Volume 16 | Amazing Education

REGINA Inspiring. Intelligent. Catholic.

The Secret Catholic Insider’s Guide to

Amazing Education Thomism, the Friars and the Truth The Dominican Seminary in Washington, DC Regina Magazine

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Editorial Editor

Beverly De Soto

Brycie Matthews Loepp Margaret Coppen

Marco Sermarini

Federica Graci Giorgio Pellei y Jim Bryant Luca Rossi for Luci Diffuse Agency Writers Kristin Gawley Charles Bradshaw Monica McCaffrey Beverly De Soto Patti Ward Donna Sue Berry Lynn Wehner Meghan Ferrara Julie Weyant Michael Durnan Luke Weyant Priscilla Mc Caffrey ​Fr G. Peter Irving​ Daniel Rabourdin Fr. Jeffrey Keyes Christopher Pitsch Amanda Lewin Penny Silvers Hannah Palmer Philip Cialini Jenna Barlow Dr Wiliam Edmund Fahey Michael Mendieta Bridget Greem Volume 16 | Amazing Education Harry Stevens Beverly De Soto www.reginamag.com Designer Hannah Hladik Casamento Photography Helen Stead Penny Silvers Photography Fr Lawrence Lew Edward Pentin Advertising Contact Henri de Villiers Alex Sepkus bridget.green@reginamag.com

Webmaster

REGINA Magazine is published six times a year at www.reginamag.com.

REGINA draws together extraordinary Catholic writers, photographers, videographers and artists with a vibrant faith. We’re interested in everything under the Catholic sun — from work and family to religious and eternal life.

We seek the Good, the Beautiful and the True – in our Tradition and with our God-given Reason. We believe in one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church. We are joyfully loyal to the 2

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Magisterium. We proudly celebrate our literary and artistic heritage and seek to live and teach the authentic Faith. We are grateful for this treasure laid up for us for two thousand years by the Church — in her liturgy, her clergy, her great gift of Christendom and the Catholic culture that we are the primary bearers of.

REGINA Magazine is under the patronage of Our Lady, Mary Most Holy. We pray that she lays our humble work at the feet of her Son, and that His Will be done.

Contents Real Religious Education Great English Catholic Writers............................................06

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Front Lines.............................................................................26 Heaven on Earth....................................................................42 Catholic Film-makers............................................................58 The Rigging of a Vatican Synod..........................................86

A Bold Vision

Independent Catholic Academies

146 A Sort of Magic in the Air

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All-Boys Catholic School in Oklahoma............................114 Rekindling............................................................................126 A Sort of Magic in the Air...................................................146 A Visit to St Thomas More.................................................166

The New Catholic Colleges Restoring a Radical Tradition.............................................180 Tradition in Australia...........................................................204 Benedictus in London........................................................214 Media Revolutionary...........................................................230 A Bold Vision.......................................................................240 A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La.......................................254

Amazing Seminaries Thoughts on a Young Man’s Vocation

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Thoughts on A Young Man’s Vocation.............................274 Raising Men to the Altar.....................................................282 Living The Truth In Charity.................................................310 Thomism, the Friars and the Truth....................................338 In the Austrian Alps............................................................372 The Secret of the Seminaire de la Castille.......................388

The Homeschooling Chronicles

Media Revolutionary

American Revolution..........................................................408 Fun With St. Monica’s..........................................................412 A Very English Education...................................................440

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Amazing Education

Real Religious Education Catholic converts and reverts alike are often ​surprised by what they don’t know. Often, it seems that our real Catholic culture -- our history, theology, art and architecture -- has been hidden from us, or re-interpreted through the lens of Protestant and/or a pervasive anti-Catholic historical perspective.

Fortunately, now there are some great educational experiences out there today. REGINA visits Oxford, Lake Garda and Melbourne where some amazing adult education is happening.

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers An Oxford Summer Experience Exploring the Development of Faith and Culture from Shakespeare to Tolkien Article By: Beverly Stevens

Photo Credits: Michael Durnan, Fr. Jeffrey Keyes & Beverly Stevens

In the summer of 2007, Stratford and Léonie Caldecott founded a unique summer school at Oxford, England to bring together extraordinary writers, lecturers and students of all ages from around the world. For two weeks every summer since then, these have gathered at Oxford – this year at historic St Benet’s, a Benedictine college.

Last year, Stratford Caldecott passed away, but Léonie is continuing his legacy of excellence in a program that goes from strength to strength, pioneering the way to bring to light the real stories of England’s great Catholic writers – including William Shakespeare.

Here, REGINA interviews Léonie Caldecott about the wonders of Second Spring Summer School.

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers

REGINA: Your summer school students spend an unforgettable two weeks in the beautiful and historic city of Oxford, visiting world famous sites and studying with local experts.

There, they get to explore the context, writings, and haunts of English authors such as Shakespeare, Newman, Hopkins, Chesterton, Tolkien, and C.S. Lewis. Why did you start Second Spring in 2007?

Léonie Caldecott: We had been running conferences and study days/weeks since the Centre for Faith and Culture was founded in the early 1990s, but we ran our first Shakespeare Summer School in 2007 at St Benet's, with Clare Asquith and Fr Peter Milward SJ. From there we entered into a partnership with Thomas More College in New Hampshire, and began to run summer schools for their students from 2008 onwards. Our journal, Second Spring, and the summer school are closely linked, as both focus on questions to do with faith and culture, though the summer school emphasizes the historical questions arising from the Reformation in England and its long-term cultural effects.

REGINA: Your school is based at St Benet’s, the Benedictine Hall of the University of Oxford, only a few paces from the pub where the Inklings used to meet. What have been the reactions of your students?

Léonie Caldecott: They love it! We have used other centrally based accommodation over the years when St Benet’s has been full, but staying in a Benedictine house with a small chapel and beautiful gardens right next to the ‘Bird and Baby’ definitely gives the course a special buzz - it make the history come alive. The fact that we are based in the heart of Oxford, a place which brings together so many important historical and cultural threads, is very exciting for our students.

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“I HAVE TO SAY THAT STRAT AND I NEVER CONSIDERED THE QUESTION OF THE MARKET! We were focused on the fascinating material that we ourselves had discovered as Catholic converts, and then Divine Providence drew us into sharing this material with others in the way we have.

However, our experience has indeed demonstrated that there is an audience for this. Eight years of summer schools bear it out.” -- Léonie Caldecott

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REGINA: You explore some fascinating material, such as the long-term impact of the Reformation on Anglophone culture; the vision of the human person were the writers of the Catholic Literary Revival struggling to recover and how writers witness to Christ in a hostile environment. What sort of people are interested in these summer classes?

Léonie Caldecott: We have had participants from all over the world, from Chile and Brazil to Italy and Poland, but the majority of interest comes from North America. This may partly be a language issue (as all classes are in English), but also down to the relevance of the questions we explore for the whole of Anglophone culture. Some attendees are studying in relevant fields, some are teachers, some are retired, but some are professionals who want to take time out of their day-to-day grind and have an adventure.

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers

REGINA: How have your students of all backgrounds reacted?

Léonie Caldecott: Some have been amazed by the vistas of Christian and Catholic culture that the course opens up, and the historical questions we raise have garnered some pretty interesting reactions. The historical material dealing with the turbulence of the English Reformation has only fairly recently been aired so thoroughly, thanks to the work of people such as Eamon Duffy, Alice Hogge, Gerard Kilroy and Clare Asquith - the last three have all lectured for us.

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REGINA: What reactions have you gotten from English Catholics?

Léonie Caldecott: English Catholics have shown some interest, but most of our attendees have been from the US or mainland Europe, people for whom this side of English culture is something of a novelty. The English Catholics who have lectured for us, from Michael Ward (author of Planet Narnia) to Clare Asquith (author of Shadowplay) have certainly been very supportive of the concept of our summer school. We have had a number of non-Catholics attending too, over the years. One or two have come into the Church and I like to think we contributed in a small way to that process.

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers

“We try to balance lectures with times of reflection and pilgrimage: the human person being both a rational, a spiritual, and an incarnate creature. We find that our students appreciate the experiential mix and the pace. People learn and absorb in different ways, and part of the joy of a course like this is being able to walk the same streets, drink in the same pubs, and see the sights that inspired the figures we study.”

-- Léonie Caldecott

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WE VISIT PLACES OF HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE and also of literary interest as diverse as Saint Thomas More’s cell in the Tower of London, C.S. Lewis’ house, and the White Horse of Chesterton’s Ballad. It’s always wonderful to see these places through the fresh eyes of a group of people passionate about the subjects we study. We particularly love seeing their faces as they realise the man showing them a hiding place for a priest in Penal times is a descendant of Thomas More, or when they are told that they are standing next to Newman’s writing desk which is also, by the way, the altar from which he received his first Holy Communion as a Roman Catholic.” Léonie Caldecott 16

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“In the early days I did the practical organisation of the summer schools, as well as contributing material. We have faced a few challenges, such as unexpected “heat waves”, which older people attending our courses struggled with - St Benet’s, like many old buildings in England, has no elevator or air-conditioning! There have been occasions when I have felt like Sibyll Fawlty running around trying to solve multiple crises at once” -- Léonie Caldecott

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers

TESSA CALDECOTT IN THE GARDEN OF ST BENET’S COLLEGE: “For several years I actually cooked for our students every day, in order to keep costs down. But since our wonderful eldest daughter Tessa has joined us on the admin side, it has been much easier and really rewarding to have relaxed interaction with our students.”

-- Léonie Caldecott

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“A NUMBER OF MATURE PEOPLE HAVE ATTENDED because they were drawn to the material they found on our website.

That has been the main portal for attracting attendees, though word of mouth and some coverage in the catholic blogosphere has helped. As we have been working on a shoe-string budget we never used much advertising beyond this. It has grown organically.” Léonie Caldecott

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In the Steps of the Great English Catholic Writers

“WE HAVE HAD ANYTHING FROM FOUR STUDENTS (in the first year of the Thomas More programme they actually stayed in our own house!) to a dozen. As well as the core group of TMC students, other undergrads or recent graduates have attended. It is worth noting that American undergraduates can sign up directly through Thomas More College if they wish to attend the introductory week they run on their own site before their students fly over to the UK, and may obtain credit for our course though them.” -- Léonie Caldecott

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STUDENTS IN RURAL OXFORDSHIRE; “We intend to keep developing the summer school, sticking with the mix of lectures and tours that have been so successful for us down the years. We are open to new partnerships on the teaching side, if these are mutually compatible. With marketing too, we are open to new avenues. But whatever happens, we have to build organically on something that has taken many years to shape and refine. “ – Léonie Caldecott

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RHODES SCHOLAR and lecturer in medieval history Gregory Lippiatt teaches at Second Spring Summer school. More info visit their website and sign up to their email list Mailing list at the bottom of their homepage, or follow Second Spring on Facebook and Twitter and Pinterest and Instagram

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Defending the Family on the Front Lines “Basically the world is in the grip of a militant secularist ideology because of internal problems within the Church and her poor presentation of her own teaching to her faithful.”

Article By: Beverly Stevens

Photo Credits: Harry Stevens, Casamento Photography, Hannah Hladnik

The stakes couldn’t be higher. It is perhaps the greatest challenge that Christian civilization has ever faced. How can the Church defend its 2,000 year old teaching on marriage and the family in the face of government and corporate antagonism across the West?

Answer: With big intellectual guns. Professor Tracey Rowland has two doctorates in theology, one from Cambridge University in England and one from the John Paul II Institute in Rome. She also holds a Licentiate in Theology from the Lateran University, two Bachelor’s degrees, two Masters degrees and a law degree.

Today, she’s on the front lines, so to speak, training theologians and religious education instructors at the John Paul II Institute in Melbourne, Australia. REGINA Magazine recently sat down with her for this candid interview.

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Front Lines “I suspect, in fact, that I was the first Cambridge student since the Reformation to have two Dominican examiners.”

REGINA: Wow, that is some academic background you have!

TRACEY: Yes, well, I acquired my first degrees from non-Catholic institutions, including the doctorate from Cambridge, but I then found myself in a position of having to acquire pontifical degrees, that is, the Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL) and the Doctorate in Sacred Theology (STD), in order to satisfy certain requirements of canon law for teaching in a pontifical university.

REGINA: Just amazing.

TRACEY: It is something of a joke among my friends and family that my Cambridge doctorate wasn’t deemed to be acceptable because it came from an institution that has not been Catholic since the time of the Reformation. This was notwithstanding the fact that both my doctoral examiners were Dominicans. I suspect, in fact, that I was the first Cambridge student since the Reformation to have two Dominican examiners.

REGINA: About the JPII Institute -- many people have heard of these Institutes, but are unclear about their origin and their relationship to the Holy See. TRACEY: St. John Paul II personally founded the Institutes which have their central session at the Lateran University in Rome. He was actually on his way to the opening ceremony of the Roman session of the Institute when the assassination attempt took place REGINA: That is incredible. Almost like the Devil didn’t want them to get started. And today?

