As Catholic schools serve an increasingly racially diverse population of students, they must grapple with the critical requirement to address these students' unique needs while heeding the call from modern Catholic Church leaders to engage in explicit antiracist action. Using the Historically Responsive Literacy Framework (HRL), this article…

For nearly three centuries, a vast majority of Catholic schools in the United States were founded and operated by religious orders, each with their own unique charism but with the singular goal of teaching in the Catholic faith. Since 1965, however, a vast majority of religious orders have seen a continual decline in their membership. There are…

This study uncovers the meanings that secondary teachers working under the religious structure of Jesuit institutions attach to their work. I draw on theoretical insights coming from organisational behaviour. I use cases of teachers who worked or work in Catholic high schools run by the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuit order. I…

The developing science of cathedral studies has focused mainly on Anglican cathedrals. The present study argues for drawing Catholic cathedrals into this field. Employing data gathered from the websites of the 22 Catholic cathedrals in England and Wales, alongside data gathered from the diocesan reports submitted to the Charity Commission, this…

This qualitative study examined the decision-making processes among principals of parish-based Catholic elementary schools in low-income communities within the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, against the backdrop of a decentralized governance structure and increased financial pressures intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was grounded in a…

In 1623, Hernando Ruiz de Alarcón, a parish priest in Atenango, Mexico, was commissioned by his archbishop to record Nahua beliefs and healing practices for the purpose of denouncing their superstitions and demonic magic. His "Treatise on the Heathen Superstitions That Today Live Among the Indians Native to This New Spain," 1629…

This paper analyses the Solidarity movement narratives, focusing on church representatives, religious issues, and symbols in the Polish history textbooks for upper secondary schools between 1991 and 2018. The analysed textbooks prove to reinforce Poland's national and religious identities, with John Paul II and the priest Popieluszko being the…

Pope Francis describes the greed-driven global economy as an idol colonising society and enforcing values contrary to the gospel. In this context, education is essential to develop the skills in critical and creative thinking needed to identify, resist, and transform the anti-gospel aspects of global capitalism. But this education must do more…

The Synod of Catholic Bishop's 1971 document, "Justice in the World," articulates boldly that "action on behalf of justice is a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the Gospel." Fifty years old, it is timely to assess this document today especially as religious educators address the many forms of inequality in the world.…

Since the publication of Pope Francis' landmark encyclical (2015), "Laudato Si," there has been a robust discussion among religious educators concerning the notion of ecological conversion. Drawing on this rich scholarship, this paper strives to move from the "what" of ecological conversion to the "how"; that is, how…

This paper explores the process of negotiation, lobbying and parliamentary debate that brought the Irish universities legislation into being in the early 1900s against a backdrop of political and religious conflict. The complex interaction between British ministers and Catholic bishops before and throughout the legislative process dictated the…

An unexpected academic department closure can be deeply unsettling to many stakeholders. Department closure is typically intended to be a cost-saving measure; however, department closure can be a difficult, time-consuming process with unexpected consequences. This study takes a hermeneutical phenomenological approach to explore the impact of the…

Inspired by Paul VI's Octogesima Adveniens regarding the Church's urgent response to social issues, in his speech to Jesuit alumni in Valencia in July 1973, Fr. Pedro Arrupe reflected on the concept of 'social justice' and its implications for Jesuit schools. He spoke about how Jesuit education could assist students to become 'men and women for…

While issues faced by Catholic schools around the world depend on local context, a number of common challenges are often encountered globally. This article considers eight such challenges: (1) the decline in the depth of faith and values; (2) an inadequate number of clergy and religious serving in schools; (3) a changing scenario for teaching…

Justice education in the Catholic, Jesuit tradition is filled with tensions, many of which surface in different community service contexts. Saint Louis University offers an institutional illustration of these tensions, both in the conceptual origins of justice education and in the practical ways that students make meaning from service experiences.…