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This is very propitious time for a serious conference on the topic – or perhaps, on the topics –
which come under the role of the Churches in education, both North and South. So I greatly
welcome the fact that we have been brought together under the broad and welcoming umbrella of
the Irish Inter-Church meeting to look not merely at where we are today, but at where we see our
role into the future. After all, as someone said, the problem for churches in the future will not be
religious difference but religious indifference. And that has major implications specifically for
church communities and how they see their roles in education. We can never assume that a
response to one situation in the past is necessarily the right one for the future. That means being
able to key our eyes on the core objectives and not be excessively attached to particular models
The programme for today helpfully treats two topics, which are distinct though they cannot be
easily separated. There is the broad role of the Churches in the provision of formal education,
and then there is the much more specific one of the role played by religious education in
Christian formation, both in school and outside it. The former has to do with whether there is
such a thing as a Christian or Catholic school in terms of it ethos, philosophy and ideals. The
latter has to do with the specific topic of religious education, whether that be in an explicitly
Catholic schools are not a peculiarly NI phenomenon, not is there much sign
around the world that it is viewed as a dying relic of the past. There are about
200,000 Catholic schools worldwide with nearly 52 million students. They exist in
all sorts of relationships with civic society – and the forms of Catholic schooling in
Ireland are specific to these jurisdictions and history. But they exist because of a
particular vision of how church and state should interact. So what is that
All education is focussed, not merely on passing on useful information, nor just on
training people for employment but on the formation of the whole person. Parents
want to help their children grow, not just prepare them for work. The most
important task that any of us will do is to be a human person as a social being. The
Catholic Church has long established ….her own schools, because she considers
them as a privileged means of promoting the formation of the whole person, since
the school is acentre in which a specific concept of the world, of the human person,
Our faith-based education is thus not just a way to hand on Christian teaching
about God. It explicitly involves “….the formation of the whole person, so that all
may attain their eternal destiny and at the same time promote the common good of
society.”
Now I appreciate that there are other Christian perspectives on how the Church
should interact with the state. There are those who believe that faith communities
themselves. There are those who believe that they should not even vote in
elections. However, the Catholic worldview tends to emphasise the development of
“…a true humanism, which acknowledges that we are made in the image of God,
‘civilisation of love’. Catholic education has always seen itself as being in the
service, not primarily of itself but of integral human development and the common
much dogma as what one principal described ‘a lens through which to view the
world’. That means engaging in the public forum with the other ideologies that
education and not just an educational separateness for ethnic Catholics. They are
encouraged to do that by being “not only a place where one is given a choice of
intellectual values, but a place where one has presented an array of values which
The focus is therefore on creating communities of people where the Gospel view of
the world can be communicated to the head and the heart. Pope John Paul II was
consistently very clear about this integrated vision for a Christianity that penetrates
to the heart of our society. That has been made abundantly clear in his 2003
prices, but a community that has values, one that is aware of its past and that has
retained a commitment to beauty and to truth. The role of education in the creation
various ways in different cultures, imbuing each with a Gospel perspective, taking
the best from each and enriching it with the vision of the Creator. Thus a 1988
document from the Vatican is clear that “One of the characteristics of a Catholic
school is that it interpret and give order to human culture in the light of faith.”
insufficient curriculum.
2. Northern Ireland
First Minister Peter Robinson. It certainly caused some lively reaction. From my
perspective, much of his commentary on the future of church schools was based,
not on a neutral assumption but on two specific premises. Firstly he comes with his
an outmoded desire to separate ethnic Catholics from the state system and educate
them in an environment where they can also teach Catholic RE. However, the
starting point for those of us who have been involved with Catholic education over
education – and one which is consistently both very successful and very popular
across the world. So the question is whether there is room for Catholic education in
the new NI, and not whether we move to remove educational apartheid for
Catholics.
