Joseph of Nazareth has a high profile among Catholics globally. His name adorns a multitude of schools, Catholic agencies, cities and towns and he is the patron of numerous causes in the Catholic tradition. This elevated position contrasts markedly with his profile in the Bible, where he is consistently silent when he appears in the narratives,…

In England and Wales, diocesan inspectors are charged with assessing the overall quality of Catholic education provided by Catholic schools. As part of this assessment, inspectors are required to give an account of the liturgical life of the school. Often the reports which result from these inspections refer to the degree of students' "active…

This article offers keys of understanding and pedagogical orientations to promote the encounter with beauty in Catholic schools. First, the article presents 'Via Pulchritudinis [The way of beauty]: paths of evangelisation and dialogue,' published by the Pontifical Council for Culture (2006)…

This paper contributes to the ongoing discourse on the rationale and purpose of religious education (RE) in Catholic schools. RE in Australian Catholic schools has always been a feature of the curriculum and the expectation is that all students take part in this. Several salient features of contemporary culture that impact on faith-based schools…

Good religious education needs to be rooted in a robust theological anthropology. The Roman Catholic Church's gender complementarity approach is inadequate for accompanying adolescents in Catholic schools as they engage in questions of gender and sexuality; instead, educators need a theological anthropology oriented towards adolescent flourishing.…

This article presents an initial analysis of the "Prayer and Liturgy Directory," which was published by the "Catholic Education Service" of England and Wales in 2023. It is argued that this document has many positive features, and provides a helpful guidance document for those involved with planning liturgies in a Catholic…

Increasing faith engagement among Catholic school shareholders is a priority for school leaders. Catholic school communities can learn from this year-long project with a parish school. Sacred Heart Parish School serves approximately 300 K3-8th grade students. Like many parish schools, Sacred Heart sees a growing number of parents disengaged with…

Gerald Grace (2002. "Catholic Schools: Mission, Markets and Morality." London: Routledge), borrowing from the sociological constructs of Pierre Bourdieu, speaks of the significance of the spiritual and cultural capital of religious orders in providing a substantial catalyst in the development of Catholic education in England and Wales.…

This empirical study focuses on the factors of school parents' school choice whose children just started to attend one of the Piarist (Catholic) Schools in Hungary. 270 parents completed an online questionnaire where the groups of questions concerned several facets of their beliefs and values. The results show how parental expectations and beliefs…

For centuries, Catholic schools have promoted extra-curricular activity as a means to develop well-rounded students. Sports programming has been a vital aspect of this work, but there is little research into how these programmes can support the combined educational-religious missions of the schools. In response, this paper relies on archival and…

This article draws on the ongoing discussion in some European countries about whether and how non-religious worldviews and pupils should be included in religious education (RE). This discussion lacks empirical knowledge about the specific learning conditions of these pupils in RE -- a desideratum that this article addresses. Building on a…

Most European countries accept the necessity of school based Religious Education (RE). In Ireland, where almost 89% of primary and 47% of second level schools have a Catholic patron, the Catholic Bishops recognise the importance of RE in holistic education and uphold RE as an expression of school ethos. However, in an increasingly diverse society…

The planned integration of Catholic social teaching (CST) across the curriculum was the primary focus of the 'Identity and Curriculum in Catholic Education' (2013-2018) initiative in Catholic schools in the state of Queensland. Initial reconnaissance involved a survey of teachers' views regarding the identity, purposes and characteristics of…

This case study explores the perceptions of students regarding their engagement in interreligious learning and teaching in one Australian Catholic Primary School. The study probes the learners' understandings of what interreligious learning and teaching looks like in their context and how it might relate to their understandings of their evolving…

US Catholic schools have been known to educate the whole child. However, the Catholic sector has not widely embraced a shared understanding of whole child education or how it is operationalised, nor have researchers interested in this sector effectively measured the impact of approaches in any or all domains. This conceptual paper presents a…