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Published: July 29, 2010
“Otherwise there’s no point in having Catholic schools”
New accreditation standards will require Catholic schools to teach the faith
(The following are excerpts from a story appearing in Catholic San Francisco, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Francisco.)
“Schools must meet new standards to comply with Church teaching”
July 28th, 2010
By Valerie Schmalz
Catholic elementary and secondary schools will be required to meet new and more detailed standards showing they are educating students in the Catholic faith and tradition, as well as nurturing the faith of the total school community.
The standards, written by Catholic bishops in nine states and Guam in 2008, took effect this year. Schools must adhere to them in order to be accredited by the Western Catholic Education Association.
This is the first time specific standards to measure Catholic identity will be part of the accreditation process for Catholic schools.
 “The Catholic schools will only survive if we stick true to the mission of our faith,” said Christian Brother William Carriere, WCEA executive director and former schools superintendent for the Diocese of Orange.
“I think this will go a long way toward getting Catholicism taught across the curriculum and not just relegated to theology classes,” Marin Catholic High School theology chair Joe Tassone said.
WCEA accredits Catholic schools in 26 dioceses in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Hawaii, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and the Territory of Guam, encompassing about 308,000 students in 1,000 grade schools and high schools.
A concern that some Catholic schools were losing sight of their Catholic identity motivated the bishops of the 26 dioceses that comprise the WCEA to formulate the eight standards in 2008, Brother Carriere said. The seven-member board of directors of WCEA has approved the final version for elementary schools and began working on a final version for high schools this year. Brother Carriere said he expects the final document for high schools to take about two years to complete.
Maintaining Catholic identity of high schools is more challenging than at elementary schools because some high school teachers tend to think of themselves as “mini-college professors” in terms of academic freedom, losing sight of their obligation to teach the Catholic faith, Brother Carriere said.
“We have to stick to what we believe …our Catholic teachings, and our Catholic values and Catholic perspectives, otherwise there’s no point in having Catholic schools,” Brother Carriere said. “We don’t want to be just an academic center. That has happened to some places.”
To read the full story, Click Here.
Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 12:37 AM By JLS
Patience is the main thing; after all what are a few centuries of disordered moral teaching in Catholic schools? Compared to the thousands of years of civilizatin, it's a mere drop in the bucket.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 7:18 AM By Central Valley
"showing they are educating students in the Catholic faith and tradition" Well, this would be a welcomed trend. I can tell you it will be interesting to see if the diocese of Fresno applies this to their schools. When my children attended catholic schools in the diocese there was open ridicule of those attending the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. So much for teaching students about tradition.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 7:31 AM By Dan
"This is the first time specific standards to measure Catholic identity will be part of the accreditation process for Catholic schools. " Am I the only one shocked by this statement? One would have thought Catholic identity would be the first concern of accreditation officials.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 7:41 AM By Sophia
They are not "a drop in the bucket" but an irreparable tragedy to the souls lost by miseducation.
This is hopeful news. May it be enforced. Immediately.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 7:53 AM By Maryanne Leonard
Yeay!!
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 8:53 AM By Guy
It's about time! All of our children went all the way through parochial school (which includes high school) and we might just as have sent them to public school and saved the money. Students in high school used to make out in the choir loft of the church......how's that for getting a Catholic education?
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 9:19 AM By Maryanne Leonard
Except that these are OUR times, this is our watch, and future generations of Catholics and those who interact with them are not going to enjoy the countless benefits of a truly Catholic education. I've noted that people with traditional Catholic school backgrounds have a certain spiritual foundation that is almost physically perceptible, and that dealings with most of them are smoother, easier to feel comfortable about, and often actually uplifting. Standards in general are high, and morals seem to be much more firmly in place. If the world loses Catholic schools, it will lose its greatest hope for future peace, not to mention enormous leadership potential in every category: intellectual, spiritual, moral, interpersonal and social. People vastly underestimate the enormous value of Christianity to society, and Catholics seem to take it more for granted than others.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 10:30 AM By Ellen P.
The solution is easy. Have all Catholic High Schools for grades 11 & 12 use the "CATECHISM of the CATHOLIC CHURCH, Second Edition as the Students' TEXT for all religion classes.
The CCC is the authentic teaching text of the Church regarding matters of Faith and Morals.
Miseducation by accident or on purpose will be very difficult if using this true text in its entirety.
The CCC is easy to read and understand for anyone over age 15.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 11:07 AM By Bob
I always thought that there should be a religion test which the 8th and 12th graders should pass in order to graduate. I've suggested it and you would have thought I was crazy by the looks I received by Catholic school administrators.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 11:08 AM By David
Great job! But the job's only half done. Now it's time to create Catholic accreditation standards for Catholic colleges and universities in the WCEA states.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 11:56 AM By John M
Re: Ellen you are so right! The Catechism along with Holy Scripture and the Holy Spirit provide what is needed at our Catholic schools. Anything less is scholastic abuse,Please pray for our church,The Body of Our Lord Jesus
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 1:09 PM By JLS
Sophia, thanks for clarifying my text. I often, as some readers know, use abstract literary devices other than literal statements to generate a perspective. The key to a lot of what I write is this, if it does not make literal sense for any reason, then odds are that I've deployed some illogic for the purpose of drawing irony or one of its many cousins. Irony is not always easy to grasp and there are those who cannot grasp the least bit of irony; and it is ironic that Jesus' parables include irony at times. Thus I believe in irony.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 1:39 PM By Abeca Christian
It's about time baby!
