Catholic Education Leads Young People to Christ| National Catholic Register

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Patrick Reilly of the Cardinal Newman Society highlights the importance of schools emphasizing that ‘faith enlightens the study of every subject, and student formation begins with reverent Mass, prayer and Eucharistic devotion.’

The Cardinal Newman Society (CNS) has compiled a list of K-12 schools “that are committed to upholding the standards of faithful Catholic education.”

Patrick Reilly, president and founder of CNS, shared with the Register about the Newman Society approach to Catholic education and advice for parents for Catholic Schools Week.

As we celebrate Catholic Schools Week, what are the merits of Catholic education? What should parents look for in their local parochial school?

Our patron, St. John Henry Newman, argued that Catholic education is simply true education. For families who want the whole truth — not only about God but also about science, history, math or any other discipline — a secular or “Catholic lite” school is always going to fall short and may even do serious damage. Catholic education is found where parents and teachers are focused, first and foremost, on leading young people to Christ.

What are the needed components for a faithful Catholic school? What stands out about successful — and faithful — schools, particularly those on your list?

Newman Guide-recommended schools, colleges and graduate programs refuse to compromise their Catholic faith. Our Newman Guide standards require policies and practices that are explicitly rooted in our Catholic faith and untainted by false ideologies and woke nonsense. We carefully review schools to ensure that our faith enlightens the study of every subject, and student formation begins with reverent Mass, prayer and Eucharistic devotion.

Where is the educational landscape as 2025 opens — and how is Catholic education a beacon, even amid school closures?

As I noted in the Register last year, parochial schools in several dioceses enjoyed a partial recovery after COVID, but most other dioceses lost students. Enrollment has declined more than two-thirds since 1965. That’s a crisis! Cost is a factor, but so is the weakened Catholic identity of schools that adopted the Common Core and mimicked public schools. Most Catholic families aren’t interested. On the other hand, distinctively Catholic schools and colleges in The Newman Guide are reporting growth, religious vocations and vibrant faith among their students. The renewal of Catholic education is the most exciting news in the Church today! It shouldn’t be a surprise that our hope is in Christ. It’s tragic that so many declining Catholic schools have pursued other priorities.

As the Catholic Schools Week website states, “Catholic schools have an irreplaceable role in the Church’s evangelizing mission. Building on the central goal of Catholic schools to form saints, Catholic schools teach and embrace the whole person, body, mind and spirit.” How is that mission even more needed in 2025?

The New Evangelization won’t succeed if we rely only on youth rallies and Eucharistic congresses. These must be part of a lifelong formation with Christ, cultivating the mind where true faith takes hold. Our priorities are wrong if Catholic renewal is reserved for weekend rallies and excluded from our children’s education. The rise of faithful Newman Guide education goes hand-in-hand with stronger Catholic families, the renewal of Western culture, and an intentional Christianity that enters into the most secular aspects of our lives.



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