TRACEY: There are some 10 sessions of the Institute world-wide. They each share a common core curriculum with a focus on the theological anthropology and moral theology of St. John Paul II and their development in subsequent papal teaching and in the works of Catholic scholars generally. In addition to the core curriculum each of the sessions has areas of specialisation, depending on the needs of the Church in their region.

REGINA: With all of the great concerns about marriage and the family today, founding the Institute seems particularly prophetic.

TRACEY: The Institutes are an unusual academic animal in the sense that they are the only academic institution, of which I am aware, where the core curriculum has actually been personally devised by a pope. The oldest of the sessions, for example, the Roman and Washington DC sessions, all have full pontifical status, which means that they can confer degrees in the name of the pontiff, such as the Licentiate of Sacred Theology, while some of the younger sessions are still in the process of jumping through the canonical hoops to acquire full pontifical status.

Once a year the Directors of the sessions and other faculty members travel to Rome to meet with each other and discuss research priorities for the coming year and to report to the International President of the Institute who is Monsignor Livio Melina.

His most famous book is called Sharing in Christ’s Virtues. The former Presidents are Cardinal Carlo Caffarra of Bologna and Cardinal Angelo Scola of Milan. Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who is the Prefect of the Congregation of Bishops, is also a former Professor of the Institute.

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REGINA: Why is it so very difficult to convey the Church's position on sexuality, morality and marriage these days, do you think?

TRACEY: I think the biggest problem is that sacramental theology has been so poorly taught for centuries. Even today it is common to find people who want to defend the Church’s teachings on sexuality, morality and marriage, not by reference to sacramental theology, but by reference to economic or medical factors. St. John Paul II’s theology of the body, which also forms part of the core curriculum of the Institute’s world-wide, does exactly the opposite. He situated sexuality within the couple’s relationship to the Trinity.

REGINA: When was the Institute in Melbourne founded?

TRACEY: The Institute was founded in Melbourne in 2001. The Pope’s vision was to have an Institute in every major region of the world, so Melbourne was chosen as the site of the Institute which would serve the needs of the Church in South-East Asia and Oceania.

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REGINA: Why Melbourne?

TRACEY: Melbourne was initially chosen for two reasons: first Melbourne has tended to be the intellectual capital of Australia, and secondly, and most significantly, when the decisions were being made, George Pell was the Archbishop of Melbourne. Cardinal Pell as he now is, is a very entrepreneurial type who likes to get big projects off the ground and he is very interested in the intellectual life of the Church.

He understands that in our present times, more than ever, the Church desperately needs well-educated lay people. He is not the type of prelate who likes to keep his sheep dumb and docile.

REGINA: But Cardinal Pell is in Sydney now, right?

TRACEY: Soon after the foundation of the Institute in Melbourne, Cardinal Pell was moved to Sydney which is the Primatial See in Australia and the largest Australian city. In 2013 he was called to Rome by Pope Francis to sort out the financial problems within the Curia as ‘Prefect for the Economy of the Holy See.’ He has been replaced as Archbishop of Sydney by Anthony Fisher, an Oxford educated Dominican who shares the Cardinal’s interests in Catholic higher education.

Front Lines

“Religious Education programmes often fail because they are focused on one faculty of the soul only. Before the Second Vatican Council it was the intellect, after the Council the emphasis turned to the heart, but the approach of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is to address the body, heart and mind of the child through participation in the liturgy, the reading of scripture, and the presentation of the Church’s doctrinal teachings, with the personalising of this formation in prayer”

REGINA: For non-Australians, can you explain the difference between these cities?

TRACEY: There is enormous rivalry between Sydney and Melbourne. In the nineteenth century Melbourne boomed and was regarded as the most glamourous city in the British Commonwealth. In more recent times however it has been left behind by Sydney in a commercial sense. It is said that Sydney represents new money while Melbourne represents old money. Sydney is compared to San Francisco, Melbourne is compared to Boston. Cardinal Pell once said publicly that Sydney is like a pair of hot pants, and Melbourne is more like a cashmere cardigan.

REGINA: That’s pretty funny! What is Melbourne like, as a place for students?

TRACEY: Melbourne was voted the most liveable city in the world in 2015. It regularly gets into the top five most liveable cities list. Its middle class and student suburbs are more affordable than the equivalent in Sydney and crime rates are low. For summer there are beaches and in winter snow fields are only 90 minutes away. Students from Sydney and other parts of Australia fly into Melbourne to take subjects at the Institute in the intensive two week mode.

REGINA: What are your course offerings?

TRACEY: We offer Graduate Certificates, Graduate Diplomas, Masters degrees and the Doctorate. The areas of specialisation include: religious education, bioethics, Christian psychology, theology of culture and marriage and family related subjects which include a strong emphasis on theological anthropology and moral theology.

REGINA: Do you offer courses online?

TRACEY: The Graduate Certificate in Religious Education, which consists of four subjects, is available on-line to students anywhere in the world. It is under the direction of Dr Gerard O’Shea who is an expert in the field of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. This is an approach to religious education which addresses the formation of the heart, the intellect and the imagination. There is a strong link between liturgy and the formation of the heart and the imagination.

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REGINA: How easy is it for your graduates to obtain employment?

TRACEY: There are however many people, bishops included, who do not seem to know about the curriculum of the Institute and think that it must be about marriage counselling. There are some subjects on this topic in the psychology area, but they are electives and not part of the core curriculum.

To deal with this problem the faculty of the Melbourne Institute has recently written a book which show-cases the Institute’s curriculum and the faculty’s research interests. It is called God and Eros and will be published by Wipf and Stock in time for Christmas.

Our graduates find it easy to obtain employment in particular dioceses and archdioceses where there are bishops who know about the curriculum of the Institute and actively seek to employ the Institute’s graduates.

I am often called by recruiters asking if we have anyone about to graduate who would be interested in a position which is going in their diocese.

PICTURED: Kate Anderson, 2014, Master of Theological Studies Marriage & Family (Photo credit: Casamento Photography)

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Front Lines

“ST. JOHN PAUL II BELIEVED THAT THE WORLD IS CURRENTLY AT A CROSS ROADS. He believed that the choice was between a civilisation of love or a culture of death. At the root of the problem is a crisis over what it means to be a human being.”

PICTURED: Colin Ong, 2011, Master of Bioethics (Photo credit: Casamento Photography)

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REGINA: What is it about educating people about marriage and the family that the Church feels is so crucial to its mission today?

TRACEY: At the root of the problem is a crisis over what it means to be a human being. It is for this reason that he wanted to establish an Institute which would focus on theological anthropology and moral theology but he understood that these dimensions of theology cannot be studied in isolation, so the curriculum ends up being broader than these two sub-disciplines. In short, marriage and family is important because it is in this particular human institution that cultures are formed, either for or against Christ, either for or against truth and goodness and beauty.

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Front Lines

“Most of the opposition (and it is at times intense) comes from within the Catholic community itself, from people who are intellectually opposed to St. John Paul II’s teaching on moral theology.”

Our plan is to progressively bring more of the Graduate Certificates and Graduate Diplomas on-line.

For more detailed information about the Institute’s course offerings, people can consult the website or contact me directly at: trowland@jp2institute.org.

REGINA: What do people generally do with your degrees?

TRACEY: Our graduates fall into a number of categories. Those who complete their doctorates with us end up as professional academics teaching in Catholic universities. Those who take the religious education suite of subjects usually find places as Religious Education Co-Ordinators in Catholic Schools.

Others in the bioethical field are either Catholic nurses or doctors who want to study bioethics in order to be able to make good decisions in their chosen fields of medical practice, or they are people who find employment as Mission and Identity Managers in Catholic hospitals and aged-care facilities.

Still others work in various Church agencies such as Marriage, Family and Life offices which are funded by dioceses. About 90% of our graduates are lay people. We have had two students join female Religious Orders and one graduate has been ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Perth. One graduate is now

the Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Sydney. Another is the President of Campion Liberal Arts College in Sydney.

REGINA: The Church’s teachings fly directly in the face of a modern morality which sees sex as purely recreational, and an even more recent morphing of that idea into a political position known as the ‘Sexual Left.’ Does the Institute attract criticism from these quarters?

TRACEY: We attract a little bit of criticism but so far we have not been subjected to any kind of systematic persecution from what you call the Sexual Left. Most of the opposition (and it is at times intense) comes from within the Catholic community itself, from people who are intellectually opposed to St. John Paul II’s teaching on moral theology. The Institute defends Humanae Vitae and runs subjects on the theology and practice of natural family planning.

This attracts opposition from clergy whom I describe as ‘children of the 1960s’. We have, conversely, a lot of support from younger clergy and lay people.

PICTURED: James McDonald, 2014, Master of Theological Studies (Marriage and Family) PHOTO CREDIT: Hannah Hladik

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REGINA: For the world at large, do you think that the Church’s credibility is damaged?

TRACEY: Basically the world is in the grip of a militant secularist ideology because of internal problems within the Church and her poor presentation of her own teaching to her faithful. Until we sort out that mess we are not going to have the strength to successfully defeat the Leftist intelligentsia.

This is not a battle that can be fought with clever syllogisms and apologetics. It will require a thorough internal purification of the Church and the work of re-evangelising human hearts and minds, one by one.

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HOW CATHOLICS ARE KEEPING CHRISTMAS 2015 Coming in the November issue of REGINA Magazine FREE CLICK HERE 40

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Heaven on Earth for Catholics An Interview with Dr. John Rao Article By: Beverly Stevens

Photo Credits: Alex Sepkus

For the last 24 years, every July a group of ‘in the know’ Catholics has converged on one of the most beautiful places in Italy – the azure waters, stunning gardens and magnificent summer palaces of Lake Garda. They come for a unique program of renewal, a kind of intellectual, spiritual and physical ‘spa vacation’ for Catholics called the Roman Forum. In this photo interview, New York City-based Dr. John Rao takes us on a virtual tour.

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REGINA: Can you tell us about how the renowned Dietrich Von Hildebrand began the Roman Forum?

DR JOHN RAO: Von Hildebrand was a German philosopher, born in Italy, who represents an Augustinian and Platonic rather than a Thomistic and Aristotelian approach to Catholic truth. He was anti-Nazi and had to flee from Germany, then Austria, then Europe entirely. He taught at Fordham University in New York. The Roman Forum was formed in 1968 in order to defend Humanae vitae against people like Michael Novak and other critics of the Encyclical. It very swiftly became a force for defending the Traditional Latin Mass.

REGINA: How did you get involved?

DR JOHN RAO: I was brought to the Roman Forum lectures in New York in 1970 by a professor of mine at Drew University. I immediately was taken by the talks, became friendly with von Hildebrand and his colleague, Dr. William Marra. I took over the orga-

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nization after Dr. Marra passed it on to me in 1991. I myself started out at Georgetown University in 1969 with legal and political interests. I quickly realized that I did not have a sufficient idea of what life was all about and went back home to New Jersey to think things through. A scholarship came available immediately at Drew University, where I began to study history. My professor there, James LoGerfo, was my entry into the Roman Forum and Catholic Traditionalism. Another guide to my Catholic training was the Methodist head of the Religion Department at Drew, Dr. James Pain.

REGINA: You were at Oxford, right?

DR JOHN RAO: Dr. James Pain organized a semester abroad at Oxford in 1972, which was my introduction to what became the love of my life academically. I applied to Oxford, went there in 1973, and through St. Edmund Hall obtained my doctorate in Modern European History in 1977.

Heaven on Earth

“I know that the lectures are needed; that was enough for me to do them.

People are too focused on immediate issues without realizing what lies behind them. I have found the "market" shrinking every year as people retreat to blogs for their information about these matters.”

REGINA: Oxford played a seminal role in developing your perspective, then?

REGINA: What sort of people are interested in these amazing summer classes?

DR JOHN RAO: I go back every year. Oxford was a refuge for people fleeing from the radicalization of universities in the 1960's and '70's. The friendships I made there have lasted forever. I did my doctorate on a Jesuit journal called La Civiltà Cattolica and its influence on the development of Catholic Social Doctrine.

Upon returning to the States, I worked for one year as Eastern Director of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and then got my present job at St. John's University (1979) where I am now Associate Professor of History.

DR JOHN RAO: All sorts, including professional people like doctors and lawyers who have interests beyond their fields and don’t want to go on holiday simply to lie in the sun.

We also have a lot of young people, as well as many priests, seminarians, and professors not giving lectures who feel that they are finally in an environment where they can talk freely.

REGINA: You present a series of lectures in New York City -- can you tell us about these?

DR JOHN RAO: These are lectures on small periods of Church History and Culture, 50 or so years at a stretch. They are designed to demonstrate to people the long-lasting character of the problems that we face today

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“I WANTED TO HAVE THIS PROGRAM PRECISELY TO TAKE PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR ISOLATION TO LIVE A HOLISTIC CATHOLIC EXPERIENCE TOGETHER. I chose Gardone Riviera not only because of its beauty, but because it happened to provide a relatively inexpensive environment and an extremely friendly atmosphere in which these lectures could be offered.”

