The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers
The Catholic Church has a long history of conducting schools as part of its mission to evangelize. This paper will contend that in order for teachers to implement the evangelistic mission of Catholic schools, they themselves need an integral formation that puts every dimension of their human nature—...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Religions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/12/1230 |
| _version_ | 1797455470655438848 |
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| author | Amy E. Roberts Gerard O’Shea |
| author_facet | Amy E. Roberts Gerard O’Shea |
| author_sort | Amy E. Roberts |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Catholic Church has a long history of conducting schools as part of its mission to evangelize. This paper will contend that in order for teachers to implement the evangelistic mission of Catholic schools, they themselves need an integral formation that puts every dimension of their human nature—body, emotions, will, and intellect—in ongoing communion with Christ and His Church. A brief examination of the impact of secularization in the United States on the Catholic school mission indicates that teachers are inadequately formed to fulfill that mission. Contemplative practice, a common faith formation practice used for Catholic school teachers, will be evaluated as insufficient for achieving its goal because it does not fully account for the way God created human beings. Contemplative practice relies heavily on the work of John Dewey, who applied inadequate anthropological principles to the task of human learning and teacher education. By contrast, faith formation efforts that account for human nature engage both the <i>intellectus</i> and the <i>ratio</i>, and in so doing engage the teacher’s whole integrated person. Teacher faith formation can facilitate the teacher’s encounter with God, allowing Him to form her, by providing analogical encounters with Him through the transcendentals and sacramental encounters with Him in the liturgy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:54:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ca508bf72290442480102c5259f0a6a3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:54:50Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-ca508bf72290442480102c5259f0a6a32023-11-24T17:45:30ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442022-12-011312123010.3390/rel13121230The Integral Formation of Catholic School TeachersAmy E. Roberts0Gerard O’Shea1Department of Theology/Catechetics, Franciscan University of Steubenville, Steubenville, OH 43952, USASchool of Education, The University of Notre Dame Australia, Fremantle, WA 6160, AustraliaThe Catholic Church has a long history of conducting schools as part of its mission to evangelize. This paper will contend that in order for teachers to implement the evangelistic mission of Catholic schools, they themselves need an integral formation that puts every dimension of their human nature—body, emotions, will, and intellect—in ongoing communion with Christ and His Church. A brief examination of the impact of secularization in the United States on the Catholic school mission indicates that teachers are inadequately formed to fulfill that mission. Contemplative practice, a common faith formation practice used for Catholic school teachers, will be evaluated as insufficient for achieving its goal because it does not fully account for the way God created human beings. Contemplative practice relies heavily on the work of John Dewey, who applied inadequate anthropological principles to the task of human learning and teacher education. By contrast, faith formation efforts that account for human nature engage both the <i>intellectus</i> and the <i>ratio</i>, and in so doing engage the teacher’s whole integrated person. Teacher faith formation can facilitate the teacher’s encounter with God, allowing Him to form her, by providing analogical encounters with Him through the transcendentals and sacramental encounters with Him in the liturgy.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/12/1230Catholic schoolsfaith formationteachersChristian anthropologytranscendentals |
| spellingShingle | Amy E. Roberts Gerard O’Shea The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers Religions Catholic schools faith formation teachers Christian anthropology transcendentals |
| title | The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers |
| title_full | The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers |
| title_fullStr | The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers |
| title_short | The Integral Formation of Catholic School Teachers |
| title_sort | integral formation of catholic school teachers |
| topic | Catholic schools faith formation teachers Christian anthropology transcendentals |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/12/1230 |
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