Now I certainly appreciate that Catholic schools in NI were not just like Catholic
schools in many other jurisdictions. They were part of the very divided society in
which we live and lived. But in seeking to create a more cohesive society, there are
1. The ideal for all citizens – and especially for Christians – has to be that we
create a society at peace with itself, where harmony reigns within. Indeed, in NI
people of faith have been in the forefront of the moves that led to a cessation of
shootings and bombings. Furthermore, many church people were holding the
middle ground while many in the current political leadership hurled abuse and
worse at each other. However, experience across 21st century Europe suggests that
all states have struggled to find ways of living with difference, especially as
societies cease to be mono-cultural. Both integration under the national banner and
multiculturalism seems to have run into serious difficulties. Thus, most countries
have now come to realise that the efforts to live with difference are not just a
modern pluralist society. I would suggest that, while we all recognise the violent
divisions from which NI has suffered – and work to overcome the huge gaps, both
sectarian and social, that have scarred many places – some people seem to be
all young people into state schools within a decade or two will make NI a haven of
tranquillity and harmony. All 21st century multi-cultural societies have to live with
differences and with the tendency of vested interest to accentuate those differences,
often for electoral purposes. The question is not ‘how do we homogenise’ bur
rather, ‘how do we prepare people to live with difference and celebrate rather than
fear it?’
2. While Catholic education will continue to claim to have a right to exist in the
public forum, we have to be acutely aware of the need to serve the common good
in our divided society. That means ensuring that we actually don’t play the part of
the divisive, separatist defenders of vested interests that some see us as being, but
actually work to heal our hurting society. We may very well note that we are
taxpayers like everybody else and thus claim to have rights which are guaranteed
under the various international and UN conventions. However, all rights have
associated responsibilities.
It was for that reason that Catholic Trustees published a number of documents over
the last decade. In 2001, the Northern Bishops brought our two publications which
The former sought to identify the core philosophy, which give Catholic education
its sense of direction. Unless it offers a product that is distinctly different from
state education, then it is merely separatist and has no right to public subvention.
The latter document tried to clarify that Catholic schools welcomed people from all
faith backgrounds and none. Thus, Professor Sir George Bain recognised in his
2006 report that all school sectors – and not just those with the word ‘integrated’ in
their name – were committed to being places where people could mix across
For that reason, we welcome the commitment of many political parties to promote
children from different backgrounds learning together. We just point out that – as
society.
Indeed, I would take the risk of going further. When you talk to people involved in
community work across the world, it is clear that the real and increasingly
dangerous divide is not within Christianity, not between Muslims and western
society – but between the haves and the have-nots. There is no great merit in
I appreciate that opinions in the North on the subject of academic selection at the
recognised or care to admit. But the Catholic trustees are quite clear that it is
the basis of one or two tests. Thus we believe that one cannot base a 21st century
public education system on false premise that you can measure intelligence with
any degree of accuracy at the age of 10. In practice it tends merely to distinguish
between those who are better and less well prepared for the tests. And it also seems
surprise that in NI we have among the highest gaps in developed countries between
high and low achievers. There is a danger that those who insist on the desirability
not augur well for the construction of a shared future across all the many divides in
NI.
So where are the churches in education in NI? There are challenges for all the main
A. Catholic schools face a number of major hurdles into the near and medium
future.