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Heaven on Earth

“THE ITALIAN CATHOLICS IN THE AREA HAVE REDISCOVERED THEIR OWN HERITAGE because of our presence. The pastor could not be more welcoming to us. We have participants from all over the area who come for a day or two at a time. “

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“THE RESPONSE FROM THE EDUCATIONAL WORLD AT LARGE HAS BEEN IN ONE SENSE IMMENSE---we have participants from colleges all over the western world. In another sense, it has been negligible because we are so counter-cultural.”

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Heaven on Earth

THE SCHOLA AT MIDDAY MASS: “I hate conferences that presume people can digest lectures like cherries.

Two talks a day reflect human abilities. One needs exercise, both spiritual and physical, as well as intellectual guidance.”

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“AT LAKE GARDA, everything is organized to fit a holistic human experience. The discussions over the talks extend for hours at dinner and afterwards. Tours of historical sites are needed to give flesh to intellectual and spiritual truths.”

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Heaven on Earth

“THE MAJOR REWARD FOR ME PERSONALLY has been the ability to spend so much time enriching my own knowledge of Catholic culture in order to extend it to the participants. But I have to say that it is always a major reward to see how much joy it brings not only to the participants but to the townspeople.

The people of Gardone really feel part of what we are doing and would be heartbroken---and not just for "tourist" reasons---if it were ever to end.”

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“TWENTY-THREE YEARS is a long time to remember. I think what is most memorable is the look of astonishment on the faces of people who for the first time encounter the beauty of Catholic civilization.”

“This is something that especially happens with people who see Venice for the first time; or a Traditional Latin Mass for the first time; or who hear the spontaneous singing of the participants. And we have had three marriages that have come from the program, too.”

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Heaven on Earth

“THIS YEAR WE HAD SIXTY PARTICIPANTS. Over the years, I think I have only had one comment that could be construed as bemusedly negative, and that was from a person who really enjoyed the program and repeatedly told me so--she said that it was the first time she realized just how much men with the same world view could bond with one another as a ‘band of brothers’.

Maybe we got a bit rowdy!”

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“People are overwhelmed by the beauty of a Catholic civilization. That was part of the idea to begin with--to demonstrate that Catholicism encourages the appreciation of beauty, and that beauty makes people aware of the ultimate design of God, thereby encouraging Faith.”

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Heaven on Earth

“One of our professors said some years ago that the modern world only reads the Inferno of Dante, because it only believes in Hell. Those who come here will read the Paradiso because they have seen its earthly equivalent and yearn for its completion in Heaven.”

REGINA: What are your next steps? How can people learn more about the Roman Forum?

DR JOHN RAO: Finding the money to run next year’s program; getting college credits for students attending; continuing our work for a summer long Summer School for high school students. People can learn more about us from our website--www.romanforum.org, from The Remnant Newspaper, and, of course, from REGINA Magazine! •

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The Roman Forum

S

ince 1968, the Roman Forum, following in the footsteps of Dietrich von Hildebrand, seeks to respond to the current tragic situation of the intellectual conflict between nature and religion through an active defense of the one force that can pull all of the aspects of nature and the supernatural together: Roman Catholicism. Now, you too can be a part of this discussion and defense of traditional Catholic teaching.

Join us for one of our New York Church History Lectures or cultural seminars. And for a full immersion in the Catholic experience, consider applying for our Twenty-Fourth Gardone Riviera Symposium, Italy, Summer, 2016. www.romanforum.org

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The Catholic Film-makers Film is the future. As anyone who works in social media can tell you, the present and future generations will learn primarily through video​ – online and on TV. But what does this mean for catechesis? As education moves into the Video Age, REGINA asked several well-regarded Catholic film-makers in Europe, the United Kingdom, North America and Australia about their experience. This candid, roundtable interview – the first in a two-part series – is the result.

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Jim Morlino (l) and Daniel Rabourdin on location in France.

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“I think that while many faithful Catholics have taken up the challenge and embraced the new mediums and formats to share and inform (such as Church Militant TV) , the Catholic hierarchy have been VERY slow off the mark and have failed to make any substantial impact.”

- LIAM FIRMAGER, AUSTRALIA

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Catholic Film-makers

REGINA: It’s pretty clear that the present and future generations will learn primarily through video​-- online, on TV. Do you think the Catholic hierarchy is aware of this?

JIM MORLINO/USA: If they are, it would seem to me they have certainly not made it a priority. Who is doing the communicating these days? EWTN, Church Militant, Word on Fire, the Knights of Columbus, independent film makers - I do not know of a single major film initiative backed by the USCCB, or the Vatican - I could be wrong.

STEFANO MAZZEO/UK: I'm not sure that the hierarchy are fully aware of the opportunities presented by video, online or on TV to evangelise. In the past of course the Church used all the media aids it had available. Leading artists produced some of the greatest paintings of all time as learning aids, also great altarpieces, statues, beautiful frescos -- in fact all the visual aids needed to help evangelise and teach the faith. We had and still have some of the finest music for praise and to aid devotion, and music is also very important to film.

The Church has not used television and film very well, and secularists have taken over the media. Many secular producers, directors and scriptwriters in the West have used the media, particularly television to become socially engaged. They have been extremely successful in changing society, including the undermining of the family. They have used drama, current affairs programmes, and news, to create a multi-layer media platform to directly influence people's knowledge, values, and beliefs, often to the determent of Christianity. Therefore, they acted in an interventionist manner in the debates of today to the negation of natural law.

LOIC LUWIN/FRANCE: Indeed, video plays a significant role in our modern society.

Many dioceses and communities have understood that and resort to this media. However, we often see a lack of care in the production of those videos. In the effort of the Church to support the New Evangelization, the hierarchy should become aware of the strength of this media when used efficiently. This is not just a matter of quality but also creativity.

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“THE FRANKFURT SCHOOL KNEW THAT IN ORDER TO CHANGE SOCIETY THEY NEEDED TO UNDERMINE CHRISTIANITY and they developed what is known as Critical Theory. Critical Theory drew upon Marxism and used the media to undermine virtually all the building blocks of western society, especially Christianity and the family. The Catholic Church had the Vatican II document Inter Mirifica as a blue print on how to use the latest media; unfortunately many of the hierarchy do not appear to have read Inter Mirifica and many Catholics seem to follow something like a nebulous 'spirit of Vatican II' which sometime seems little different from Critical Theory.” STEFANO MAZZEO, UK Regina Magazine

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“They’re starting to realize this, but I think we have a long way to go. The Protestant churches are ahead of us in this. Basically I think it is a failure to recognize how powerful the arts are as a tool of evangelization. As always, we stumble along making mistakes, and the Holy Spirit works through our weak efforts.”

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Catholic Film-makers

“Here is what I think is happening. We suffer from a wall that stands between our faith and our true life. We pray with a lot of precision, almost with superstition, but then we do not live the real life of every second as Christians. We are no different than other people. But it is this capacity to “live” differently in the world that would allow us to produce art with a Catholic soul, not propaganda. It has to come from the gut.”

- DANIEL RABOURDIN, USA/FRANCE

TOM DUNN/USA: I think the Catholic hierarchy is becoming more and more aware of this all the time. I was recently part of a small group discussion with our new bishop here in San Diego, and he identified a primary challenge, not just for our diocese, but across the country, of reaching the 20-40 year old Catholic. He indicated that it is a high priority amongst many of the Bishops he has spoken to. The most effective way of reaching this demographic is through the use of video and online content. I think the main obstacle for them is knowing exactly what to do and who will do it for them.

JOHN SOARES/USA: Audio/visual media, and I mean cinema primarily, is the art form of our age. It’s the only art form that literally combines all other major art forms at some stage of its production. While I do believe the Church’s leadership is aware of this, I have no way of being sure whether or not they are capable of knowing what that means or how to use it.

DANIEL RABOURDIN/FRANCE & USA: Yes, but I think that most do not know how to respond to this change of communication. Or they respond in 2015 as the world used to respond in 1980. And we are almost all guilty of the same fault. Something keeps us from creating good art as Catholics. The Protestants understand at least how to fund smart modern evangelization which includes film art. Catholics may have to give respect to culture, the art and pay a lot more for that and have a desire to evangelize. And before I continue let me state what I think too often is being produced: we produce preachy, not natural, propaganda-like films. We do not allow ourselves to be artists who are Catholics. We are first Catholics who force themselves to be artists.

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DANIEL RABOURDIN Why does a singer with anarchist, epicurean, nihilist values touch the population to the point where everyone sings their songs? Because this singer expresses truly and well (technique is important) what comes out of his gut. The chords of his guitar express his true inner state with passion. People relate with true emotion , even if it goes in the wrong direction. Now do we have artists who are Catholics in all moments of their life (even if they struggle)?

I think that we have few because we cultivate a wall between faith and true life. Yes, we say graces before we eat, but then we “stuff our face”. Our spirituality does not shape our way to live. So there is little to say about the world from an emotional Catholic point of view. Our singing goes from the intellect to the song -- written without passing by the senses. It is therefore dry and tasteless. But the more we incarnate our faith in the way we eat an egg and in the way we look at the ocean the more we are able to sing the world it in a true way. And people are touched. I think that good Christian movie making is a matter of incarnation of the faith.

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Catholic Film-makers “There are Catholics who have risen to this challenge, but I think the Church's hierarchy needs to be much more directly involved, and likely are trying to figure out how. The great Catholic artists of our past should be the model for this. I think lay people need to take initiative of their own, but I also think the Church should ideally be officially commissioning some of these works. And they need to be works that compete with and surpass the other works of the age.”

-JOHN SOARES, USA

FRANCESCA ELIA: Italian cinema has not ever had a “religious” genre. Even though the Vatican is in Italy, there isn’t any film director who has directed a movie about Catholicism. The great movies which were shot in the Italian movie studios of Cinecittà (The Bible, Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments, The Robe, etc) were from American producers in Hollywood. They shot their movies in Italy, since Italian technical background was good and shooting a film in Italy was far cheaper. Nevertheless, in Italy there was a lack in the knowledge of the Scriptures.

In the 1950’s and 60’s, the only religious film shot in Italy was the FRANCESCA ELIA series Don Camillo, based on the books of Giovannino Guareschi and directed by the French film maker Julien Duvivier. In fact, there were no Italian filmmakers who dared to go against the Communist Party, which controlled Italian cinema. There was only one Catholic who was brave enough to face up to Communist hegemony, Don Giacomo Alberione, a priest who saw radio, cinema and television as a new evangelization method. The Pope, Pius XII, gave him his support. One Italian film director who distinguished himself by shooting merely religious movies (such as Brother Sun, Sister Moon about St.Francis) was Franco Zeffirelli.

Then, during the Seventies, film directors like Liliana Cavani or Pier Paolo Pasolini started to deal with the theme of the religion on their movies, but they broached it in a critical way, comparing it to social issues.

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Catholic Film-makers “The irony of it all is that study after study shows that family oriented G and PG rated films make more money (on average) than PG-13 and R rated films, and yet Hollywood continues to churn out increasingly vulgar fare - so it's not just a question of money. I think there are many in Hollywood who simply have an agenda and an axe to grind.”

- JIM MORLINO, USA

REGINA: Can you point to any innovative film work being done under diocesan sponsorship or in the religious Orders?

LIAM FIRMAGER: No, unfortunately, I cannot.

LOIC LUWIN: There are probably better examples but I recently visited the web site of the Abbey of Solesmes and I saw a video showing the abbey filmed by drones. This technology is not new but it has been really improved and is now becoming a major tool. The result is really appealing -- it allows us to discover this abbey from a new perspective and reveals all the beauty of the architecture. This video made me want to visit the abbey. This is only a small example of what can be achieved.

JIM MORLINO: Christopher Baker is doing some wonderful things for the Archdiocese of Washington, and I’m sure there must be other examples on the diocesan level, but these have yet to break out on a national, let alone international level that I am aware of.

JOHN SOARES: Most of what I’ve seen has been work done on personal initiative, which I think is great. Some of my favorite work has been done by Father Robert Barron (now Bishop Elect Barron.) I’ve always appreciated the work of Grassroots Films and Spirit Juice Studios. I’ve seen very little narrative work that’s been done under any kind of diocesan sponsorship, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t being done.

DANIEL RABOURDIN: The French diocese in Frejus-Toulon facilitates the production of short faith messages for the web. It is made possible by an interesting situation: the diocese lends studio space in their Seminary because it has become emptier. So the place is put to good use and the crew can build a studio. The production crews are free because they belong to a lay Catholic community from Brazil (Cancao Nova). They live in community even if married and have very low salaries.

FRANCESCA ELIA: In Italy, all commercial films are funded by the State, and this is the reason why they are strongly political. The financing from the Italian Government is homogeneous and follows socio-political standards. For example, if the main issue of the period is the presence of the Chinese, Italy’s government will consider only these movies which are about the matter of the Chinese. Vatican City has a thirty-year agreement with the film-producing company Lux Vide (which has Saudi investors as well), specialized in movies about religion. They produced a series of movies based on the Old Testament and a great number of movies about the life of the Saints, such as San Padre Pio. These movies are only on TV, without being shown in the cinemas. Moreover, Lux Vide produces Don Matteo, a comedy TV series about a village priest who at the same time is also an investigator.

