Catholic Schools Week

BISHOP KEVIN J. SWEENEY

I recently finished reading a book published earlier this year, called American Catholics: A History by Leslie Woodcock Tentler. I would recommend it for anyone who enjoys learning about American History, especially those who are interested in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States.

Towards the end of the book, Ms. Tentler recounts and analyzes the five-day visit of Pope Francis to the United States in 2015. Recalling the Holy Father’s visit to a parochial school in Harlem, she writes:

“(the Pope’s visit) … saluted the very real achievements of the nation’s Catholic Schools and Colleges, diminished in number to be sure, but still by far the most numerous of the country’s private educational institutions and among the most successful with poor, minority students…”

Any objective observer of our nation’s history needs to recognize the contributions of the Catholic Church and Catholic men and women. There must also be a particular recognition of the role and positive impact of Catholic schools and Catholic education. You can make a good case that Catholic schools are one of the greatest contributions of the Church to social justice, to reaching out to those in the greatest need and helping to change their lives.

For anyone who may want further evidence to support this argument, I direct you to Living Stones: A History of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Paterson by (our own) Msgr. Raymond Kupke. For those who have not yet read Living Stones, I highly recommend it. Similar to Ms. Tentler, Msgr. Kupke “starts at the beginning,” telling the story of the Catholics and the faith coming to the United States prior to the Revolutionary War and the founding of the country. Msgr. Kupke focuses on New Jersey and the geographical area of our Diocese while Ms. Tentler looks at the whole country. Msgr. Kupke traces the story through the foundation of the Diocese of Paterson in 1937 and the first 50 years of our history. Similar to Ms. Tentler’s larger story, Catholic schools and Catholic education is a recurring theme and highlight of the history of the Church in the state of New Jersey and in our Diocese of Paterson.

It has become very clear to all of us during the past 10 months that we are living in and through truly historic times due to the coronavirus pandemic. As it was in the beginning and throughout our history, it is also true in these historic times that Catholic schools and education are a highlight and tangible sign of hope during very difficult times. It has been especially encouraging to me, coming as the new Bishop to see the ways in which our Catholic schools have responded to the ongoing challenges presented by the pandemic. In her “Superintendent’s Message” for Catholic Schools Week, Mary Baier, our Diocesan Superin­tendent of Schools, calls our Catholic School leaders, teachers and staff as our own heroes. I fully agree with her.

Since this is my first Catholic Schools Week as Bishop of Paterson, I want to take this opportunity to recognize and thank Superintendent Baier for the heroic dedication, commitment and leadership that she has shown to me and to all in our Diocese, especially during the challenges of these past 10 months. I also want to thank and recognize the principals, presidents, pastors, teachers, administrators, chaplains, and staff of our three diocesan high schools and 15 grammar schools for their commitment, dedication and hard work on behalf of our students, parents, and families. Those serving in our private Catholic schools, administered by religious orders, are another blessing.

A practical example of dedication is that many of our Catholic school leaders had no summer vacation this past year. They spent a great deal of time this summer making, remaking, and adapting plans and doing everything necessary to prepare to open our schools (in person and hybrid) this past September. I am convinced that when the history is written of the response of our Catholic schools to the pandemic, all that has been done so well and so professionally will be one of the great highlights of this chapter.

No column about our Catholic schools would be complete without speaking of the wonderful work done to support our schools by the Tri-County Scholarship Fund. Now in its 40th year, this fund has mobilized corporate and civic leaders to work in partnership with our schools so that as many children as possible can benefit from them. Prudence Pigott, the president of Tri-County has observed that “Tri-County makes that quality education possible for the most financially vulnerable children in our Catholic schools. The fund has given 33,500 scholarships in its 40-year history to students attending our Catholic schools and raised $31.5 million in monies to be used for scholarships for our schools.”

As we enter into “Catholic Schools Week,” I am hopeful that the response of our Catholic schools to the pandemic might also become a turning point for Catholic schools in our Diocese and, possibly, across our country. When Ms. Tentler describes the nation’s Catholic schools as “diminished in number,” she is recording a fact of our history. I am familiar with and have learned in these last seven months as Bishop about the pain and sadness experienced by so many when a Catholic school, especially a parish school, is forced to close.

Many comprehensive studies have been done and reports have been written attempting to explain some of the reasons for the closing of so many Catholic and parish schools in the past 20 or 30 years, especially in the Northeast and other historically strong and populous Catholic cities, communities and dioceses. The decline in religious, especially religious sisters, who teach in Catholic Schools, economics, demographics, smaller families, cultural changes and many other reasons or explanations can be offered for the decline and closures.

As we try to learn from the past, understand our present circumstances, and make the best decisions for the future, I can confidently tell you that “the story is not over” and the “last chapter” has not yet been written. The challenges are real, but I believe that we can meet them and find creative new (and old) ways to build on the wonderful, rich tradition of Catholic education and Catholic schools, particularly here in our Diocese of Paterson.