering figure all through these books and his leadership remains strongly implanted in our mind.It would be worthwhile to rflect on the qualities of his leadership.
What we find is a man who is totally devoted to God, following the commandments of the Lord upto the last breath f his life. He was fully at the disposal of God's commandents.He was faithful and strong, undaunted and fearless before obstacles. What guided him was his faith n God.He believed that as long as God was with him , nothing would be impossible.He cried and interceded for his speople. He warned and punished his people.
He was also an imperfect human being. He could not speak. He needed the hep of Aaron to speak for him.He failed to believe that water would gush forth if he would strike a rock. For his failure, he was grievously punished by being denied the privilege of entering the Promised Land. It was to this promised Land that he was journeying. But like his compatriots, he too was denied entry into the Land.He is like any one of us in his failings. But he had no complaints. He just follwed he what God asked him to do.
He was not afraid of obstacles. He was persevering. In spite of the rejection of Pharaoh , he continued to meet him until he got his people out of Egypt. What he heard from God , he communicated to the people with out any fear of their rejection.He warned, cajoled , punished and inspired the people who were under his care."Let my people go" is what is being echoed in our ears.
His stay at the Mountain of Sinai and his face radiant with glow because he saw the glory of God all remain etched dsitinctly in our mind.
The last days of his life are also very memorable.hH told the people that he was getitng old.He had no more any power to lead.He enrusted the task of leading the peope to the Promised Land to Joshua.The last word about him at the end of Dueteronomy was that he was without any equal.
What we find is a man who is totally devoted to God, following the commandments of the Lord upto the last breath f his life. He was fully at the disposal of God's commandents.He was faithful and strong, undaunted and fearless before obstacles. What guided him was his faith n God.He believed that as long as God was with him , nothing would be impossible.He cried and interceded for his speople. He warned and punished his people.
He was also an imperfect human being. He could not speak. He needed the hep of Aaron to speak for him.He failed to believe that water would gush forth if he would strike a rock. For his failure, he was grievously punished by being denied the privilege of entering the Promised Land. It was to this promised Land that he was journeying. But like his compatriots, he too was denied entry into the Land.He is like any one of us in his failings. But he had no complaints. He just follwed he what God asked him to do.
He was not afraid of obstacles. He was persevering. In spite of the rejection of Pharaoh , he continued to meet him until he got his people out of Egypt. What he heard from God , he communicated to the people with out any fear of their rejection.He warned, cajoled , punished and inspired the people who were under his care."Let my people go" is what is being echoed in our ears.
His stay at the Mountain of Sinai and his face radiant with glow because he saw the glory of God all remain etched dsitinctly in our mind.
The last days of his life are also very memorable.hH told the people that he was getitng old.He had no more any power to lead.He enrusted the task of leading the peope to the Promised Land to Joshua.The last word about him at the end of Dueteronomy was that he was without any equal.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Stephen Covey- the 8th Habit
Stephen Covey's The 8th Habit is his newest book on effective leadership.He underlines the need for a voice on the part of the leader and the willingnes to share his voice with others by empowering their qualities.
We live in a culture of blame where we blame others for the lack of development in our insitution or venture. We never take the initiative to become catalysts of change. We have to move away from such a mindset.Whatever may be the little contribution that we can make, we have to make it.We should have a voice and we should let the voice be heard instead of blaming the sytem.Covey gives the life and example of the nobel laureate,Mohamed Younus, the founder of the Grameen Bank ,to make his point that one man's voice can change the lives of many.
Some of the important points that he makes in the book are the following:
"For big changes, work on the paradigms--mind-sets and perceptons--the lens through which one views the universe."
"Leaders are those who use their gifts to develop a vision of great things they want to accomplish.They find and use their voice.They serve and inspire others.
The two elemetns of a leader---Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs.
"You can be a transition person in the organization you work for.Remember, any time your emotional life is a function of someone else's weakness, you disempower yourself." According to Covey,
vision,discipline, passion and conscience are required for a good leader.Vision consists in seeing a future state with the mind's eyes.
"The most important vision is to develop a sense of self, a sense of your unique mission and role in life...Vision is about more than just getting things done; it is about discovering and expanding our view of others...helping them to find their own voice."
"Seeing people through the lens of their potential and their best actions, rather than through the lens of their current behavior or weaknesses, generates positive energy.
There is great power in viewing people separately from their behavior, for as we do, we affirm their fundamental, unconditional worth.
Cultivating the habit of affirming people is very important.
With regard to family life, he has the following observations to make:
I believe that the most important work you do in the world will be within the walls of your own home. He quotes David O.Mckay to underline the point that our role in guiding an leading the family is the important one in life:" No other success can cmpensate for failure in the home."