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“The Diocese of Frejus-Toulon in France has been creative; they identified who could provide what to create results. And it comes with sacrifices from those people who are used to making sacrifices and who give all for the Kingdom. It also shows that we do not need the Church to give money. Everybody can be creative and participate with whatever we can offer. Even a public blessing from a Bishop has a lot of value. “ - DANIEL RABOURDIN

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Catholic Film-makers

“In my capacity as professor at John Paul Catholic University, I have had a number of inquiries over the past years from diocese, parishes and faithful apostolates across the county looking for graduates whom they can employ to help them create more media and establish a platform in the social media world. Also, one only has to look to the work of Father Baron and the success of his media projects, and also of Father Roderick Vonhogen and the success of his podcast network, to see successful examples of the potential of media within our faith and its effective use. “ TOM DUNN, USA

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“DURING THE EARLY 13TH CENTURY ST DOMINIC MET CATHARS for the first time. So shocked was he by their beliefs he formed the Order of Preachers to try and help these unfortunate heretics back to the Church. The Cathars believed that contraception, abortion, homosexual acts and euthanasia were all good, as they either prevented life or ended it. Their moral beliefs are similar to today's Culture of Death as coined by St John Paul II. Mother Angelica knew how to use the media and so do EWTN, but this is just one station in a world awash with mediated militant secularism, we need an EWTN in every country. So Catholic countries do have the own TV stations and perhaps Bishops Conferences should plough more resources into video. I would also say we need a St Dominic or Francis or Ignatius today to lead a new order dedicated to and understanding how to use the media, especially TV and video to counter the sexual revolution of the last 50 years. To bring the Gospel to a new generation of post-modern 'Cathars'.”

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Catholic Film-makers

“Some films about saints are still produced but they are mainly for TV. It is obvious that those films are becoming more and more rare in the movie theaters. The lives of saints are very inspiring and can make great stories but you cannot ignore the role that Faith played in their lives.

Their lives are testimonials of Faith. I guess this is why the mainstream industry is no longer interested in carrying those projects out.” LOIC LUWIN/PARIS

LEONARDO DEFILIPPIS: The culture has changed. For many years, when Catholics were immigrants, they were not accepted in mainstream society. As Catholic immigrants became more prosperous and successful, culminating in the election of Catholic president, John F. Kennedy, they achieved social acceptability in a FRANCESCA ELIA: Hollywood looks for poculture that was fairly compatible with Catholic litically-correct movies because it has a mass teaching. Divorce, contraception and sex outside demand; that’s why it has no more interest in shooting films entirely dedicated to Catholicism. of marriage were frowned upon by other religions as well, and generally Americans shared The greatest example is the movie Cristiada, starring Andy Garcia. Even though this film had the same values. In addition, a certain exotic an enormous success, the Vatican itself criticized romance was associated with Catholic saints and it, saying its Catholic connotation was too strong. religious characters, which made their stories in Hollywood films attractive, even to Protestant For that reason, not one Italian distribution company released it, except for Dominus, which audiences. Now, however, Catholics are isolatis private. For me, nowadays it is absolutely nec- ed in their world view from the rest of secular essary to employ the great mass media to spread society. We live, essentially, in a post-Christian era, where values are treated, in the very least, as the Truth, even because pictures are far more backward, and at worst as destructive of progreseffective than words. The majority of priests sive ideas of freedom and individuality. But, in are no longer able to explain the Gospels in an spite of this, the hunger for truth in the human effective way. And, when Italian TV broadcasts spirit endures.

Bernadette, the 1943 movie with Jennifer Jones, it attracts a huge audience.

REGINA: Stories of the saints make great cinema and have been successfully made into mainstream films in the past. What has changed in Hollywood that such stories are no longer bankable?

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JOHN SOARES: I don't believe that the stories of the Saints are no longer bankable. What I think is really going on there is that "Hollywood" is generally run by people who range from being hostile toward religion to utterly ignorant of it. This doesn't mean they don't see the possibility for making profits off of religiously themed films. I have some modest experience in this business that tells me that the studios would make anything if they thought it would make them some money. Even if it told a story that challenged their own outlook.

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Catholic Film-makers

“The strength and conviction of the saints continues to attract people, in spite of the prejudices of society.

So, actually, I think the time is ripe for really honest portrayals of saints. People no longer see saints in films as the ultimate fulfillment of the society in which they live, but rather they see them for who they really are – radical, courageous heroes who are not afraid to stand up for what they believe, and die for it. Young people, especially, are bored with sports, entertainment, and political heroes. They’re looking for something more – something that gives life true meaning and brings true and lasting happiness.

Only Jesus Christ can do that.”

- LEONARDO DEFILLIPIS

TOM DUNN: The stories are still bankable, but what is lacking is an executive willing to take a gamble on them. Filmmaking is such a high risk venture that no one in management is interested in taking a chance on something that hasn't been done successfully in decades. That is why sequels and superheroes are so prevalent – they bring with them a built- in audience.

It's not like sixty years ago when the studios were making hundreds of more films a year and film could be completely made within a few months. Today it takes close to a year and a half and north of sixty million to make the average film. There's no room for risk. It's mostly about money and hitting the numbers and doing what has worked in the past.

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“The Song of Bernadette won four Oscars, but that was way back in 1943, in a "kinder, gentler time" when faith, and Religion were not only tolerated in Hollywood, but celebrated. I don't want to whine or play the victim card here, but I can only assume it must be a simple reflection of the state of the current culture: the rise of modernism, relativism, and the consequent de-emphasis of religion in general, and Christianity in particular. European and independent film makers continue to produce hagiographic works (Restless Heart, Anthony, etc.) but when Hollywood decides to do a big budget, A-list "Religion" film, the results are often mixed (Noah, anyone?). “JIM MORLINO Regina Magazine

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“Some films about saints are still produced but they are mainly for TV. It is obvious that those films are becoming more and more rare in the movie theaters.

The lives of saints are very inspiring and can make great stories but you cannot ignore the role that Faith played in their lives. Their lives are testimonials of Faith. I guess this is why the mainstream industry is no longer interested in carrying those projects out.”

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Catholic Film-makers

“Hollywood is fundamentally driven by ticket sales. It is not their failing nor indeed a concerted effort to expunge Catholic themes from the big screen, but our disunity as Catholics and our loss of collective identity which has harmed its theatrical potential. Hollywood is still very much willing to explore biblical-themed films – but takes a wholly amoral approach to faithbased films. If they feel it has the potential to translate into $$$ ... then the next ‘Song of Bernadette’ is just around the corner.”

- LIAM FIRMAGER Regina Magazine

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STEFANO MAZZEO: ‘Critical Theory’ has taken over the mind set of Hollywood where traditional marriage is disparaged, plots are contrived to feminise men and masculinise women, and if a script doesn’t have a ‘kickass’ girl as a leading lady then sometimes it will not make it off the page. It can make men feel that as we are no longer needed or wanted to protect our wives and children. Women can do it all for themselves, so men can just stay home have a beer and watch the football on TV or be patted on the head and sent out to play, and many do just this. However, I firmly believe it is possible that by the use of the Gospel and the traditions of the Church we can turn Critical Theory on its head. Take any plot and put a faithful Catholic in there and see what happens.

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Catholic Film-makers

“We live in a very sexualised society and although many saints have had large families this is not what the world is interested it. Hollywood, and most of the modern main stream media has divorced sex from procreation, families, especially traditional families no longer interest them, and are even deemed as bad.“ - STEFANO MAZZEO (left, on location in Rome)

DANIEL RABOURDIN: Maybe because we imagine saints as uniformly sweet and tasteless.

But think of Padre Pio. He could have a temper, he did not smile much, he could dress like a bum. Yet he was obedient to his sometimes harsh hierarchy. I mean that we should be willing to create multidimensional characters. Not be afraid of showing what is imperfect so that what is perfect is believable and lovable. Then the stories would start being appealing. And we should learn from the best in the industry. Learn from Hollywood. Take classes. Respect knowledge in script writing.

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Catholic Film-makers

“What I think is really happening is that making Catholic movies is something that Hollywood is not always exactly sure how to do. It’s a subject that they don't understand and actually stepping into that genre requires them to work blindly to a certain extent and trust others based on a simple promise that they know how to tell such a story and how to bring in that audience. The result is pretty hit and miss since I think there aren't many people in that system who really get the point behind any given religious story.”

- JOHN SOARES

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“Studying online has been an excellent choice for me. It has enabled me to have flexible hours to complete the set readings and activities and the opportunity to regularly meet in a virtual learning audio sessions with other students. The lecturers ensure that students are on track and are extremely supportive.”

—Linda Perrett, Assistant Principal (Secondary) St Joseph’s School, Stanthorpe, QLD “JPII Online Courses are well-organised, well-scaffolded and well-supported, enabling all those undertaking the course to access the material at their level of understanding and build on it… Not only do the courses help you in building up your own knowledge, but each session you come away with practical ideas and numerous teaching resources ready to trial in the classroom with your students.”

—Luke Burton, Deputy Principal and Religious Education Leader, St Mary’s Primary School, Mansfield, VIC

The John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family, Melbourne, offers an online Religious Education Graduate Certificate.

This course employs a sacramental approach to learning with an emphasis on the practical. Students attend weekly online discussions and have access to a wide range of age-appropriate resources provided electronically for classroom and catechetical use.

International students welcome. www.jp2institute.org

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BIOGRAPHIES: TOM DUNN began his professional career in 1989 on the Paramount Studios lot working for Entertainment Tonight in the post-production department. Since then he has gone on to produce and direct over a thousand television commercials, documentaries, sports, entertainment and news stories and was a producer of the 2011 feature film Redline. In 2005 he started the film program at John Paul the Great Catholic University in San Diego, and currently chairs the School of Media Communications.

JOHN SOARES is an editor at Dreamworks Animation who has spent the last seven years making over an hour and forty minutes of content for his own live action adventure web series. His work is an interpretation of his personal view of a fallen world as he sees it from inside the the Sacred Tradition of the Roman Catholic Church. He wrote, directed, produced and acted in all 13 episodes of THE DANGER ELEMENT JIM MORLINO is president of Navis Pictures.

His film, The War of the Vendee won “Best Director” from the JPII International Film Festival in Miami, and “Best Film for Young Audiences” from the Mirabile Dictu International Catholic Film Festival at the Vatican. Jim and his family live in Danbury, CT. DANIEL RABOURDIN spent a stable childhood in Provence and acquired his Masters in Thomistic Philosophy at the Sorbonnes. After 18 years as a producer with Mother Angelica at EWTN he is bringing to Hollywood the story of the massive Catholic resistance to the atheistic Reign of Terror of the French Revolution.

STEFANO MAZZEO, born in Cornwall, works for EWTN as an independent film maker. His first film Wales, the Golden Thread of Faith was a coproduction with the Latin Mass Society.

For The Crusades he won the Polish Maximilian Kolbe award. His last documentary was on the Chartres Pilgrimage.

LIAM FIRMAGER is an Australian film director who has been busily directing films, documentaries, television commercials & music videos over the past decade. He and his family are members of the Parish of Blessed John Henry Newman in Melbourne, Australia.

LEONARDO DEFILLIPIS: Actor and producer, maker of both live and film productions, most notably the feature film Thérèse, which has been by millions of people across the globe.

Current touring productions include Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy, Vianney, and Maximilian: Saint of Auschwitz, and a new live drama on the first African-American priest, Father Augustus Tolton, opening this January. Watch trailers at www.stlukeproductions.com LOIC LUWIN: After graduating from the Sorbonne with a Master’s degree in filmmaking, Loïc Lawin started to work in the French film industry as an assistant location manager and a production assistant. Drawing on his experience, he founded the production company Les Films du Lutrin in 2014. The same year, he produced and directed his first documentary film.

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Report from the Eye

REGINA’s Exclusive Interview with Vatican Jou Edward Pentin on the Rigging of the Synod

By Beverly De Soto

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e of the Storm

urnalist

Papal Mass at Castel Gandolfo, August 2013

Interview By: Beverly Stevens, REGINA Editor Photo Credit:

by Edward Pentin & Harry Stevens

Auf Deutsch, en italiano, en espanol, en francaise

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t’s a prime example of why Catholics today need to be more educated. Last October, dramatic reports emerged from Rome in the global social media of blatant attempts by the managers of the Extraordinary Synod on the Family to rig its outcome.

In the eye of the storm was a veteran British journalist, Edward Pentin, who found himself in the unenviable position of having to prove that a Prince of the Roman Catholic Church, German Cardinal Walter Kasper, had made prejudiced remarks about the African Cardinals.

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Speaking to Pentin and two other journalists as he exited the synod hall, Cardinal Kasper urged that on issues such as homosexuality which are a taboo in Africa, the continent’s bishops should not tell the West too much what to do. The cardinal vehemently denied making the remarks and denounced Pentin in no uncertain terms. Pentin was then forced to post the actual audio recording of Kasper’s comments his website www.edwardpentin.co.uk, for all the world to hear.

The effect was electrifying. The political rigging swiftly collapsed, and Kasper’s full-court press evaporated, seemingly into thin air – at least until October 2015, when the next session of the Synod is scheduled.