a. There are not a few who have seen Catholic schools in NI as wonderful
places for protecting Gaelic culture. Faith will play a range of roles for many, but
for some if it came to the choice between faith and culture, the latter might be seen
as more important. Some people have indicated that they would like to transform
some Catholic schools into community schools, not always free from political
influence. There is a huge job to be done if Catholic schools are to discover their
specific identity. However, the creation of a Christian society will not be served by
sufficient to say that we are open to people from all faith backgrounds and none –
and merely trot out the comparatively few examples where that happens on any
citizens who can celebrate diversity and not feel threatened by it. The surprising
thing is that some of those schools in highly segregated and underprivileged areas
have done great work in raising expectations and self-confidence for many young
people, sometimes without much support from selective schools in what would be
classified as the same part of the community. But the creation of a more integrated
and harmonious society will take a huge amount of work. Churches and political
Briege Gadd used recently, it is very hard to promote ‘a good life’ when everyone
seems to be chasing ‘the good life’. Ideals and vision are easy to talk about at the
realised on the ground. Furthermore, the first generations of lay principals have
done wonderful work. But it must be remembered that many of that generation
were pickled in a Catholic habitus. Unless we can find some way of inculcating
that vision into the hearts of future generations of leaders, it will become
longer have to create and manage most schools and that the state should
increasingly provide and not just provide for educational facilities. Similarly in
NI, we are seeking to rationalise school provision, and we may well find that there
is not the same demand for Catholic schools as there is at present. Being the
owners of the schools that are attended by 44% of pupils is perhaps not tenable into
the future. Catholic schools will continue to exist only where there is parental
support. And I’d be among the first to point out that the most under-served
e. A further danger for Catholic schools arises from its very size and
communities always risks becoming too professionalised, too large, too proud and
can risk losing its pastoral touch. I am not saying that this happened – but it
remains a risk that what was a system co-ordinated mainly on a voluntary or poorly
politicians on the basis that its enactment would have entailed the loss of specific
rights which had been guaranteed to the three largest Protestant denominations in
the running of what is essentially the state sector of education. These schools had
traditionally been seen as Protestant in character. It will not be easy to defend those
rights into the future if government insists on increasingly treating those schools as
have been told how wise we were to have kept our own schools – though I do
in the North, in the decision not to hand over our schools to state control!
b. The four main Christian churches were heavily involved in drawing up the
difficult for many schools to either deliver that core curriculum, or to supplement it
in a way that responds to the growing cultural and religious diversity of its pupils.
There are pressures to move away from religious education to religious studies.
That has huge implications for how faith communities will seek to catechise their
faith.
So what might the future hold for the Churches in education, especially in the
North?
continue to insist on the right of the perhaps shrinking faith communities to have
access to faith-based education. Experience in many other countries shows that that
form of education remains very successful and popular. We will play our part in
counteracting the dangers of being divisive – but will resist simplistic claims that
faith-based education has no role to play nor right to claim its place in a 21st
schools, as are found in parts of Great Britain. While the Transferors are not school
owners – and thus not in a position to make the decisions that Catholic Trustees
lot would depend on whether the civil authorities would wish to facilitate that sort
of development. But I believe that there is great openness on the part of all of our
larger churches not to retreat from education but to seek new ways in which a
rounded education can be accessible to all young people who desire it.
Conclusion
Despite tragic and shameful stories of children being abused sexually, physically
continue to seek what new roles they might play in mainstream educational
provision and in how they try to proclaim Christian faith – for as Pope John Paul II
conquered for Christ.” However, those roles will have to be sought with both
humility and openness to what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. It is a ministry
in the service of the Gospel and not of institutional power, in the service of the
Our different church traditions will continue to approach this challenge, aware that
we often come with often unacknowledged but very real diversity in theological
real tragedy if the voice of faith allowed itself to be seen as an intruder in the
public forum. It will in some circumstances have to play the part of the prophet, the
voice crying in the wilderness. However, the scriptures show that this is not
necessarily a bad place to be. If education is what remains after you have forgotten
all that you were ever taught, then I remain excited by the prospect of finding new
ways together so that faith in Christ will continue to change hearts and to purify
This address was delivered by Bishop Donal McKeown at the Irish Inter-Church Meeting
entitled ‘The Churches and Ediucation – Context, Vision and Values’ in the Emmaus Centre,
Swords, Co Dublin on 21 October 2010. Bishop McKeown is Auxiliary Bishop of Down and
Connor and Chair of the Northern Ireland Commission for Catholic Education. NICCE
represents the Trustees of all primary and secondary Catholic schools in Northern Ireland.
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As the new school year begins, it is appropriate to note the crucial role churches play in the education of
society. Not only in the area of the spiritual life, how to worship and please God, but also in every area of
life the church has an important role in teaching the Biblical perspective.