"Parentood is the most important leadership responsibility in life and will provide the greatest levels of happiness and joy."
Leadership is communicating to people their worth and potential so clearly that they come to see it in themselves."
"Keep investing in your prsonal and professioanl development and in your power to roduce solutions to problems.Your security does ot come f rom your job or form the patronage of other people; it comes from your ability to meet needs and solve prblems.Keep investing in thsoe abilities, and you will have nedless opportunities."
We live in a culture of blame where we blame others for the lack of development in our insitution or venture. We never take the initiative to become catalysts of change. We have to move away from such a mindset.Whatever may be the little contribution that we can make, we have to make it.We should have a voice and we should let the voice be heard instead of blaming the sytem.Covey gives the life and example of the nobel laureate,Mohamed Younus, the founder of the Grameen Bank ,to make his point that one man's voice can change the lives of many.
Some of the important points that he makes in the book are the following:
"For big changes, work on the paradigms--mind-sets and perceptons--the lens through which one views the universe."
"Leaders are those who use their gifts to develop a vision of great things they want to accomplish.They find and use their voice.They serve and inspire others.
The two elemetns of a leader---Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs.
"You can be a transition person in the organization you work for.Remember, any time your emotional life is a function of someone else's weakness, you disempower yourself." According to Covey,
vision,discipline, passion and conscience are required for a good leader.Vision consists in seeing a future state with the mind's eyes.
"The most important vision is to develop a sense of self, a sense of your unique mission and role in life...Vision is about more than just getting things done; it is about discovering and expanding our view of others...helping them to find their own voice."
"Seeing people through the lens of their potential and their best actions, rather than through the lens of their current behavior or weaknesses, generates positive energy.
There is great power in viewing people separately from their behavior, for as we do, we affirm their fundamental, unconditional worth.
Cultivating the habit of affirming people is very important.
With regard to family life, he has the following observations to make:
I believe that the most important work you do in the world will be within the walls of your own home. He quotes David O.Mckay to underline the point that our role in guiding an leading the family is the important one in life:" No other success can cmpensate for failure in the home."
"Parentood is the most important leadership responsibility in life and will provide the greatest levels of happiness and joy."
Leadership is communicating to people their worth and potential so clearly that they come to see it in themselves."
"Keep investing in your prsonal and professioanl development and in your power to roduce solutions to problems.Your security does ot come f rom your job or form the patronage of other people; it comes from your ability to meet needs and solve prblems.Keep investing in thsoe abilities, and you will have nedless opportunities."
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
American Partnership in Indian University Education
India Attracts Universities from the U.S.,New York Times, March 26,2007.
The New York Times publishes once in a while reports about the Indian University education.The following two columns that appeared in the paper at differnt times show the new enthusiasm that has gripped the Indian Univeristy system to update itself and make it competititve with the best in the U.S.
But it is difficult to make changes when the University Education system is governed by many rules and regulations.The State governments under whose jurisdiction are many of the public universities do not want to lose their control over them.What is experienced is a great amount of stagnation.
There are many factors playing in this field that it is difficult to envision any rapid changes in the system.The University Education in Kerala , in particualr, is affected by affected by unbelievable stagnation and apathy.The political parties that control the government are reluctant to allow the system to grow and devlop.Many good colleges with great reputation for excellence are under the Universities of Kerala.As they are affiliated to the State Universities, the State Governemnt is reluctant to allow autonomy for these colleges. Hence, these colleges are never rated for excellence by various accrediting agencies. The only way to help colleges to develop is to grant them autonomy.
The New York Times:
"Some 40 percent of population(in India) is under 18,and a scarcity of higher education opportunities is frequently cited as a potential hurdle to economic progress."
"The growing American interest in Indian education reflects a confluence of trends.It comes as American Universities are trying to expand their global reach in general, and discovering India's economic rise in particualr.It also reflects the need for India to close its gaping demand for higher education."
"Among Indians ages 18 to 24, only 7 percent enter a University, according to the National Knowledge Commission.To roughly double the precentage--effectively bringing it up to par with the rest of Asia--the commission recmmends the creation of 1500 colleges and Universities over the next several years."
"The commission estimates that 160,000 Indians are studying abroad, spending an estimated $4 billion a year."
Madeleine Green, vice president for international initiatives at the American Council on Education, calls India"the next frontier" for American institutions...Most American institutions are opting to join hands with existing Indian institutions...Columbia is the latest of several foreign business schools to tie up with the Ahmedbad campus...the Americanization of Indian education is following a variety of approaches."