Now, as that opening date approaches in an atmosphere of significant tension, Ignatius Press has published Pentin’s book on the Synod. ___ REGINA caught up with Edward Pentin in Rome recently for this candid interview on the fascinating inside story of the infamous Synod.

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REGINA: It was an extraordinary Synod, that’s for sure.

How did you begin your reporting?

EDWARD PENTIN: The synod rather took me unawares.

Usually such meetings are rather low-key, predictable but enjoyable events in which much is discussed that can be very edifying and educational for the faithful. So I was sort of expecting something along those lines, with some added controversy thrown in.

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REGINA: And were your expectations met?

EDWARD PENTIN: This one of course turned out very different to the six or so that I covered before, both because of the subject matter discussed and the way it was run. I began to get a sense things were going to be different about halfway through the first week when some trusted sources spoke of manipulation and that it was being engineered to obtain a certain result. These claims corroborated some news reports which had appeared a few weeks before.

REGINA: Almost a year later, how would you characterize the overall criticism that has emerged about how the Synod of the Family was run?

EDWARD PENTIN: I’d say it’s been surprisingly muted on the whole. I can see that many want to see the synod run differently so that it can be perhaps more open to other factors than in the past rather than just rubber stamping what the Church has always done — which is what synods in the past tended to do.

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The Rigging of the Synod

“I ALSO TRIED THREE TIMES TO OBTAIN COMMENTS FROM CARDINAL LORENZO BALDISSERI, the secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, to answer a list of criticisms made against him. Together with a friend, we approached him after he had presented the Instrumentum Laboris for the 2015 synod. I asked him several times if he’d like to comment, and to guarantee that no manipulation would take place at the next upcoming synod. He denied there was any manipulation last time and took out a news report containing his denial of the infamous ‘book heist’ in which, as I reveal in the book, he delayed the delivery of a book by five cardinals upholding the Church’s teaching on marriage.”

- EDWARD PENTIN

REGINA: Any surprises?

EDWARD PENTIN: But I’ve been surprised that there’s not been more criticism of attempts made to sideline those who upheld Church teaching and tradition. To many, that is the real scandal that took place during the meeting: that the synod managers weren’t sympathetic to those wishing to ensure the Church’s magisterium — including the teachings of Pope St. John Paul II — to have their views made known.

REGINA: Your book attempts to piece together the actual events of the Synod. How did that go?

EDWARD PENTIN: I tried to obtain comments from all sides, although of course the ones who really wanted to speak were those who felt victims of an injustice – i.e. those sidelined because of their orthodoxy. But I did speak to those who were fully behind the agenda being pushed, others who took the middle ground (they felt there was some manipulation but the synod was good on the whole), and those who felt it was a disaster.

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Sala Ducale, Vatican 94

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REGINA: What did Cardinal Baldissari say then?

EDWARD PENTIN: He preferred to say no more, and asked why he had to answer me. Indeed he seemed quite content not to respond, which made me think that he was fully confident of the support he was receiving from the highest levels of the Church.

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The Rigging of the Synod

REGINA: The Relatio post disceptationem, or interim report, released half-way through the Synod has become notorious. For those who may not have followed events closely, what was the problem with this report?

EDWARD PENTIN: The report contained two key controversial aspects that critics said were contrary to Church teaching: it questioned the indissolubility of marriage and spoke of the positive aspects of same-sex relationships. Both were hardly discussed during the first week and yet were placed in the report which was sent to the media before the Synod fathers had read it.

REGINA: So, the report purported to reflect the Synod discussions, but was actually fraudulent?

EDWARD PENTIN: Many saw this as a blatant attempt to get the media to report that the Church was changing its teaching on these issues even though they had hardly been discussed, let alone agreed upon. The Relatio was a working document, but some officials tried to infer to the press that it was a done deal, and that the teaching was basically up for review.

REGINA: Is it true that many synod fathers were angry that the Relatio did not represent the majority view of the synod’s participants?

EDWARD PENTIN: Many were unhappy with it, and that’s largely why they protested so vehemently when Cardinal Baldisseri tried to not have the summaries of their working groups published during the second week.

REGINA: What was the Synod fathers’ reaction when they met with Cardinal Baldiserri? Is it true that it was alleged that ‘engineering was going on’?

EDWARD PENTIN: They’d had enough of the manipulation, according to sources I spoke to, and were angry when Baldisseri tried to put it to a vote. The protests began with Cardinal George Pell, the prefect of the Vatican Secretariat for the Economy, who was also backed up by many other synod fathers, some surprisingly on the Church’s “liberal” wing such as Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster.

Photo: "Kardinal Reinhard Marx" by Wolfgang Roucka - Erzbischöfliches Ordinariat München.

Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons

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REGINA: There were allegations that the Relatio did not reflect actual discussions, and instead was, in the words of George Weigel, “…a draft final synod document, highlighting issues that would be of greatest interest to an international media eagerly awaiting the Great Catholic Cave-In to the sexual revolution.” Based on your interviews, do you think this is true?

EDWARD PENTIN: I think there probably was at least an awareness of this and the effect it would have once it reached the press. Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi admitted as much to the press when he said that the reaction to the interim report “could have easily been foreseen”, and yet it was put out over the heads of the synod fathers. The Pope, Baldisseri later said, had seen and approved the text before it went out.

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The Rigging of the Synod

Above: Cardinal Robert Sarah of Guinea

REGINA: Australian Cardinal Pell, South African Cardinal Napier, Guinea Cardinal Sarah, American Cardinal Burke and Polish Archbishop Gadecki all condemned the Relatio publically. Why? Had they not seen the Relatio before it was released?

EDWARD PENTIN: Right, that was the problem. Only a few had seen it, and although the synod fathers knew it was being prepared (interim reports are usually published at a synod), they probably didn’t pay much attention to it as usually such documents are in Latin and not of much interest.

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REGINA: It seems incredible that the Synod managers would attempt to run roughshod over men such as these.

EDWARD PENTIN: I think, though I’m not certain because synod secretariat officials declined to answer my questions, that they felt the only way to overcome the resistance to their position was to ramrod it through.

There was a fear of having them fully debated because then it might get thrown out.

REGINA: Did they not anticipate any push-back?

EDWARD PENTIN: I don’t think they did anticipate the pushback they witnessed. One trusted source said the Pope was “staggered” by the resistance.

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CARDINAL KELVIN EDWARD FELIX OF CASTRIES Regina Magazine 101

Above: Cardinal Philippe Nakellentuba Ouédraogo of Ouagadougou

REGINA: So, in the aftermath of all of this, you just happened to be present when German Cardinal Kasper made his disparaging remarks about the African Cardinals. Exactly what did he say?

EDWARD PENTIN: As I explain in the book. I was keen to find out what he felt, given the deep concern many people had voiced about his proposal. He felt happy to talk and said things which me and two accompanying journalists didn’t even really ask him about, such as his perspective on the African bishops’ views on the synod. Cardinal Kasper, who was leaving the synod hall alone at around 7:30 in the evening on the Tuesday of the second week, spoke freely and openly.

REGINA: So, Kasper seemed happy to discuss his views, then?

EDWARD PENTIN: As he answered our questions, and volunteered the now infamous comment about the African bishops, saying that the universal Church “cannot solve” questions pertaining to Africa, but similarly they “should not tell us too much what we have to do”. The cardinal seemed to share freely plenty of important information, which I felt readers should know and, given his obvious enthusiasm in sharing his thoughts with us, that he probably wanted them to know it. I therefore had no qualms of conscience in publishing the remarks.

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“I posted the transcript because I felt it was fair on the cardinal to have his comments viewed in context.”

REGINA: When you went public with this, is it true that Cardinal Kasper denied what he had said, and that you posted your Iphone audio onto your website to substantiate your claim?

EDWARD PENTIN: I published the transcript on ZENIT and wrote up an article for the (National Catholic) Register, both of which I was working for at the time. I posted the transcript because I felt it was fair on the cardinal to have his comments viewed in context. Later that day, the cardinal denied giving the comments, which left me with the only alternative of publishing the audio of the exchange that I had recorded.

REGINA: What was the Cardinal’s reaction to this?

EDWARD PENTIN: Cardinal Kasper apologized for any offence he might have caused and said he had nothing against Africa and been to the continent many times. Alas, he then complained of being secretly recorded, even though my phone was visible, and the situation was one which is usually understood to be on the record. He further made matters worse when he said that “other journalists” he knew would be taking action against such “undignified machinations”. Nothing, as far as I am aware, came of this, possibly because they later realized that there was no orchestrated plot or dirty tricks at play.

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REGINA: There was virtual silence in the German media about these highly embarrassing remarks by a German Cardinal. In fact, to this day most Germans have no idea that Kasper made these statements. Why do you think this is?

EDWARD PENTIN: I think one can be pretty sure there was a concerted effort to keep it quiet because Kasper is promoting a change in the Catholic Church that the secular media wants. Publicity of what happened would only have damaged him and his proposal. I put in the book that soon after the Kasper episode, secular and Catholic journalists met in the Vatican to work out a strategy on how best to “clarify” the cardinal’s comments. I also expect that when they realized it was difficult to spin the story in a positive way, they followed a policy of not reporting on it and just left it to die out.

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Cardinal Peter Erdo of Hungary

REGINA: You describe Hungarian Cardinal Peter Erdö telling Vatican Radio that the 16 officials who drafted the Relatio struggled to synthesize the positions of 30 to 40 bishops and rushed to finish it on time. Shockingly, he admits there may have been instances when the Relatio reported “many” bishops had proposed a certain position when only “some” had. Has anyone come forward to condemn this?

EDWARD PENTIN: Not as far as I’m aware. He makes an important point in defence of the synod managers: that there was a lot of material to process and so much of the report was probably based on the written interventions submitted in the months before the synod.

REGINA: Was this a mistake?

EDWARD PENTIN: The bigger scandal was that it was sent to the press, with the controversial passages included, before the synod fathers had read it. That, to me, was where the manipulation lies.

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REGINA: Some close observers of the Vatican believe that the pope has appointed to strategic positions men who manipulated the Relatio in order to undermine the Church’s teaching on marriage and sexuality by creating the impression in the public mind that the Church was preparing to abandon it in fact while maintaining it in theory. These men, particularly Archbishop Bruno Forte and Cardinal Baldisseri were manipulators of the interim report. They have received increasingly vocal support in the months since from such as Cardinal Marx of Munich, Archbishop Koch of Berlin, and Bishop Bonny of Antwerp, who have in fact been running a ‘parallel synod’ in the run-up to this one in Rome. Do you think this is a fair characterization?

EDWARD PENTIN: Yes, or in fact the Synod on the Family itself. I refrain in the book from accusing the Pope directly in any of what went on because it was difficult to know exactly where he stood on the issues.

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“BUT THE FACT THAT CARDINAL BALDISSERI said he (Pope Francis) did see the interim report before it was sent out and, more importantly, appointed Baldisseri as secretary general and made some dubious characters such as Cardinal Godfried Danneels papal delegates to the synod, points to the fact that he was and is sympathetic to the agenda being pushed through.

Some believe he’s responsible for it all. Certainly the motu proprio of September 8 reforming the annulments process, and the fact that he’s kept Baldisseri and Forte in position, gives weight to the belief that he’s been in favour of the machinations all along.”

- Edward Pentin

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R

HOW CATHOLICS ARE KEEPING CHRISTMAS 2015 Coming in the November issue of REGINA Magazine FREE CLICK HERE

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REGINA: Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki said the Relatio “created an impression that the teaching of the Church has been merciless so far, as if the teaching of mercy were beginning only now…” Interesting that the theme of ‘Mercy’ has been chosen following the Synod. Do you see any significance in this?

EDWARD PENTIN: I think one can only speculate on this. Some feel it is simply building on the Pope’s program for the synod and extending mercy to those most in need of it; others see it more darkly, that it’s a way of taking decentralizing the issues discussed at synod and so allow each bishops conference to practice mercy in their own way, which may not be in line with traditional Church teaching and practice.

REGINA: What’s your takeaway from all of this?

EDWARD PENTIN: What’s important to point out I think is that many didn’t like the fact that scripture, tradition and doctrine were sidelined at the last synod. I put in the book a comment, given on good authority, from Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI who, when asked in private what he thought of the synod, replied: “Halten Sie sich unbedingt an die Lehre!” (“Strictly adhere to the doctrine!”). •

The Rigging of a Vatican Synod? An Investigation of Alleged Manipulation at the Extraordinary Synod on the Family, available now as an e-book from Ignatius Press.

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a

Amazing Education

Independent Catholic Academies Often, they start on a wing and a prayer, as a group of concerned Catholic parents band together to provide a better alternative for the education of the their children. Sometimes, they have support from the local diocese. Other times, they don't. Mostly, they offer a classical Catholic curriculum, as is the case with the four successful academies REGINA visits in the USA and amazingly, Italy!

Finis noster principium nostrum Starting Up the Only All-Boys Catholic School in Oklahoma Article By: Donna Sue Berry Photo Credit: Brycie Matthews Loepp

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s a boy capable of mastering himself? Discerning his God-given vocation? Leading his future family? These days, in the teeth of an ideologically-driven U.S. education culture which has arguably hobbled many young men’s academic and leadership potential, even posing such questions seems impossible.

