Kindergarten and fourth grade students at All Saints Catholic School in Berlin prepare for Catholic Schools Week (CSW) by coloring the CSW logo for hallway decorations. Catholic schools throughout the Diocese of Madison will be observing Catholic Schools Week from January 26 to February 1 with a variety of activities highlighting the theme, “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge, and Service.” (Contributed photo) |
MADISON –Communities of “faith, knowledge, and service.” This is a wonderful description of Catholic schools. for these three aspects lie at the heart of every Catholic school.
Christ is the center
First among these is faith. Christ is the center and focus of each and every Catholic school. As our late Pope John Paul II wrote, “Catholic education is above all a question of communicating Christ, of helping to form Christ in the lives of others.”
This is the primary goal of all Catholic schools: to form students in faith that they may come to know and love Christ.
As students come to know Christ, they travel a lifelong journey of learning what it means to be fully human in the example of Christ.
Forming the whole person
As we are created with many attributes, skills, talents, and faculties, Catholic schools seek to develop all of these by educating not only the heart, but the mind and body as well — by forming the whole person.
Every day, dedicated teachers help students develop their intellect and reasoning, challenging them to ask questions, seek answers, and learn the whole truth about themselves and their world in all its glorious detail. This quest for truth through knowledge is the second pillar of Catholic schools.