education

Spiritans and Education

We Spiritans have been involved in education for a long time. In 1703 our founder Father Claude Poullart des Places established a house in Paris for the education of poor seminarians and laid the cornerstone of what eventually became the Congregation of the Holy Ghost. Later a director of the seminary could rightly tell a student: "When you leave this house, you will not be a doctor of the Sorbonne, but you will perhaps be just as capable of being one as those who acquire such a degree." One of those who "left this house" was Father Pierre Maillard whose Micmac manuscripts have been called "one of the great test cultural contributions made by French missionaries in the New World"
In the following century the Congregation was heavily oriented to grass roots missionary work but its interest in education continued. Francis Libermann (second founder) insisted, often against stiff opposition, that "to abandon the schools is to destroy the future of mission." Between 1832 and 1882 a total of 31 seminaries and colleges (not to mention trade and agricultural schools) came under the direction of the Spiritans. Among the best known are Rockwell and Black-rock Colleges (Ireland), Holy Spirit (Portugal), Duquesne University (U.S.A.), St. Martial (Haiti), St. Mary's (Trinidad), The French Seminary (Rome) and St. Louis (Mauritius).

Neil McNeil High School - Toronto, Ontario

Francis Libermann High School - Toronto, Ontario

Fr. Obinna Ifeanyi, CSSp
Priest Chaplain - Neil McNeil High School, Toronto

Fr. Paul McAuley, CSSp
Priest Chaplain - Libermann High School, Toronto

In our own century came St. Mary's, St. Michael's and Templeogue Colleges (Ireland), St. Mary's (Nairobi), St. Alexandre College(Quebec),Auteuil (France), Neil McNeil and Libermann High Schools (Toronto), Christ the King (Nigeria), and Holy Ghost Preparator School (Pennsylvania). And the list is not exhaustive. During this century education became an important instrument of evangelization in many African countries, while in Europe Spiritans are currently responsible for 38 schools and colleges employing over 2,600 lay teachers and 79 Spiritans catering for 12,000 students.

The Contemporary Scene
Our presence in education today is far from uniform. At the Post Secondary level we administer Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and a number of Spiritans teach in universities and other post secondary institutions. At the secondary level our schools in Mission countries cater for first or second generation Catholics and also offer educational opportunities to a significant number of non-Christian students. In Europe, the United States and Canada we have Secondary Schools catering to middle and upper class students as well as non fee paying schools open to all and frequently providing services for new immigrants, the disabled and those with special needs. Finally we are involved in Alternative Education such as special programmes for youth, development education, justice and peace training, trade schools geared to the needs of particular places; a good example being Servol in Trinidad.
(Photo: Servol Life Centre, Trinidad)

Changing Context
The world in which we live has changed dramatically from that into which most of us were born. In our life-time we have split the atom, pierced the veil of space, cracked the genetic code, given birth to the computer and cloned a sheep named Dolly.
We worship in a significantly changed Church; the balance has shifted from North to South; former 'mission' churches now send out missionaries of their own; justice is seen to be an integral part of the gospel, calling into question on r lifestyles, the way we produce and con-sume, and our established structures of power. In such a world it is not surprising that our presence in schools has been questioned. Our mission requires us to be committed to the poor, to the integral liberation of people, to action for justice and peace, to participation in development. What then are we doing running schools?
In our attempt to answer that question, let us not muddy the waters. Let us not pretend we are educating the poor if we are manifestly not doing so. The difficulty of defining the poor seems to be peculiar to religious. Governments, social agencies, and indeed the poor themselves have little problem recognizing who they are. The poor are the materially deprived, the powerless, the exploited, the oppressed. The poor are those who are hungry, without decent shelter or clothes, those who lack educational and health care opportunities, are unemployed and feel excluded from decisions that affect them. As Spiritans we are called to judge our ministries, including education, from the perspective of the poor; to make decisions in the light of what they do for the poor, what they do to the poor, and what they enable the poor to do for themselves.
Some of us feel more comfortable with the non-poor; both by aptitude and inclination we are better prepared to deal with middle class people. If this is so, let us acknowledge it. But let us not delude ourselves that a conventional education given to the better off will, of necessity, result, through a trickle down process, in better conditions for the poor. Furthermore (and let's be realistic about this) any shift towards deepening our commitment to the poor or integrating more specifically the social ministry of the Church into our educational programmes will involve pain, conflict and sometimes rejection.

Choices and Challenges
Our Congregation has made choices for evangelization, for the promotion of justice, and for the service and liberation of the marginalized. Such choices do not call into question the value of education as such. Rather they entail an intensification of our work in education so that it may be a powerful force for the transformation of attitudes and for promoting social change. Spiritan schools which cater for middle and upper class students face the challenge of modifying a format which has developed over decades. They will find their efforts to approach education from the perspective of the poor or in the interests of justice often misunderstood by fellow Spiritans, staff members and above all by parents. When a school does a good job as a result of which former students are able to move up the economic ladder, they want their old teachers to be available in turn for their children. They wish everything to remain as it was and often have difficulty accepting developments in Catholic social doctrine which seem to challenge some of the assumptions of the society to which they belong. So indeed do some lay teachers and even some Spiritans.

(Photo: Graduation, St. Joseph's High School Edmonton, Canada)

In the Western church the call has gone out for re-evangelization. It is difficult to see how this can be promoted unless there is serious contact with the "new continent" of youth. Where can such a meeting take place? Only to a limited degree in the churches, for youth are not attending in big numbers. Is there not, perhaps, a better opportunity to make sonic impact through specialized youth programmes, through schools and universities? Quality education is one of the crying needs of young people, especially those in developing countries , an education that will enable them to become key players in their own integral development and in that of their communities.

(Extracts from a talk given by Fr. Michael Doyle, CSSp to the Spiritan Education Conference at Duquesne University, Pittsburgh ).