At the St. John Bosco Institute –

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the only Catholic boys’ school in the entire state of Oklahoma today– they believe it’s possible. Their mission, as stated, is a simple but a profoundly relevant one: the education of young men changes the world if it is directed toward the “end” of the student’s own existence; that is, his eternal salvation. Hence the school’s motto reads, “Finis noster principium nostrum

(Our end is our beginning).”

St. John Bosco Institute opened its doors in August, 2014, with a mission to educate boys ages 10-17 in a deeply Catholic way.

In this interview with REGINA writer Donna Sue Berry, John Zapletal, Headmaster at the Institute, talks about his fledgling school – its hopes, its aspirations and its challenges.

Why Single Sex Education?

“We consider it our duty to educate not only because we have the ability to do so, but also because the good of our society depends upon it,” he explained. “It is indeed evident that our culture today lacks a certain direction in finding its way. Through solid educational practices reinforced with a litany of methods handed down to us by our Catholic faith, we intend to rise to the challenge of aiding humanity, albeit on a small scale, in its pursuit of cohesion and brotherly love.”

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“OUR OBVIOUS DIFFERENCE FROM CATHOLIC SCHOOLS IN OKLAHOMA LIES IN THE FACT THAT WE ARE, I BELIEVE, THE ONLY BOYS SCHOOL IN THE STATE. However, our real difference is that our school day begins with daily Mass. Our purpose? First things first. Mass is the focus of our day. In this way, our boys learn that our Faith does not stop when we exit the Church doors. It is carried to the classroom and becomes a part of how our boys relate to their studies, their peers, and their teachers. Only then can they realize the serious nature of what life truly means as projected and expounded by the Divine Command to ‘go out and make disciples of all nations.’”

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Finis noster principium nostrum

“OUR FOCUS IS TO CAPITALIZE ON THE WAYS BOYS LEARN BY INFUSING COMPETITION, WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS OR INHIBITIONS FROM THE CO-EDUCATIONAL SETTING. In so doing, we can ascertain how boys develop and incorporate the educational opportunities distinctly beneficial to boys,” he said. “Boys and girls learn at different levels and rates. Our purpose is to bring young men to understand their roles within the natural construct of order given to us by our Creator. The instruction and programs provide academic training that promote strong religious values, individual responsibility, and good citizenship.”

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“ST. JOHN BOSCO KNEW THAT A HEALTHY BOY COULD ONLY BE DEFINED AS ONE WHO POSSESSED A HEALTHY SOUL. The students’ Mass participation serves as the foundation of the day and sets the proper order for a devout Catholic life. Boys can learn how to serve Mass through a separate program offered by the parish.”

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Finis noster principium nostrum

A CLASSICAL, DEMANDING CURRICULUM: After Mass, the Institute’s academic day begins. The curriculum utilizes challenging, classic texts such as Saxon Math.

Reading skills are developed with selected classic literature, intense writing assignments, and the Voyages in Grammar program. Religion is based on the Baltimore Catechism and supplemented through guided discussions from priests.

Science and social studies programs are developed and taught with a Christian worldview.

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STREET HOCKEY IN THE SHADOW OF OKLAHOMA OIL DERRICKS: Authentically Catholic, rooted in Sacred Tradition, with a well-rounded curriculum, the St. John Bosco Institute strives to provide its students with the moral, intellectual, and physical foundations that men must have in a challenging world to become good citizens of both their Church and their country.

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Finis noster principium nostrum

ALSO, IT SHOULD BE NOTED, ST. JOHN BOSCO INSTITUTE EMPLOYS CATHOLIC TEACHERS EXCLUSIVELY. This allows the Catholic influence to permeate every aspect of their educational environment. The dedicated teachers who form the core of their faculty are joined by priests of the Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) to help students deepen their understanding and commitment to the Catholic faith and to develop a solid grasp of all academic disciplines.

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PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OCCURS DAILY. Activities can range from soccer, to football, to street hockey and generally take place in the afternoon following academics. Students learn basic skills through team sports that translate to everyday life including: teamwork, competitiveness, handling adversity, humility in success, respect for opponents, and developing/maintaining fitness.

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JOHN ZAPLETAL HAS THIS TO SAY SPECIFICALLY TO REGINA READERS, “For those who have had their interest piqued, I leave you with a final thought from our patron, St. John Bosco: ‘The Lord turns everything to the advantage of those who love Him.’ And so, together with Our Lady, Help of Christians, we ask Our Lord to bless the Institute for many years to come.”

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Finis noster principium nostrum

NO GOVERNMENT FUNDING St. John Bosco receives no government funding for its all-important mission. The Institute’s income depends exclusively on tuition payments and donations from friends and benefactors. Donations of any amount go to meet the many needs of the school.

The Institute operates with the approval of Archbishop Paul Coakley, Archbishop of Oklahoma City. Tuition is approximately $850 per semester. There are additional registration and materials fees. For specifics, please contact the Headmaster or visit their website Regina Magazine 125

Re-Imaging & Rekindling Catholic Classical Education in the City of Brotherly Love

By Philip D. Cialini / Photos by Margaret Coppa

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he first Regina Academy, Regina Coeli Academy, began as an idea in 2002.

As an undertaking, it may sound novel, but to thousands of parents it is simply a re-imaging and rekindling of a tradition of faith and academics long jettisoned from American public schools, and even nearly forgotten among Catholics.

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tions and harbors for Catholic and non-Catholic families alike in the Philadelphia area. Here, their children are cultivated in classrooms where the virtues are celebrated, the faith is practiced, and academic achievement remain inextricably united to both.

It was in September 2002 that Barbara Henkels and her late husband Paul, both veteran board members of a myriad of

“Here, their children are cultivated in classrooms where the virtues are celebrated, the faith is practiced, and academic achievement remain inextricably united to both.”

Catholic colleges and universities across the United States, felt called to found the first Regina Academy. Their idea was to educate children through a Christocentric, classical curriculum.

In this far-ranging article, Philip Cialini interviews Barbara and some of today’s administrators, parents and teachers on the remarkable success of the Regina Academies.

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REGINA: What inspired you to start Regina Academy?

BARBARA HENKELS: “Especially as parents, many of us saw the failures to teach the faith in our Catholic schools, and decided to stop wringing our hands and instead to try do something about it!”

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Rekindling & Reimaging

ONE PARENT WHO SHARES BARBARA’S IDEALS IS TONY HAYDEN, chairmen of the board of Regina Angelorum Academy, which he helped found in 2006 in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, and which all five of his children attend. Tony and his wife Mary Kate have remained deeply involved ever since, seeing that Academy grow from under 140 to 122 students.

ALL FOUR ACADEMIES (Regina Coeli Academy, Abington, PA; Regina Angelorum Academy, Ardmore, PA; Regina Luminis Academy, Downingtown, PA and The Regina Academy at St. John the Baptist, Ottsville, PA) have grades pre-k to 8; each of a similar size. In 2010, Regina Luminis in Dowingtown, Pennsylvanua, opened a four year high school, thus extending the Regina curriculum to a secondary school.

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REGINA: As a parent, what do you hope your children will take from a school like RAA? TONY HAYDEN: “First and foremost, I think a lot about a quote I heard recently that, ‘It’s harder to be kind than clever.’

So first off I want my kids to be kind. One of Pope Benedict’s biggest enemies said in an interview about him that, ‘he was unfailingly kind.’ The easier part in life is to be clever.”

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“AT RAA THE WRITINGS AND PRECEPTS OF ST. JOHN BOSCO, THE 19TH CENTURY ITALIAN SAINT AND FOUNDER OF THE SALESIAN SYSTEM— a preventative system founded on love rather than punishment—are revered. Teachers are encouraged to become familiar with his philosophy of education, while students are daily reminded of his words, “to be kind and cheerful.” Though St. John Bosco and many other saints are esteemed, it is Our Lady who is patron, and it is very much through her intercession that the Regina Academies seek to accomplish their mission.”

- TONY HAYDEN

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Rekindling & Reimaging

“THE ETHOS OF THE REGINA ACADEMIES, through the intercession of Our Lady and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, is to assist parents in the formation and education of their children.”

Our founding principle is to provide a dynamic Christ-centered academic milieu centered on the rock of peter; a milieu of love –academic excellence and catechesis–Christian witness, character, environment and atmosphere.

The mentoring adults who supply that witness and teaching are the parents, faculties, administration, boards, and donors who generously live and foster the well-being and amazing vitality of the Regina schools.”

- BARBARA HENKELS

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REGINA: Why is it important for Catholic students to engage with classical based learning?

BARBARA HENKELS: “Classical learning is time tested in educating the children in the true, the good and the beautiful. Our culture needs strong Catholic Christians who are broadly educated, can think critically, and are at home publicly presenting truths utilizing the dynamics of right reasoning. Such strong and faith filled young men and women are essential to guide and lead the next generation. Classical learning provides a foundation that is irrefutable on which those qualities can flourish in our youngsters and will ultimately prepare them to be of holy and substantial influence in the culture.”

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Susan Brown and her husband Brian, president and co-founder of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), were new to the Philadelphia area in 2011, and were anxious to find a Catholic school for five of their eight children which shared their values. They discovered RAA through other families in their parish who, like the Browns, had previously homeschooled their children.

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“BEFORE OUR CHILDREN ENROLLED AT RAA, THEY HAD ONLY EVER BEEN HOMESCHOOLED. As my husband and I began to consider sending them to school, we of course had certain reservations. We worried that they would not receive enough academic attention and that perhaps the curriculum would not be truly classical. We worried that even though we knew many of the families, our children might be exposed to ideas and language we had tried to shelter them from. We wondered if they were ready to be away from our guidance each day. I can happily say that the transition from home schooling to RAA has been seamless.”

- Susan Brown Regina Magazine 137

“I HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY IMPRESSED WITH THE CURRICULUM AND THE TEACHERS at RAA. I am floored by the amount of poetry they have memorized. One of my daughters has developed a deep love of poetry and loves to write her own poems. I know this is thanks to the RAA curriculum. I have been able to witness the dedication of so many of the faculty members not only in the classroom but at church and other Catholic cultural events.”

- SUSAN BROWN

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Rekindling & Reimaging

“IT IS CLEAR TO ME THAT MY KIDS ARE BEING GUIDED

BY PRACTICING, FAITHFUL CATHOLIC ADULTS and this is key. RAA has been an answer to our prayers. This community is truly unique and we have been thrilled with the progress our children have made both academically and spiritually.”

- SUSAN BROWN

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Rekindling & Reimaging

The curriculum committee, which was founded in 2007, ensures that teachers remain dedicated to the Academies’ classical ethos.

Diane Toler is director of Regina Luminis Academy and serves as co-chair of the committee.

“It is clear to me that my kids are being guided by practicing, faithful Catholic adults and this is key. RAA has been an answer to our prayers. This community is truly unique and we have been thrilled with the progress our children have made both academically and spiritually.” Susan Brown REGINA: Many parents in the Catholic world desire their children to be educated classically in the liberal arts; the Regina Academies were born from that very concern. Yet how does Regina seek to be more than simply another Catholic school in the Philadelphia diocese?

Diane Toler: “What distinguishes us is our classical model. Employed is the idea of the ancient Trivium as applied to a 21st century school and outlined by Dorothy Sayers in her famous essay, ‘The Lost Tools of Learning’. In a classical school, pedagogy reflects this trivium of grammar, logic and rhetoric by applying it to the natural developmental stages of the children: roughly the grammar stage in elementary school, the logic stage in middle school, and the rhetoric stage in high school.”

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“A CLASSICAL SCHOOL BRINGS FOCUS ON OUR INTELLECTUAL AND CULTURAL ROOTS IN ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME, brought to maturity in the light of our Savior and manifested brilliantly in Christendom especially during the Middle Ages. We keep alive the glories of Western Civilization’s culture and intellectual tradition. We retain our patrimony of literature, music, art, theology and philosophy.”

“BRINGING TO EDUCATION TRUTH, GOODNESS AND BEAUTY IS AN IMPORTANT GOAL. Students learn about the Iliad and the Odyssey in elementary school and read the real Homer in high school. They learn Gregorian chant and study great works of art. Mathematics is taught the ‘old fashioned’ way, which includes a good deal of memorization. The Baltimore Catechism is memorized and the truths of the faith are evident throughout the curriculum.

Cursive is still taught.” - Diane Toler

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Rekindling & Reimaging

“The formation of students in virtue is a very important aspect with regular attendance at Holy Mass as a school and other Catholic religious practices.” - Diane Toler REGINA: What academic freedom do the Academies afford for administrators and teachers, in contrast to schools in the public sector?

Diane Toler: “Our teachers are free to teach the truth.

God is not left out but given His due as creator of the universe and savior of mankind. This does not mean that academics take a back seat. Rather, the curriculum is enriched with the Catholic perspective, giving a true telling of history, a sense of awe and wonder in science, a purpose to the study of mathematics. At Regina Luminis, we say that we are raising ‘Smart Saints’.

REGINA: What is your vision for the Regina Academies community in the years to come?

