Transcript Catholic Special Character - St Joseph's School, Queenstown NZ

What Makes
St Joseph’s School
Catholic?
Why the Church Provides
Catholic Schools? 1
• To place Christ and the teaching of the Catholic Church
at the centre of people’s lives
• Assist parents in education and religious formation of
children
• To be at the service of the local church especially as
many families do not have an active involvement in the
parish
• To provide families with the freedom and right to have
their child educated in a Catholic setting where
spirituality is nourished and gospel values are taught.
Special Character as defined
in Integration Agreement,
1975 2
• St Joseph’s School is a Roman Catholic School
in which the whole school community, through
the general school programme, and in its
religious instruction and observances exercises
the right to live and teach the values of Jesus
Christ. These values are as expressed in the
Scriptures and in the practices, worship and
doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church as
determined by the Bishop of the diocese.
How is a Catholic School
Different?
• The Catholic School is a community where
gospel values such as love, truth, justice,
forgiveness, patience, inclusiveness,
equity and respect are central and where
faith is nourished.
• We have the privilege of teaching the
whole child – spirituality is openly valued
and nurtured
In the words of Cullinane, (2006) 3 the
practices that enable a school to be
called Catholic, are ones that bring
people to faith, that nurture faith
through such practices as prayer,
liturgy and actions of Christian living
and that inform faith through learning
that takes place during Religious
Education teaching.
Paul Ferris (2012) 4 in his reflection on what
we should be reviewing as a Catholic
School, identifies “the spiritual life of the
school and its participation in, and
promotion of, a prayerful and sacramental
life…the way the pastoral care within the
school represents the gospel and finally, a
close inspection and review of the way the
Catholic curriculum is planned and
delivered”.
St Joseph’s School
Extract from our Information Booklet
We actively promote the Special Character of St Joseph’s School, by working
closely with pupils, teachers, parents and parish. We assist children to have an
informed pride in their membership of the family of the Catholic Church by
practising
their faith through:• beginning the school week by gathering as a school for morning prayer
• daily involvement in morning prayer and reflection
• school and class Masses or liturgies
• children being brought together before lunch and at the end of the day to give
thanks with prayer
• joining the parish for Masses, liturgies and special occasions
• We focus on values and virtues which form part of our Charter. We actively
focus on a particular value/virtue for periods of time, involving children in the
definition of this value/virtue and in working out what it means in practical
terms.
• We work in partnership with the parish in assisting children and their families
prepare for the reception of the sacraments.
• We have Religious Education learning time on a regular basis.
• We aim to ensure that our Special Character strongly influences how we “do
things” in this place. This includes outreach to those in need.
How do we as a Catholic
School fulfil our purpose?
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Visible symbols represent who we are and what we believe – they tell our
story
Language is used to express our beliefs – eg Teachers ask “What would
Jesus have done?” in response to a problem
Restorative process used with children when dealing with conflict –
restoring relationships with others and with God is living out of the
sacrament
Time allocated for prayer which is respectful and reverent
Community where relationships are respectful and positive
See God in all things – creation around us including in each other
Faith in action – care of others, service and outreach
Religious Education programme made relevant to our children’s lives
Sacramental programme as a way of nurturing faith
Regular reading of Bible stories to develop an understanding of God’s
message for us of how we can live so that we are a positive influence on
our families, school, local and global community including the environment.
Outward Signs Our School
is Catholic?
Our newsletter letterhead shows our vision for our
children which has its roots in the person of Christ
and his mission to make the world a better place.
Our commitment to Gospel values and our
Dominican connection are also evident.
Active Engagement in
Liturgies through Drama
Active Engagement in
Liturgies through Dance
Daily Prayers
Sacramental programme
eg First Reconciliation
Symbols evident
Service and Outreach
Sharing our Learning in RE
with Our Community
Our Dominican Charism
Our school was foundered by the
Dominican sisters in 1883 and we
continue to learn from the life of St
Dominic and our Dominican sisters.
As a Catholic School, we believe our
purpose is to keep this unique gift
from God alive.
Our School Blessing
embodies our vision, our values,
and our Dominican charism.
Our awesome God and teacher,
We praise and thank you for all you have given us,
Bless us as we learn and play,
Watch over our families and our community.
May our school be a place of
honesty, respect and learning,
where everyone does their best and does their bit.
May God be always with us. Amen
Bibliography
• 1 Stock, M (2005). Christ at the Centre. Retrieved 11
Aug, 2009 from
http://www.bdsc.org.uk/assets/pdf/Christ%20at%20th%2
0Centre.pdf
• 2 Private Schools Conditional Integration Act, 1975
• 3 Cullinane, P. (2006). Is there something missing in our
Catholic education and faith formation? Palmerston
North Diocese of Palmerston North
• 4 Ferris, Paul (March 2012) Are Catholic Schools Still
Catholic? Tui Motu, Interislands