Letters

Catholic education (letter)

Dr Garrick Small

Contents - Oct 2002 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Positive developments in liturgy - Michael Gilchrist Power without responsibility: the vendetta against Dr Pell - Peter Westmore News: The Church Around the World - AD2000 Commission for Australian Catholic Women justifies its existence - Michael Gilchrist Liturgy: Vatican control over ICEL tightens - Dr William Oddie Bishop Power: Church teachings need to be 're-examined' - AD2000 REPORT US billionaire promotes orthodox teaching - Zenit News Service Catholic liturgy in the 21st century: major challenges facing the Church - Fr Peter Williams John Henry Newman's critique of liberalism - Michael Davies Letters: Archbishop Pell (letter) - Eamonn & Patricia Keane Letters: "The Pell Show" (letter) - Stephen Hitchings Letters: Justice? (letter) - Godwin Brown Letters: Shepherds (letter) - Br Con Moloney CFC Letters: Church "renovation" (letter) - B. Tooley Letters: Church re-design (letter) - Michael Barry Letters: Soul and body (letter) - Dr Nicholas Tonti-Filippini Letters: Zero tolerance (letter) - Alan A. Hoysted Letters: Letters to the Bishops (letter) - Mavis Power Letters: Catholic education (letter) - Dr Garrick Small Letters: US theologians (letter) - Fr G.H. Duggan SM Letters: Celibate priesthood (letter) - Cyril Drew Letters: Good response (letter) - C.G. Jarrells Letters: Novus Ordo (letter) - Maurice Collins Letters: New Zealand (letter) - Kevin E. Fennessy Poetry: The Great Deliverance - Marion Craig Books: The Courage to be Catholic, by George Weigel - Michael Novak (reviewer) Books: Completed Jew, by Andrew Sholl - Michael Casanova (reviewer) Books: Godfaring: On Reason, Faith and Sacred Being, by Francis Clark - Br Christian Moe FSC (reviewer) Books: New Titles from AD Books Reflection: Devotion to God through the Angelus and Rosary - Fr Fabian Duggan OSB

The loss of Catholic culture documented by Br Marcellin Flynn's latest work is usually shrugged off by the school establishment as due to the poor example of parents. On that basis their dismal performance is not due to the aberrant views of many teachers, but parents - salt in the wounds of many ordinary parents whose children have lost the faith and who feel the deep failure of seeing those most precious go astray.

More should be made of the fact that despite three decades of highly creative catechesis 34% of Catholic parents still expect their children to go to Mass. Since less than 5% actually do (Catholic Church Life Survey), that means that less than one child in seven whose parents practise the faith follows the parental lead.

The other six out of seven must have lost their faith somewhere else. Any practising Catholic who has investigated the doings of the typical systemic school can tell you where that happened. The Australian bishops courageously established the Catholic school system barely a century ago to protect the faith. Perhaps we should all pray that they be given that grace again before the light goes out in Australia.

DR GARRICK SMALL
Property Studies Program
University of Technology,
Sydney, NSW

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 15 No 9 (October 2002), p. 14