Barbara Henkels: “Our vision is to continue to educate, foster and nourish the children in these educational and joyful oases of Christian love and learning that describe the Regina Academies. We are very grateful for the participation of so many generous individuals that give ‘wealth, work and wisdom’ to make our effort possible. We shall continue to expand, if and when the Holy Spirit and Our Lady open the way.”

With the establishment of The Regina Academy at St. John the Baptist in June of 2014, the Regina Academies were incorporated with Timothy Murnane as Chairman of the Regina Academies.

For more information about the Regina academies, click HERE. Regina Magazine 145

A Sort of Magic in the Air

By Beverly Stevens Photo Credits: Marco Sermarini, Federica Graci, Giorgio Pellei, Luca Rossi for Luci Diffuse Agency

Something remarkable is happening in the town of San Benedetto del Tronto. Located in the Le Marche region in Italy some 70 km south of Loreto, the Marian shrine, the town is the site of a new idea for Italy: an independent Catholic academy. Marco Sermarini is the headmaster of Scuola Chesterton, and he offered REGINA this exclusive look inside what may just be the most exciting development in Catholic education in Italy’s 21st century.

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MARCO SERMARINI: I think the deepest reason we started Scuola Chesterton was the complete lack of significant freedom in education in Italy, and the commitment to educate our children following our ideals. Here the school system is strongly based on governmental school, even if there is room for private schools. There’s an insignificant subsidy from the Government to those who establish a school, but it’s subjected to controls of many kinds.

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A Sort of Magic in the Air

”So we decided to be completely free: we discovered (I’m a lawyer) that the Constitution of Italy does allow a free choice with regard to education: it’s a little known provision and very few people take advantage of it.”

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“The modern philosophers say that they do not like the idea of everlasting punishment in the other world. Let them rest content.

They have created everlasting punishment in this world.”

—G.K. CHESTERTON

Call toll-free 800-343-2425 or book online at www.chesterton.org.

Use coupon code REGINAFREE at checkout.

FREE BOOK WITH MEMBERSHIP

Join the American Chesterton Society today and receive a free copy of St. Thomas Aquinas. Membership entitles you to 20% off books and merchandise and 8 issues of GILBERT magazine.

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REGINA: Why is that?

MARCO SERMARINI: There’s a mood against any private initiative in education in Italy, so you can’t think that you have the right to educate your children without a governmental school. This is for ideological reasons -- there’s a general idea of the centrality of the State -- but also from a sort of habit. The traditional Catholic teaching about education is overwhelmed by the idea that you must not countervail anyone. Showing your own Catholic identity is wrong. So you can understand that teaching the Faith is a strange idea.

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REGINA: Amazing, in ‘Catholic’ Italy!

MARCO SERMARINI: But not for us, because we have so many examples and testimony, the Saints, saying exactly the opposite. Anyway, Canon Law says: “Parents… are bound by the obligation and possess the right of educating their offspring. Catholic parents also have the duty and right of choosing those means and institutions through which they can provide more suitably for the Catholic education of their children, according to local circumstances” (can. 793) and “Among the means to foster education, the Christian faithful are to hold schools in esteem; schools are the principal assistance to parents in fulfilling the function of education” (can. 796). At the same time, the Italian Constitution recognizes the right of the parents to support, instruct and educate their children (article 30), and freedom to teach the arts and sciences (article 33). In other words, parents may educate their children at home, following their own ideas. This was a great discovery because we understood that we could help each other to educate our children.

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REGINA: So how does your situation compare to a ‘typical’ Italian school?

MARCO SERMARINI: The lack of good competition between schools creates the situation where Italian schools are ‘undemanding’. The headmaster of an Italian governmental school has no right to choose his own faculty. He must only select enroll teachers from a pre-approved list. It’s just like a captain with no right to choose his crew, his route, his harbor. Would you bring your children to such a school?

REGINA: Emphatically, no.

MARCO SERMARINI: Since we are a confraternity of catholic families, we needed to spend our major energies in education, because we believe in education as an integral matter: it’s not possible to educate your children in the Faith only inside your family. If the child’s school speaks another language, there’s room only for cynicism and skepticism. We chose to follow the traditional teaching of the Church through the words of a great Catholic journalist, G. K. Chesterton, who said wonderful things on education and family.

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REGINA: When did you start, and how?

MARCO SERMARINI: We started in 2008, and three or four years later we discovered the existence of another twin school, the Chesterton Academy, a school based in Edina (Minneapolis, MN) that started the same year from the same Chesterton quotations and ideas. We felt at home. Now we are close friends and we are developing an exchange program for our pupils, spending time in Italy and America for volunteering and studying. It’s strange, but if we want to speak about such things we have to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Here in Italy it’s not so simple to be understood.

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A Sort of Magic in the Air

REGINA: So this is a very unusual venture in Italy.

MARCO SERMARINI: Yes, strange business! When we started, such experiences were almost unknown in our country. We knew only one school following this path, a Catholic school in Sant’Ilario d’Enza, and we are still friends.

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REGINA: And today?

MARCO SERMARINI: Now there’s a sort of little movement, particularly because of the growing problem of gender theory. There are lobbies pushing for the approval of laws to introduce gender theory inside all educational programs, so many people are waking up and trying to establish such free schools.

We receive many calls every week from people asking for help.

REGINA: Tell us about your educational philosophy.

MARCO SERMARINI: As I said, our ideals are the traditional Catholic Church ideals, the same as G. K. Chesterton. We discovered that our civilization was improved and supported by the Liberal Arts, so we are proposing to our pupils a classical approach to learning. In Italy we have a rigid school organization so we chose to establish a Liceo that would give us the chance to teach our children a wide approach to culture, such as in the Liberal Arts. We believe that freedom comes also from the hard work on our own will and soul. We have the grace to live in Italy and to be able to show our pupils many beautiful things in art, literature, philosophy and also through the beauty of our landscape.

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A Sort of Magic in the Air

REGINA: What have been your major challenges? Rewards?

MARCO SERMARINI: The major challenge is to persuade our people that such a way of schooling is the right way in this difficult moment in time.

The best reward is seeing our pupils becoming good men and women, good Catholics, discovering the one real hope, Our Lord Jesus Christ.

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REGINA: After seven years, how many families are involved?

MARCO SERMARINI: Now we have about seventy pupils enrolled, and every family is involved in our work because we ask families to sign a pact of collaboration: families who ask us to educate their children have to share the same ideals. The faculty is partly composed of parents acting as teachers. Many families send their children to us because they know we love them as if they were our own children, and because they know we teach them the good old Catholic faith.

Often people come to us because of bad experiences in governmental schools, looking for a safe harbor for their children.

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REGINA: Fabulous photos of your ‘Chesterton Gala’ - a fundraiser?

MARCO SERMARINI: We had the idea of celebrating a Chesterton Gala following our American twins. We were fascinated to see them singing, dancing all together, spending a beautiful elegant night. We have to fund all year long in many ways -- lotteries, raising money in many ways -- and the Gala looked like a good and challenging idea. So we decided to do the same.

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REGINA: How did it go?

MARCO SERMARINI: The result was great because all of the faculty and the pupils got deeply involved and we had 450 people attending the Gala. It was a magical night: young and old people spending time together. The eldest was my 89 year old father; the youngest was a newborn, less than two months old!

REGINA: You do realize, that as an Italian-American, this makes me so proud I could cry, right?

MARCO SERMARINI: We were eating, dancing, singing. Pupils were involved in dancing and singing performances, and we had a great gift: the presence of our dear friends from America, pupils and families of the Chesterton Academy. We were really moved by this great event. There was a sort of magic in the air.

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A Sort of Magic in the Air

We were really moved by this great event.

There was a sort of magic in the air.

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REGINA: That ‘magic’, my friend, is called the ‘Holy Spirit’.

How can people learn more about Scuola Chesterton?

MARCO SERMARINI: Yes, I do agree with you, and we can see it clearly. Learning more? Go please to our website www.scuolachesterton.org, follow us and do read all of G. K. Chesterton -- he’s one of our deepest inspirations! Let’s be in touch and we’ll be friends, and it will be forever.

This was a gift that Chesterton made to his own friends: being friends forever.

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A Visit To Thomas More

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he rooster crowed, its exultant cry piercing through the stillness of the Prayer of Consecration. It was the first school Mass of the new academic year, and all around me students were kneeling, their young faces registering a mixture of perplexity and curiosity.

"It was a moment filled with theological richness," reflected Headmaster Deacon Brad Watkins later as we strode through the halls of St. Thomas More Academy in Raleigh, North Carolina.

It is also part of the daily life at the academy. Gardening, raising chickens, and cooking classes teach students stewardship and care for the gift of creation. Issues in modern agricultural techniques and the ethics of world food production are discussed within the framework of the curriculum. STMA is the only classical school with a Future Farmers of America chapter with a membership of 60 students.

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The Three Stages of Learning Grammar

The learning of facts which are the building blocks to progress

Logic

Where abstract thought and critical analysis is developed

Rhetoric

Where the application of the first two stages is employed in the art of persuasive speaking and writing

When I arrived, sprucing-up was underway. We passed newly-installed wooden wainscoting, and rounding a corner, we found berry red walls.

And round another, orange sherbet. And still another, kale green. Workers were in the new chapel were working diligently to complete installation of wiring and furnishings.

In 2002, a group of Catholic laymen inspired with a desire to instill an authentic Catholic identity in their children founded the academy with the help of benefactor, Robert Luddy, a Raleigh businessman.* Employing the "Three C's" (‘Catholic, Classical, and College preparatory’) St. Thomas More Academy since its inception has become recognized not only for its excellent pedagogy, but also for inspiring students to deepen their faith.

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A Visit To St Thomas More

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t. Thomas More Academy serves students from North Carolina’s Piedmont, many of whom commute from outlying towns and cities. In the last four years, the school has seen significant growth and now boasts a student population of 200. The academy’s statistics are impressive: 100% college placement and in 2015 scholarships awarded totaling US$8.1 million.

Joyful and Faithful The environment is palpably different from what one normally encounters in schools; there is a joyful energy so evident on the faces of students. Headmaster Deacon Brad Watkins attributes that sense of joy to the deliberate cultivation of a culture of charity--loving God leads to loving one’s neighbor. When asked what they enjoyed most, students unhesitatingly point to the freedom that they have to practice their faith freely. School Masses, weekly Confession, First Friday Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Morning Prayer, and Angelus Prayer make up the spiritual formation of students in a seamless way.

Katherine Kennedy, Class of 2015, now a freshman at Franciscan University, says STMA enabled her to integrate the Catholic faith in all aspects of learning. “I was encouraged to understand the Catholic Faith and participate in the holy sacraments.” Miss Kennedy is the latest recipient of the academy’s Caritas Award given to the student who most exemplifies the Catholic Faith.

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A child of the Sixties, she hiked the Way of St James alone.

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Of the 29 seminarians for the Diocese of Raleigh, four are graduates of St. Thomas More Academy. Austin Faur, in priestly formation at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, said, "Our teachers really believed what they taught, were excited about their faith, and lived out what they taught in class." John Guzman, second year college at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia credits the faith-filled environment that helped him pursue discernment to the priesthood.

"The reverence that people expressed when referring to the Catholic Faith allowed me to realize that God's love and friendship is much more important than the material things this world provides.”

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A Visit To St Thomas More

Inoculation against a Toxic Culture St Thomas More’s intellectually challenging curriculum was created by Dr. Wesley Kirkpatrick, Dean of Students, who explains that “by their senior year, students will have encountered over 100 books of the Western canon.”

This curriculum was developed from deep roots in the classical and medieval traditions.

The Socratic Method with its form of inquiry and discussion takes “pride of place in the curriculum,” according to Dr. Kirkpatrick. It is a method that nurtures critical thinking. The challenges of the modern world steeped as it is in value relativism and scientific naturalism,

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Dr. Kirkpatrick says, are the most pressing intellectual challenges that face students today.

St Thomas More Academy is a place where students are inoculated from the toxic culture by being grounded in the Truth. The teaching staff has a committed sense of evangelization of the young, Deacon Watkins explained.

Overcoming the infection of the spirit of the age becomes very real in teaching students how to think beyond the 140-character social media milieu.

Dr. Jake Noland, Supervising Instructor, notes that in Logic students learn the skill of precision of thought. Recognizing where modern culture has infected their thinking, says Dr. Noland, is part and parcel of his teaching

duties. He also coaches the Debate Team, and in training the debaters, uses the model of St. Thomas Aquinas’ thesis and anti-thesis. Rather than relying on cleverness in argumentation, Dr. Noland considers this way of disputation a deeper way of reasoned argument.

Upper level classes in Moral Theology, Bioethics, and Catholic Traditions in Economics train STMA students to confront the modern culture. In a time where great pressure is placed on the Catholic Church to yield to modernism, these students learn what is the perennial teaching of the Church. In their senior year, students are required to compose a 4,000-word thesis drawing upon advanced topics in humanities and science. For this year’s seniors, the topics are “Scientific Revo-

lution” and “1945”-- post-war Germany and Japan.

Such rigorous training, says Seminarian De Guzman, prepared him well for seminary studies. He is much more at ease in tackling his courses because of the education he received at STMA. Upper classmen comment that their course of study gave them greater facility in taking SAT tests, especially in the language sections where the grounding in Latin prepared them well.