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 1:49 PM By 1abqdad
I must say that Fresno seems to be going from Bad to worse!!! I recently sent a friend to a church for RCIA where they do NOT adhere to the magisterium!!! They have some goofy leader that feels that it is OK to teach his "version" of Catholic teaching...NOT the "real" one! Anyway, I am totally embarrassed as my friend is constantly calling me because She KNOWS better!!! He is now claiming that there is NO Satan, which is is direct conflict with the Catechism! (A provided her with a copy!)
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 2:00 PM By Brad
But what about the maypole and gaia/sophia labyrinth on skool grounds? If we take those away, the children will grow up to be "pharisees" [twenty exclamation marks]
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 2:01 PM By Carole
This is Good News. Thanks be to God for Pope Benedict XVI who is a gentle but insistent proponent of the truth of the Gospel.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 2:56 PM By Kenneth M. Fisher
This is only good news if the standards are truly Catholic. The fact that this Religious Brother was once Schools Suprerintendent for the Diocese of Orange makes me wonder.
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 4:00 PM By cjo
I was educated in Catholic schools before Vat II. We had the Baltimore Catehism, Bible studies, etc. by the Dominican sisters in elementary school. In HS we had had CLEAR teaching of the faith by our Irish Christian Brothers. In College we had faithful clear teaching of the faith by our Christain Brothers {LaSalle]. My son went to Catholic elementary school in the mid 70s to mid 80s. He was faced with nothing but confusing and heretical teachings..so we took him out and went to a private secular school. In his Catholic HS in the late 80s what remined of his faith was under cut by among other things --the Comparative Religion studies !!!!
His real religion courses were at home with the Baltimore Catechism [before the Catechism of the Catholic Church was available.]
And about about 3 years ago my wife converted to the Church ..IN SPITE OF THE MANDATORY RCIA course which [even she knew] undercut tradition teachings of the Church.
And then nothing serious or substantive is ever taught from the pulpit at Mass.
There are BIG problems and I wish the WCEA accreditation program will help...but it will take more than that...Good start.. I hope and pray that Pope Benedict is successful in turning things around.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 4:33 PM By Robert Bushlow
About time!
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 5:58 PM By Anne T.
I add my "about time" to that of the others.
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Posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 9:29 PM By Central Valley
1abqdad "I must say that Fresno seems to be going from Bad to worse!!!" Oh what goes on in the diocese of Fresno. I may sound like a broken record but it is true. I also have had friends in RCIA and cannot beleive what goes on in some of the classes. I know of a Prelate of Honor telling an RCIA class how he had no problem with the ordination of women. California Catholic Daily could assign a reporter full time to the diocese of Fresno and never run out of things to write about.
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Posted Saturday, July 31, 2010 11:18 AM By Ellen P.
The - "Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition" - should be in all Catholic homes. It was first printed in the US in March 2000 in accordance with the official Latin text promulgated by Pope John Paul II, and imprimi potest by Cardinal Ratzinger.
This is the true teaching of the Church and the first new Magesterium Book regarding Faith and Morals in over 400 years.
Perhaps the most useful aspect of this book is its accessibility. The Catechism was written with the LAITY in mind.
Students (over age 15), laymen, and the average reader alike will find it easy to read and understand. At the same time, those interested in serious scholarship will discover a treasure trove of theology, history, and doctrine. Without the - "Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition" - no Christian library is complete.
Even Protestants and non-Christians will find the Catechism well-documented, with copious notes and citations to Sacred Scripture, the writings of the early Christian Fathers, and other sources of impeccable authority.
If your Bishop or Paster does not promenently promote this Catechism for the Laity find out why. If there is a problem in your Diocese, notify the Vatican.
The CCC should be the only text book used by students for grades 11 & 12 religion classes.
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Posted Saturday, July 31, 2010 5:30 PM By bettybbret
I liked what you said, cjo, about nothing serious or substantive being taught from the pulpit. That distresses me too especially since I find there are so many Catholics who don't know Catholicism except for a few things here and there. Since they are past the age for going to school, I think there should be more "serious and substantive" talk from the pulpit.
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Posted Tuesday, August 03, 2010 8:02 PM By Jon
Until Catholic schools, Church catechism classes, RCIA, etc., start using the Catechism of the Catholic Church - almost none do - the Catholic faith will not be taught. The de facto rejection of the CCC by AmChurch is a crime.
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Posted Friday, August 13, 2010 1:46 PM By mw
This is such a hopeful development! There are so many excellent comments, but to cite just a few, I agree with Ellen P and Maryann Leonard. Kudos to cjo for having the prudence to take his son out of a pseudo-Catholic school and teach him the faith at home.To bettybbret, I wholeheartedly agree; yet, i have had debates with church-going, good Catholics about using the homily to expound Church teaching on moral issues; some say that the homily is to be commentary on the gospels/epistles. from a liturgical point of view, they may be correct; for many of us, however, that brief talk may be the only exposure of the week to any Catholic thought. What do other people think?
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