Archbishop’s Column: Catholic identity and the unity of love

It is time once again for our Catholic schools to open their doors to children throughout the Archdiocese of San Antonio, inviting them to walk the halls that lead to a life of faith and hope. Surely, they will encounter teachers who will open their eyes to new ideas, new possibilities and new accomplishments that may not be recognized until their school days are long behind them, but more importantly they will encounter the Lord who will fulfill their hearts greatest yearning.

I am always inspired by the dedication of our administration, staff and faculty, but I am equally humbled by the sacrifices families make to ensure their children get a Catholic education. I offer my most profound gratitude for the love and care they provide and the knowledge they impart each day.

It is no less moving to see so many people, businesses, and institutions who have opened their hearts and their pocketbooks to Hope for the Future, giving of their own personal treasure and love for the sake of children who could not attend Catholic school without their help. This school year Hope for the Future will provide $2.5 million in tuition assistance to more than 2,000 students.

Most certainly, this sacrificial giving is motivated by an appreciation for the high academic standards of our Catholic schools and the recognition that hope for a better life lies in a quality education. However, I also believe in my heart, that it is an even higher priority placed on the Catholic identity that integrates church teachings and the joy of the Gospel into all their academic endeavors, defining our Catholic schools as outstanding centers of faith and learning.

Pope Francis, speaking before 300,000 students, their families and teachers in St. Peter Square celebrated the importance of Catholic identity that defines the very purpose for Catholic schools’ existence. Speaking about the journey down the halls of learning our children make every day, the Holy Father said: “A path that leads to the three languages that a mature person needs to know: the language of the mind, the language of the heart and the language of the hands. All in harmony.”

The pope is reminding us that we come to each life experience a total person and that our encounter with Christ must motivate and animate us to be a seamless reflection of the command of the Gospel for us to love God and love one another, respecting the dignity and life of every human person.

In the document, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, the bishops of the United States further define the Catholic identity we strive for in every classroom and for every child. “We are members of a community of faith with a long tradition of teaching and action on human life and dignity, marriage and family, justice and peace, care for creation, and the common good… What faith teaches about the dignity of the human person and about the sacredness of every human life helps us see more clearly the same truths that also come to us through the gift of human reason.”1

In these words we better understand the lie in the false doctrine of “compartmentalizing” that the world would like to teach our children. Society wants our children to grow up in a secularized world that forbids the offering of our values and deepest held teachings as undeniable truths that will provide solutions to the life’s challenges; thus denying the God-given right for us to shape the world around us, not the other way around. The Catholic school ideal, leads our students to learn the three languages Pope Francis spoke of, showing them how to witness to God’s presence in their minds, their hearts and their hands; not allowing the commandment of love to be divided, never leaving the world at odds with the peace and hope that is at the very heart our freedom to live and thrive as children of God.

It is in this spirit that Catholic schools teach the answers to the world’s needs and the questions that should be asked. It is our constant hope that Catholic schools will always help our children to grow in their appreciation of the truth and beauty of all God’s creation. In seeking solutions may our children not only ask “Can we do this?” but “Should we….?” With Christ at the heart of our mission, we pray that our children will grow into adults who will be instruments of peace and justice in the world.

I will continue to pray that Mary, Our Blessed Mother, the patroness of the church, and the matriarch of the Holy Family, will hold all students lovingly in her heart as she tells them, “Do whatever he tells you.”2

(Endnotes)
1 Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.
2 John 2:5 -Wedding Feast at Cana