Champlain college, based in Burlington,VT. runs a satellte campus in Mumbai.California state university, Long Beach, has agreed to help start Americn -style, four year degree programs at state-run Lucknow University...Cornell University is seeking to expand research collaborations.Rice university envisions faculty and student exchanges....Carneggie Mellon offers its degree in partenrship with Shri Shiv Shankar Nadar College of Engineering.Most of the course work is done at relatively inexpensive rates here in India, followed by six months in Pittsburgh, at the end of which students graduate with a Carneggie Mellon degree."(Somini Sengupta)
India Students Wield Tests and Tutorials,NYtimes,March 24,10
"Higher Education presents a problem of quantity and quality.Even as India's students are world class,most Indian universities are not...In 2008, 320,000 students took the school(IIT) entrance exams for 8000 vacancies.(Jim Yardley)
"Education presents such a stubborn problem, especially access to quality education, that experts warn that the future advantages of India's youthful population could become a disadvantage if the governement cannot improve the system rapidly enough to provide more students a chance at college.Of the 186 million students in India, only 12.4 percent are enrolled in higher education, one of the lowest ratios in the world.
"India has one of the world's youngest populations, often called its "demographic dividend,"yet as the middle class has steadily grown, so has the cutthroat competition for the limited slots in the country's system of higher education."
"If you have 150 million or 160 million children who don't go to college, what is going to happen to them 10 or 15 years from now?", asked Kapil Sibil, the Minister of Education."The demographic dividend will become a demographic disaster."
The New York Times publishes once in a while reports about the Indian University education.The following two columns that appeared in the paper at differnt times show the new enthusiasm that has gripped the Indian Univeristy system to update itself and make it competititve with the best in the U.S.
But it is difficult to make changes when the University Education system is governed by many rules and regulations.The State governments under whose jurisdiction are many of the public universities do not want to lose their control over them.What is experienced is a great amount of stagnation.
There are many factors playing in this field that it is difficult to envision any rapid changes in the system.The University Education in Kerala , in particualr, is affected by affected by unbelievable stagnation and apathy.The political parties that control the government are reluctant to allow the system to grow and devlop.Many good colleges with great reputation for excellence are under the Universities of Kerala.As they are affiliated to the State Universities, the State Governemnt is reluctant to allow autonomy for these colleges. Hence, these colleges are never rated for excellence by various accrediting agencies. The only way to help colleges to develop is to grant them autonomy.
The New York Times:
"Some 40 percent of population(in India) is under 18,and a scarcity of higher education opportunities is frequently cited as a potential hurdle to economic progress."
"The growing American interest in Indian education reflects a confluence of trends.It comes as American Universities are trying to expand their global reach in general, and discovering India's economic rise in particualr.It also reflects the need for India to close its gaping demand for higher education."
"Among Indians ages 18 to 24, only 7 percent enter a University, according to the National Knowledge Commission.To roughly double the precentage--effectively bringing it up to par with the rest of Asia--the commission recmmends the creation of 1500 colleges and Universities over the next several years."
"The commission estimates that 160,000 Indians are studying abroad, spending an estimated $4 billion a year."
Madeleine Green, vice president for international initiatives at the American Council on Education, calls India"the next frontier" for American institutions...Most American institutions are opting to join hands with existing Indian institutions...Columbia is the latest of several foreign business schools to tie up with the Ahmedbad campus...the Americanization of Indian education is following a variety of approaches."
Champlain college, based in Burlington,VT. runs a satellte campus in Mumbai.California state university, Long Beach, has agreed to help start Americn -style, four year degree programs at state-run Lucknow University...Cornell University is seeking to expand research collaborations.Rice university envisions faculty and student exchanges....Carneggie Mellon offers its degree in partenrship with Shri Shiv Shankar Nadar College of Engineering.Most of the course work is done at relatively inexpensive rates here in India, followed by six months in Pittsburgh, at the end of which students graduate with a Carneggie Mellon degree."(Somini Sengupta)
India Students Wield Tests and Tutorials,NYtimes,March 24,10
"Higher Education presents a problem of quantity and quality.Even as India's students are world class,most Indian universities are not...In 2008, 320,000 students took the school(IIT) entrance exams for 8000 vacancies.(Jim Yardley)
"Education presents such a stubborn problem, especially access to quality education, that experts warn that the future advantages of India's youthful population could become a disadvantage if the governement cannot improve the system rapidly enough to provide more students a chance at college.Of the 186 million students in India, only 12.4 percent are enrolled in higher education, one of the lowest ratios in the world.
"India has one of the world's youngest populations, often called its "demographic dividend,"yet as the middle class has steadily grown, so has the cutthroat competition for the limited slots in the country's system of higher education."
"If you have 150 million or 160 million children who don't go to college, what is going to happen to them 10 or 15 years from now?", asked Kapil Sibil, the Minister of Education."The demographic dividend will become a demographic disaster."
