In the seven years of his pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI has offered to all people the fruits of his lifetime’s scholarship in areas such as liturgy and the relationship between faith and reason. He has travelled widely and spoken to diverse audiences about the role of religion and belief in a plural society. For this he has been both applauded and contradicted.
What is less apparent is his growing engagement with educational matters. Indeed, of all recent Popes he is the one who shown the greatest solicitude for the welfare of both schools and institutions of higher learning. (See this blog’s post of January 2, 2012). This should not surprise us as his interest in philosophy leads naturally to an interest in education - itself a branch of philosophy. As has been noted previously, Pope Benedict’s interest is not limited to the affairs and workings of Catholic schools but extends to all modes of education.
His recent address to some American bishops is a case in point. There is much here which, unsurprisingly, refers to expressions of Catholic identity in education. Within these wider thoughts, we catch once again rich and valuable glimpses of his broader educational philosophy emerging from comments which are rooted in the context of the Catholic mission of education:
‘… the essential task of authentic education at every level is not simply that of passing on knowledge, essential as this is, but also of shaping hearts.’
The authentic secular educator recognises the truth of this statement. It is a safeguard against expressions of schooling which have an inordinate focus on preparation for work, exam results, school league tables and the gaining of national and international awards. Pope Benedict reminds us all that education which is not heartfelt is no longer an education but has become a rude and mediocre system of human training for mechanistic ends.
Finally, I read into this extract the following message to Catholic schools: keep on reforming your ways of working, avoid the rush to seek approval from the agencies of the state and, most importantly, see your school as a ‘sign of contradiction’ to educational philosophies and practices which are not aligned to the Catholic worldview.
