NOTICE: CHANGE OF WEB HOST
If you can read this then I have successfully finished moving my blog to my new hosting company. There will almost certainly be bugginess somewhere - please let me know if you see any!
Pirates of the Classroom
Blogged by James Preece on 16th November 2009
I received this email over the weekend from another young parent...
Dear James,
I had chance to ask a bishop about bishop policy with regard to Catholic schools. He says they are speaking in unity and acting in conformity with the teaching of the Church.
However, the full horror of being a Catholic parent of a young family on limited income really hit home when he said Catholic schools are largely run on state money (i.e. our taxes), so we have to expect to tow the government line.
Eactly what politics they are playing is beyond me, but the formation of souls is not the main priority.
The schools are like ships taken over by pirates, but still flying friendly flags.
Parent of a young family
I think that's a fair assessment.
Reader Comments
kate said...
What was it that Jesus said about serving two masters??
+-
berenike said...
Funny, isn't it, that taxpayer money funding schools means that The Guvvermnt can tell the what to teach?
Anyone read this recent howler?
"We [MPs] are the state's representative in our constituencies"
It's worth reading more of this man's speech. People really do see the state as The State plus The People, and not as a form of co-operation between all the people in it. But this is not at all the way the British constitution is constructed.
On another note:
Catholic schools used to be funded by the poor, but having spent a little time working with the records of one Scottish parish, funding problems meant that there were standards problems. Still, where there's a will there's a way (though not if you're a third-generation refugee camp dweller in Sudan, I suppose). There's apparently some private Catholic primary school in London with some cunning funding scheme where you get all your fees back, or something cunning of the sort. I think there's a bunch of Opus Dei people behind it.
+-
ry said...
Exactly, they conveniently ignore the fact that catholics pay taxes! 'No taxation without representation.....'
+-
Patricius said...
The relationship, described as a "partnership", is both complex and historic. Secularist commentators sometimes complain that taxpayers' money is funding what they see as sectarian institutions because they do not appreciate that (a) Catholics are also taxpayers and (b) the Church contributes a sizeable proportion of the capital costs. Certainly, on one level, the Church can be seen to be getting a pretty good deal because the labour costs (salaries etc) are state funded. The real problem with our schools I would suggest is neither the present government nor even the CES but the shortage of committed and well educated Catholic personnel.
+-
Philip said...
The concept of "partnership" is not one that has much mileage in Catholic social teaching. You can argue that, in solidarity, the state should finance education (at least for the poor) but, even if it does that, in a spirit of subsidiarity, it should allow the parents to determine the shape of that education - that is the state should "help" parents obtain an education for their children in accordance with the beliefs of the parents (that is what subsidiarity means). The state does not need to have a role in providing education at all.
+-
Melissa said...
We have the same problem with so called Catholic schools in Australia, so more and more orthodox Catholic parents, like myself, are homeschooling our children.
I recommend http://setonhome.org/ , http://www.ignatius.com/index.aspx , http://www.chcweb.com/catalog/index.html & http://www.rchistory.com/ as a starting point for anyone who is interested.
Homeschooling is not easy, but it can be a wonderful opportunity to give your children (and yourself) a truly Catholic education, free of Protestant propaganda and anti-Catholic sentiment.
I stumbled across your blog whilst researching Blessed Nicholas Postgate for history.
+-