The Mission of Catholic Education is multifaceted and is of significance to the authentic Catholic leader, whether Principal, classroom teacher and all others in between. The challenge of mission is one that Catholic schools are entrusted with that needs to be handled authentically to ensure the mission of the Church is upheld.
Pope Benedict in his encyclical letter Deus Caritas Est (2005, n.25) states: “the Church’s deepest nature is expressed in her three-fold responsibility: of proclaiming the word of God, celebrating the sacraments, and exercising the ministry of charity”. As the Catholic school is a branch of the Church it follows that the school has these responsibilities as a part of its mission also. All three of these responsibilities link significantly to the scriptural verse “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation” (Mk 16:15).
For a Catholic school to be considered Catholic it must “educate in communion for communion”(Congregation for Catholic Education, 2007, n.12). One of the goals of Catholic Education “is to make man more man” (Congregation for Catholic Education, 2007, n.12). To be able to do this effectively and authentically it must happen in the community context where relationships are further developed. It is also noted that that the Congregation for Catholic Education (2007) says ‘to make man more man’, not to make man more Catholic, in doing this the Catholic school is opened to welcoming other-than-Catholics to the fold as part of a “multi-religious’ universe” (Fisher, 2014, p.4).
Competition and conflict between schools within the same system should be non-existent, as they all work for the common good of all. All Catholic systemic schools rely on funding of national, state and diocesan bodies. This funding is reliant on conformity and adherence of the school to a vast array of policies and requirements. At times these external directives are in opposition to authentic Catholic leadership. The authentic Catholic leader would have to accept this directive, however, they may choose to challenge the directive and hopefully foster within their school a sense that academic success is only one measure amongst many that people should strive for. Hopefully, recognition would be paid for success in sports, arts, community service and other avenues within the school. The Catholic leader would need to promote a more holistic and realistic vision of what learning and success are about. The ‘numbers game’ should not be the be all and end all – the students and mission are central to our work but the central focus of all that occurs within a Catholic school should be Jesus Christ.
“Catholic identity grows out of mission, and practice should be shaped by it” (Bezzina, 2008, p.87). The authentic Catholic leader must be true to the Mission of the Church, which should be replicated in the school situation. Through carrying out and communicating the mission of the Church the authentic leader carries forward the true mission of the Church.
We at St Luke’s see our Mission as creating a hopeful, faith-filled future where the hearts and minds of all students are surrounded by a community who are inspiring, accepting and inclusive. Further to this, and with a commitment to ‘Living the Good News’, the vision of St Luke’s is to nurture faith-filled, curious children to become creative contributors and innovative problem solvers for a changing world. This is our challenge which I personally am ready and willing to take on.