The Catholic School in an Age of Dissent. (Book Review).

Leonard A. Kennedy, C.S.B., The Catholic School in an Age of Dissent. Toronto, Life Ethics Centre, 104 Bond St., Toronto, ON, M5B 1X9, 2002. 106 pp., $11.95 plus shipping.

The title of this survey of grade- and high-school Catholic education in Canada virtually says it all:; this is an age of dissent, and dissent has got into the Church and inevitably into the school system. Until it is removed, the schools are never going to carry out the purpose for which they were established, to bring up children with a knowledge of the faith The Holy Father has said that a Catholic school, no matter how much it shone for its high level of teaching in non-religious matters, would have no reason for existing if it was deficient in the quality of the religious education it imparted.

From printed material and signed submissions sent to him, Father Kennedy builds up a picture of an educational system in a state of crisis. Teresa Pierlot of Prince Edward Island wrote a 116-page review of an episcopally approved textbook series, Born of the Spirit (1987-88), in which she concluded that "the majority of the truths of our faith ... are not included at all... Those few which are presented are not taught in a complete or clear way and they become meaningless.... The instances of departure from the Church's teaching, by distortion or actual omission, are numerous and varied.... It is a tool which can only compromise and eventually destroy the faith of those who are exposed to it, both catechists and students." An Ontario teacher who has been a principal and a Superintendent of Education says that the new Religion curriculum is strong in process but weak in content: "One will find that the introduction to the lessons deals with historical characters such as Martin Luther King, Ghandi, or other gr eat personalities who have contributed greatly to the development of our society. We therefore have a lesson that begins by discussing the contributions of these people. In whatever time is left after these discussions, the teacher deals with Jesus or the Father or the Holy Spirit. Do we have our priorities right?" After visiting a number of classrooms in which the students could not answer clearly and coherently when asked what the Ten Commandments are, he concluded that "the watered down teaching of the faith has given us a watered-down faith."

A ten-year-old girl in Manitoba brought home a note from her Catholic school which said, "Dear Parents: The grade 5s are celebrating their sexuality tomorrow at 2.45 in the church." Whatever that meant, it was a good example of the fact that Catholic schools are not following the Vatican directives on sex education, such as not giving the students too much too soon, not teaching about male and female sexuality in mixed classes, and making sure that teaching on such matters is accompanied by teaching about chastity and the moral principles the Church wishes to inculcate.

An AIDS program in Ontario has been called "unadulterated homosexual propaganda" and "straight social engineering'; it "introduces children to language and behaviour which a child, in his or her wildest dreams, could not conjure up." The father of a large family complained that the explicit material contained in Ontario's Fully Alive program was an invasion of privacy: "I could believe that such information was appropriate if it were accompanied by an adequate theology of marriage. It is not. The result is that the student, who is bound to ask 'Why are we being told these things?' is left without an adequate answer."

Briefly, Father Kennedy shows that many important questions are being raised about the kind of Catholicism exhibited in Catholic schools, and even about the teachers themselves. A few years ago many members of the Coalition of Concerned Canadian Catholics were in influential positions, such as head of religion or coordinator of religious education, even though this group has disagreed vigorously with the Church's teaching on sexuality and other matters. It calls the Church misogynist, patriarchal, and a perversion of what Christ intended; it demands the abolition of clerical celibacy and the ordination of women, and it regard the Holy Father almost with contempt.

Father Kennedy shows how pervasive dissent has as become; in fact he argues convincingly that there are two Catholic Churches in Canada, one orthodox and one unorthodox. The strength of dissent can be seen most clearly in the response which OECTA-the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association-made to an excellent book, Witness to Faith, produced by the provincial Catholic Trustees' Association. It specified such expectations of Catholic educators as that they continue to be in communion with the Church, reflect in their lives the heritage of Catholicism, update themselves on contemporary Catholic teaching, and reflect a commitment to the social teaching of the Church. OECTA leaders responded as if they had been stung; they reacted to what seemed a straightforward, uncontroversial statement of Catholic educational principles with incredible animosity. They accused the trustees of being obsessed with the Catholicity of teachers-as well they might be!--and called their expectations "tremendously intrusive." OE CTA directed its members not to participate in moves by Boards to inculcate the faith in their teaching staffs. Catholic Insight said the statement gave the impression that "the Catholic community has no need for safe-guarding its faith and its unity, and that, if efforts are being made along this line, they would be considered pathological."

As Insight said at the time, "The union rules with an iron hand." By provincial legislation, Catholic teachers in the province have to belong to OECTA, which has come under the control of dissenting members. As examples of dissent, the union affirms the right of women to ordination to the priesthood, favours privileges for homosexuals, and has invited prominent dissenters and pro-abortion politicians to speak at its meetings. It has joined with two large labour unions which support policies contrary to Catholic teaching, especially with regard to support for abortion. And yet it was bound by a 1987 Supreme Court of Canada ruling to help provide "an openly Christian and Catholic education."

Father Kennedy makes sensible suggestions for improvement. For example, in a chapter on the clergy, he points out that since the greatest obstacle to proper catechesis in the schools is dissent in the Church, the clergy should fight it strenuously. Of course, dissent can destroy not only catechesis in the schools, he writes, but every aspect of Catholicism in our country. A great deal can be done by determined leaders to make sure that all Catholics accept all the teachings of the Church. Better religion texts should be provided. Priests should be careful what persons they recommend to school boards as fitting teachers.

It is easy to see, then, that this is a most important examination of the state of Catholic schools in Canada, and all who are interested in the subject--in fact all Catholics should turn to it as a most useful source book for a list of the problems and for recommendations for their solution.