In the area of the soul and spirit, churches teach that life is more than a material existence. We are made
uniquely in the image of God. We have purpose and meaning in life because there is a creator. We are not
just the result of a cosmic explosion, but the handiwork of a loving person with infinite power and
knowledge. The church speaks to the philosophy of life in stating this. We are not just existentialists,
inventing purpose for our lives in spite of the fact that there is no true meaning and purpose. Values are
not the result of public opinion or personal preference, but the reflection of the character and nature of our
creator. When professors at places like Penn State University are told not to quote the Bible in an
engineering ethics class, the church should explain why ethics without a spiritual basis are unsustainable.
The church offers eternal life through the only person to have risen from the dead, never to die again, the
Lord Jesus Christ. One of the founding fathers, John Adams, realized the cost of defining life as only our
physical existence when he wrote, “Let it be once revealed or demonstrated that there is not future state
and my advice to every man, woman and child, would be, as our existence would be in our own power,
to take opium. For, I am certain, there is nothing in this world worth living for but hope, and every hope
will fail us, if the last hope, that of a future state, is extinguished.”
Churches have much more to say in educating the public than teaching about the character and nature of
God and how to have eternal life. The Bible speaks to many other subjects including science, sociology,
Churches must challenge the teaching of evolution as fact in our science departments. The Bucknell
University catalogue states that evolution is the basis of its Biology Department. Churches need to
explain the scientific evidences for intelligent design and creation by God. Then they need to explain the
consequences of a materialistic view of life. Students should be challenged how the concept that “all men
are evolved equal” not only makes no sense, but is the antithesis of survival of the fittest and natural
selection. They should be taught that the subtitle of Darwin’s book, “The Origin of Species” is “or the
Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life.” Only creation by God supports the American
Churches need to point out that in no other place does something as complex as a living cell organize
itself other than in the minds of the evolutionists. Any complex object reflects the intelligence of its
Churches can supplement the education of its students by explaining how and why many of the scientific
disciplines were developed by people of faith. They should point out that all science textbooks have to be
updated regularly to remove previous errors. The churches can point out scientific information that goes
against the prevailing views that the universe has to be billions of years old. Why have scientists
discovered soft, elastic tissues in dinosaur fossils in recent years? How could a canyon system 1/40 the
size of the Grand Canyon be carved out in a matter of days when Mount Saint Helens erupted in 1980?
Why can Carbon 14 be detected in diamonds when it has a half-life of 12,000 years and diamonds are
supposed to be millions of years old? How can a fossil tree protrude through many layers of rocks that
The teaching of history is incomplete without teaching that God is involved in the affairs of men. Though
some of our founding fathers were not evangelical Christians, the vast majority believed our nation would
not have come into existence without God’s help. From the Pilgrims who thanked God for preserving
them to every president who sincerely declared days of Thanksgiving to God, until recent times no one
The origin of marriage and the family is described in the book of Genesis, the first book of the Bible.
Churches should realize the importance of teaching the Christian view of sexuality and marriage for the
benefit of society. When our sexuality is practiced in the context of marriage — one man and one woman
committed to each other for life — then the marriage partners and their potential children are benefited by
God’s plan. When sexual intimacy is practiced outside of this plan, there is the breakdown of families
because of adultery and there are numerous other tragic consequences of diseases and emotional and
spiritual damage as well. Two vaccines have become mandatory in many areas because of sexual
practices that do not follow the Bible’s teaching on sexuality. Vaccinations for Hepatitis B and the
Gardasil vaccine for the HPV virus are recent additions to American life due to sexual practices of those
who disregard Biblical values. No one can predict the future damage continuing acceptance of sexual
Biblical teaching on economics warns against debt, the modern American disaster. Jesus stated the
superiority of spiritual wealth over material wealth. “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole
world and loses his soul?” There are many things money can’t buy. “For the wages of sin is death, but the
gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.” Steve Jobs’ money will not keep him from
death. He may get the best medical care with his wealth, but no medical care is able to eliminate death.
Other things that money can’t buy are listed in the Bible as the fruit of the Holy Spirit. They are “love,
joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” These are the free
blessings of God that he gives to those who will submit their lives to him.
In a fraction of the time of our other education, churches need to see their role in education as extremely
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