Bridging the Gap: "Fides et Ratio" in Catholic Education
“With the light of reason, human beings can know which path to take, but they can follow that path to its end, quickly and unhindered, only if with a rightly tuned spirit they search for it within the horizon of faith.” (John Paul II, 1998, § 16) The two-fold order of knowledge, revelation of faith and natural reason, are inseparable in our pursuit of truth, which is ultimately the goal of Catholic education. Through the academic disciplines, students are encouraged and led to seek Truth through the use of the intellect. Through classes in Scripture and Theology and through frequent encounters with our Lord in the sacraments, students are invited to embrace the Truth revealed to us by God. These two sources of Truth, acting as “two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth,” (John Paul II, 1998) is decisive in the proper functioning of a Catholic school and the fulfillment of its mission.
As a means of achieving this harmonious relationship between the two sources of knowledge, John Paul II gives us several insights from St. Thomas Aquinas. Thomas’ first insight is that there is a harmony between faith and reason. “Thomas had the great merit of giving pride of place to the harmony which exists between faith and reason. Both the light of reason and the light of faith come from God, he argued; hence there can be no contradiction between them.” (John Paul II, 1998, §43)
The second insight of St. Thomas that John Paul II sees is that faith brings reason to completion. “Faith, therefore, has no fear of reason, but seeks it out and has trust in it. Just as grace builds on nature and brings it to fulfillment, so faith builds upon and perfects reason.” (John Paul II, 1998, §43) The coursework in a Catholic school and the pursuit of truth by use of the intellect can be seen as a foundation on which the courses in Theology and the pursuit of Truth through an embrace of Divine Revelation are firmly established.
Aquinas never fails to recognize the place of the Holy Spirit in the pursuit of truth. John Paul II lauds him, “Another of the great insights of St. Thomas was his perception of the role of the Holy Spirit in the process by which knowledge matures into wisdom.” (John Paul II, 1998, §43) This principle can be easy to forget. Those in Catholic education, or in any type of evangelical efforts, realize achievement only because of the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The final insight John Paul II shares from St. Thomas is his love of truth in any form. “Profoundly convinced that ‘whatever its source, truth is of the Holy Spirit’ … St. Thomas was impartial in his love of truth. He sought truth wherever it might be found and gave consummate demonstration of its universality.” (John Paul II, 1998, §44) This is also the role of educators, to find the presence of truth and to build on it, to recognize the goodness within students’ thoughts and positions, and strive to fan that goodness into flame.
Leading students to recognize the truth can be a slow process, and perhaps we only plant seeds, but as John Paul II reminds us, “Whether we admit it or not, there comes for everyone the moment when personal existence must be anchored to a truth recognized as final, a truth which confers a certitude no longer open to doubt.” (John Paul II, 1998, §27) The place of Catholic education is to provide an opportunity for that realization to occur and to persistently yet patiently look forward to it.
In order that a harmonious relationship between faith and reason might be fostered within a Catholic school, it would be beneficial to investigate the curriculum. Does the Catholic school include classes in Philosophy? The average Catholic school student seems to be more emotionally driven than intellectually led. Helping students employ the intellect on a new level and teaching the students to think through various propositions as opposed to only assessing their immediate affect associated with a way of thinking would build up the intellectual life in the Catholic school. Including courses on the relationship between Faith and Science would also build up a culture of harmony between faith and reason.
A stumbling block to establishing a relationship between the light of reason and the light of faith would be a mistreatment of the Theology curriculum within a given school. Theology courses can often be seen as, not only “just another class,” but even less than another class. A cultural shift within a school that places the Theology classes and the sacramental life as the crowning jewels of the Catholic school would certainly facilitate a beautiful interaction between the knowledge received through revelation and the knowledge gained through reason.
A difficulty in attaining this relationship for which we long lies in the faculty. A faculty that is not well versed in the mission is a detriment to the progress of the mission. Although the evangelical element of a Catholic school can also reach the teachers, it is difficult for a Catholic school to be evangelical and build up a relationship of harmony between faith and reason if the teachers within a school are not of the same mindset. After all, “It is the Church’s duty to indicate the elements in a philosophical system which are incompatible with her own faith.” (John Paul II, 1998, §50) Teachers who do not share the mindset of the Church are unable to do this. Employing a higher percentage of well-formed Catholic teachers might be difficult, but it would prove helpful in this endeavor of harmony between faith and reason. Regardless of the faculty’s religious practice, the school ought to provide development for teachers in the area of Philosophy and Theology so that the faculty might all see and experience the need for a balance of faith and reason within a Catholic school.
Ultimately, this pursuit cannot be achieved independently. “It must not be forgotten that reason too needs to be sustained in all its searching by trusting dialogue and sincere friendship.” (John Paul II, 1998, §33) A Catholic school, or her administrators, striving to uphold the Church’s teachings on the interplay of revelation and reason will certainly find more success through the development of relationships among the faculty, among the students, and between the two groups. A Catholic school united by a bond of fraternal charity will certainly value the importance of the life of faith and the employment of reason in our common search for the Truth.