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Catholic Schools in the U.S.
In this section, I am going to write about some of the important ideas on the Catholic School system expressed by Abp.Timothy Dolan of New York which were published in the magazine,"America"(Sept.13-20,2010.)
The followng are some of his important reflections:
'"By Jan.1939 nearly,10,000 German Catholic schools had been closed or taken over by the Nazi party.Tyrants know and fear the true strength of a Catholic education:what parents begin in the home, Catholic schools extend to a society at large."
"The reasons for the decline are familiar: the steady drop in vocations to the religious teaching orders who were the greatest single work force in the church's modern period;the drastic drift in immigration,the rising cost of living...and the crumbling of an intact neigborhood-based Catholic culture..."
"The most crippling reason, howver, may rest in an enormous shift in the thinking of many American Catholics,namely,that the responsibility for Catholic schools belongs only to the parents of students who attend them, not to the entire Church.Catholics as a whole have disowned their school system, excusng themselves...from any further involvement simply because their own children are not enroled there..."
"The truth is that the entire parish, the whole diocese and the universal Church benefit from Catholic schools in ways that keep communities strong.Reawkening a sense of common ownership of Catholc schools may be the biggest challenge..
"Much of the research on Catholic education conducted over the last five decades...has answered with a unanimous voice that Catholc schools are an unquestioned success in every way:spiritually, academically and communally."
"The graduates of Cathoic schools show: 1) fidelity to sunday mass and a keener sense of prayer ; 2)mantaining pro-life attitudes;3)the personal consdieration of a religious vocation and 4) continued support for the local church and the community."
"The Catholic Church is now confronted by a new secualrization asserting that a person of faith can hardly be expected to be a tolerant and enlightened American...Under this new scheme, to take one's faith serioulsy and bring it to the public square somehow implies being unAmerican.To combat this notion, an equally energetic evangelization ---is all the more necessary."
"The current hospice mentality--watching our schools slowly die---must give way to a renewd confidence.American Catholic schools need to be unabashedly proud of their proven gritty ability to transmit faith and values to all their students..."
Catholic education is a communal,eccelesial duty, not just for parents of school children or for parishes blessed to have their own school."
"We cannot succumb to the petty turf wars that pit Catholic schools against relgious education programs and other parish ministries.Pope Benedict XVl reminds us that the Church is all about both/and , and not either/or.Strong Catholic schools strenthen all other programs of evangelization, service, catechesis and sanctification."
The followng are some of his important reflections:
'"By Jan.1939 nearly,10,000 German Catholic schools had been closed or taken over by the Nazi party.Tyrants know and fear the true strength of a Catholic education:what parents begin in the home, Catholic schools extend to a society at large."
"The reasons for the decline are familiar: the steady drop in vocations to the religious teaching orders who were the greatest single work force in the church's modern period;the drastic drift in immigration,the rising cost of living...and the crumbling of an intact neigborhood-based Catholic culture..."
"The most crippling reason, howver, may rest in an enormous shift in the thinking of many American Catholics,namely,that the responsibility for Catholic schools belongs only to the parents of students who attend them, not to the entire Church.Catholics as a whole have disowned their school system, excusng themselves...from any further involvement simply because their own children are not enroled there..."
"The truth is that the entire parish, the whole diocese and the universal Church benefit from Catholic schools in ways that keep communities strong.Reawkening a sense of common ownership of Catholc schools may be the biggest challenge..
"Much of the research on Catholic education conducted over the last five decades...has answered with a unanimous voice that Catholc schools are an unquestioned success in every way:spiritually, academically and communally."
"The graduates of Cathoic schools show: 1) fidelity to sunday mass and a keener sense of prayer ; 2)mantaining pro-life attitudes;3)the personal consdieration of a religious vocation and 4) continued support for the local church and the community."
"The Catholic Church is now confronted by a new secualrization asserting that a person of faith can hardly be expected to be a tolerant and enlightened American...Under this new scheme, to take one's faith serioulsy and bring it to the public square somehow implies being unAmerican.To combat this notion, an equally energetic evangelization ---is all the more necessary."
"The current hospice mentality--watching our schools slowly die---must give way to a renewd confidence.American Catholic schools need to be unabashedly proud of their proven gritty ability to transmit faith and values to all their students..."
Catholic education is a communal,eccelesial duty, not just for parents of school children or for parishes blessed to have their own school."
"We cannot succumb to the petty turf wars that pit Catholic schools against relgious education programs and other parish ministries.Pope Benedict XVl reminds us that the Church is all about both/and , and not either/or.Strong Catholic schools strenthen all other programs of evangelization, service, catechesis and sanctification."
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