Fr Niall Coll encourages Catholic schools “to prioritise the importance of Religious Education”
A leading priest-theologian has urged stakeholders in Catholic schools to be “assiduous in ensuring that they understand, encourage and nurture the Catholic vision of their schools”.
Fr Niall Coll, who lectures at St Mary’s College, Belfast, said “one of the most effective ways of doing this is to prioritise the importance of Religious Education on the timetable and also ensuring that the departments are well-staffed by high quality, committed teachers”.
Writing in the 25th edition of Le Chéile, Fr Coll drew attention to the Catholic school ethos journal’s “ongoing commitment to helping schools to identify, explore and promote ways of living out the distinctive vision of Catholic education”.
“Our schools exist in a climate of intense media and political scrutiny. Catholic educators need to articulate and give concrete shape to their vision of education as essentially a humanising endeavour characterised by love, hope and social justice, forming young people who will serve the world with their gifts,” he said.