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Raising Chickens and Caritas A unique aspect of training for the whole person are classes in Agriculture taught by Mrs. Katherine Kirkpatrick. Gardening, raising chickens, and cooking classes teach students stewardship and care for the gift of creation.

Issues in modern agricultural techniques and the ethics of world food production are discussed within the framework of the curriculum. STMA is the only classical school with a Future Farmers of America chapter; they have 60 students who are members. The program grew from Deacon Watkins' vision for an unused portion of the school property.

Just outside the classroom windows where students are engaged in translating classical texts, chickens frolic in their coops amid raised garden beds being prepared for new plantings.

The school has donated hundreds of pounds of produce and eggs to Catholic Parish Outreach and Inter Faith Food Shuttle in Raleigh.

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Each year, students engage in apostolic work outside the academic setting. The training in charity toward one's neighbors is extended to the greater community. From assisting at a local preschool to serving at homeless shelters, and helping the elderly to assisting in construction for Habitat for Humanity, students engage in corporal works of mercy.

The Faith of the Teachers At STMA, the staff takes very seriously their own practice of the Catholic Faith.

Literature teacher Christina Geradts completed a month's hike on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela last summer. When asked how she would incorporate this experience into her teaching, she responded, "Life is a pilgrimage toward God." In literature, she says, one encounters characters that teach the virtues through their positive choices made by protagonists or how to not to act from anti-heroes

A Visit To St Thomas More

and antagonists. In her fourth year now, Miss Geradts appreciates the latitude she has to weave Catholic thought into her classes.

In terms of day-to-day challenges in running the school, Deacon Watkins explains that to keep tuition affordable, the staff is small, and each is asked to do many tasks. And with the fierce culture wars waging in the world, he asked for prayer support so that the enemy may not frustrate the mission of the school in forming the minds and hearts of young people in the Wisdom, Charity, and Truth.

Ad majorem Dei gloriam (‘ To the greater glory of God’) are the words by which each student passes each school day. These words bespeak the orientation and mission of the academy: to form the minds and hearts of young people toward God. For more about the Academy, click here. *Though it is an independent Catholic academy, STMA operates with recognition from the Diocese of Raleigh.

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Visit another time and place.

Click this short video​.

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The New Catholic Colleges They started in the USA in the late 1960s, and now there are almost 40 faithful Catholic colleges there. In recent years, they have been joined by start-ups in England, Ireland and Australia. Some specialize in particular industries. Others focus on a Great Books curriculum. Still others offer classical liberal arts. Every story is fascinating, as you will see in the five colleges REGINA visits in England, Australia and the USA.

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Restoring a Radical T

The Guilds and Liberal Lea

By William Edmund Fahey, Ph.D., President, Thomas More College, New Hampshir Photo Credits: Allison Welton, Gwyneth Thompson-Briggs & Staff & Students of Thom More College

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Tradition:

arning

re mas

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he noble mission of Catholic education was eloquently summarized by then-Pope Benedict in his remarks to University and College Presidents given in 2008: “First and foremost every Catholic educational institution is a place to encounter the living God who in Jesus Christ reveals his transforming love and truth.”

Few then recognized the charity and skill which Benedict was using to turn aside from the highly specialized and fragmented thrust of education common to universities for the last two centuries.

The intellectual life and the moral life are both assumed and integrated in his statement. A twofold desire for both contemplative leisure and concrete action is at the center of his remarks: the quest for truth and the need for life-giving work support one another in this vision of education, a vision born of the encounter with Christ.

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The vision is radical in its traditionalism.

Traditional liberal learning in our age is stunted by serious cultural deficiencies. Students and teachers lack a clear understanding of what the word “art” in the liberal arts even means and, increasingly, they have no relationship with nature or human traditions. Putting aside the folly of calling so many of the subjects found in the modern academy “liberal arts,” how many—students or teachers—in the modern university give any thought to why the subjects they study are called arts? What should they do with that art?

An art is a making. Do the typical students of psychology, criminal justice, social work—or even disciplines like literature or history—think they are learning how to make something during their education? No, but how can they be blamed?

Restoring a Radical Tradition

THE EXCEPTION TO THIS MAY BE THE “SO-CALLED” HARD SCIENCES. I would suggest that some of the tension between the sciences and the liberal arts and much of the skepticism about the liberal arts arises from the frustration experienced by those who still do submit to some form of educational mastery when they glance across the Quad at the antics of those who do not. An architect must master foundational principles of mathematics, drawing, and physics or people will die. When literature majors are not called to master the grammar of a sentence, but only to emote, it is hard to respect them or literature itself.

ingly lack the direct experience of nature and the natural world. Visit most campuses throughout North America and Europe and you see students focused on the flickering delights of tablets and iPhones. Courses are increasingly linked by a luminous chain to the abstract never-never land of the internet, where the online treasures of Gutenburg are but a finger flick away from the enticements of Amazon. Few have learned the craft of using the internet to draw readers to beauty, to turn their gaze back toward reality.

Hiking, fishing, hunting, camping, bird-watchAre there masters in this modern academy? Is there any chance of mastery? When subjects are ing, wildlife painting—such things are still found, but have long ceased to be part of the pursued indiscriminately through a curriculum common culture. Apart from perhaps impeding with the unity and design—at best—of an Araone’s free movement from café to café, or servbian bazaar, students and teachers experience only the mastery of the passions over the intellect ing as the sun-kissed backdrop to a “vacation,” nature plays little role in the mind of the typical and the malformation of the soul through the indulging of curiosity and the creation of bad university student or professor. habits. Similarly, students and teachers increasThere is little healthy vision, design, or purpose in the modern Academy. Not so long ago, the Academy was redesigned not to teach art as a making and certainly not to suggest that there were traditional arts which educated men and women mastered to help create a good life. No one can master subjects like the seven liberal arts, the proponent of the new Academy asserted, because mastery runs against the egalitarianism that is central to our modern institutions.

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PARALLEL TO THIS NATURE DEFICIENCY, we find the utter inexperience of tradition as life-giving or even interesting. Since the Protestant revolution, tradition has been a problem to overcome and since the French revolution, an enemy to destroy. There are many departments and directors of Innovation in the Academy. Yet one is hard pressed to find positive language about, let alone institutional consideration of, Tradition. Students do not consider how much care, practice, and observance are needed to sustain and hand down knowledge and craft. We have been slowly and almost imperceptibly dispossessed of tradition in our family life, our parishes, and in our schools and universities.

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ith a desire to address weaknesses common to young people in our culture, in 2009 the teachers and administrators at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts reconsidered the nature of the academic curriculum and the student life. To an outside observer, most of the developments would likely appear modest. One, however, was not. It was bold.

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clear statement about the crisis in modern education and one way to find encouragement and strength in the Catholic educational tradition.

Once again, Pope Benedict provided inspiration and direction. In a 2008 address at the Collège des Bernardins, Pope Benedict had made a remarkable statement regarding the radical distinction between the Christian approach to education and culture and that of Greco-Roman

Restoring a Radical Tradition

pagans. “In the Greek world,” spoke Benedict, “manual labour was considered something for slaves.”

the one, real and only God, is also the Creator.

God is working; he continues working in and on human history. In Christ, he enters personally into the laborious work of history. “My Father Only the wise man, the one who is truly free, is working still, and I am working.” God himself devotes himself to the things of the spirit; he is the Creator of the world, and creation is not views manual labour as somehow beneath him, yet finished. God works, ergázetai! Thus human and leaves it to people who are not suited to this work was now seen as a special form of human higher existence in the world of the spirit. The resemblance to God, as a way in which man can Jewish tradition was quite different: all the great and may share in God’s activity as creator of the rabbis practised at the same time some form of world. Monasticism involves not only a culture handcraft. Paul, who as a Rabbi and then as a of the word, but also a culture of work, without preacher of the Gospel to the Gentile world was which the emergence of Europe, its ethos and also a tent-maker and earned his living with the its influence on the world would be unthinkwork of his own hands, is no exception here, but able. Under such encouragement, we began to stands within the common tradition of the rabreconsider aspect of medieval civilization and exbinate. Monasticism took up this tradition; man- amples of how in a single community intellectual ual work is a constitutive element of Christian and spiritual exploration was brought together monasticism. In his Regula, Saint Benedict does with work and craftsmanship. The monasteries not speak specifically about schools, although provided a solid example, but an American liberin practice, he presupposes teaching and learnal arts college is only partially like a monastery; it ing, as we have seen. However, in one chapter is more akin to an entire small city, and with that of his Rule, he does speak explicitly about work image, we quickly struck upon the idea of the (cf. Chap. 48). And so does Augustine, who Guild: an association within the College where dedicated a book of his own to monastic work. craft could be learned in something resembling Christians, who thus continued in the tradition the old Master-Apprentice arrangement. previously established by Judaism, must have felt further vindicated by Jesus’s saying in Saint John’s One of the concerns that vexed those of us who Gospel, in defence of his activity on the Sabbath: had been educated in Great Books colleges was “My Father is working still, and I am working” that our endeavor seemed not in accord with the (5:17). The Graeco-Roman world did not have a intellectual tradition. After all, the architects of creator God; according to its vision, the highest the twentieth-century creation of Great Books divinity could not, as it were, dirty his hands in schools seemed consistently to speak against any the business of creating matter. The “making” blending of liberal studies with either the fine of the world was the work of the Demiurge, a arts (e.g., painting) or the mechanical arts (e.g., lower deity. The Christian God is different: he, wood-working).

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IN A FLASH, WE HAD A VISION OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION: an education which would neither turn away from work and activity or leisure and contemplation, but would keep them unified—as Christ Himself had. As his early disciples had. As the Benedictine architects of Catholic education had. This unity of craftsmanship and learning was possible only because of God’s revelation to the Jews and Christians: God himself was a craftsman. God himself was constantly contemplating His creation. And most intriguing: God called man to imitate him and participate in both contemplating and making.

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MORTIMER ADLER, 1902 –2001

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he iconic figure Mortimer Adler and his followers were regularly saying things like “Liberal education is education for leisure; it is general in characteristic; it is for an intrinsic and not an extrinsic end; and as compared with vocational training, which is the education of slaves and workers, liberal education is the education of free men.” Adler and other proponents of the Great Books regularly conjured up Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Blessed John Henry Newman as authorities on the matter. A result of the wall of separation that Adler built between activities such as learning Latin or reading Shakespeare, on the one hand, and naturalistic drawing or carpentry, on the other, was that it led most proponents to the conclusion that liberal education could not be one in which men and women were formed in and for virtue. To intend that a program in liberal studies could form him for any extrinsic end, even as a moral being, was folly and dangerous: for in this line of argument the exclusive freedom of the liberal arts by definition meant that any effort at producing a man 190 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

or woman of moral excellence would involve the subordination and corruption of the liberal arts.

How could an art justified in itself and free from other purposes and ends remain free if things like character, virtue, or self-mastery were involved?

While much of what Adler and others said was of the truth, the experience that each teacher at Thomas More had of students at many different colleges suggested that somewhere there was a weakness. Even the best of students from academically rigorous colleges were rarely familiar with nature, though they could go blue in the face arguing about violations of natural law.

They read many of the greatest minds of western civilization, but had not given serious thought to what that meant for their own spiritual life, the communities they would live in, or their vocations. The reality of the material world and culture seems to be absent in their intellectual life and—again—the idea of art as a making was almost universally absent.

Restoring a Radical Tradition

“Even the best of students from academically rigorous colleges were rarely familiar with nature, though they could go blue in the face arguing about violations of natural law.”

The terribly surprising thing was that the more one returned to looking at the great authors of the “liberal arts” or “liberal education” the more it became obvious that twentieth-century writers like Adler were missing things or being overly selective. They were fond of quoting John Henry Newman’s Idea of a University—or at least Discourse Five, which emphasized knowledge as its own end—but never cited his The Rise and Progress of Universities, which introduced a more wholistic and moral vision of undergraduate education, wherein learning and the training for virtuous life were tied together, and the expression and divisions of liberal and servile are not part of his descriptive language. Other works, such as his Benedictine essays, even more forcefully challenge the idea of the exclusivity of the liberal arts as Adler would have it, and do so in a manner anticipating Benedict XVI. For Newman, the School of St. Benedict was one in which there was both the hard work on the land as well as in the cloister. It was a vision of education that he described as fundamentally “poetic”—that is,

one based on putting things together. “It was a restoration . . . and what the haughty Alaric or fierce Attila had broken to pieces, these patient meditative men had brought back together and made live again.”

The ancient and medieval authors seem to suggest a similar love of unity: bringing together in practice—not separating (except in definitional analysis) the theoretic and the practical, not with emphasis on an equal mastery, but as equally instructive for a good life. Again, our aim at Thomas More College was to find the balance in remaining an academic or intellectual community, but one truly Christian, healthy and reflective of the good life. A student’s principal occupation was and must be his disciplinary studies, but part of the program should aim to give him experience of nature, work, human craft and culture—both to enrich his imagination and to allow him to participate in an imitation of Christ the Teacher and the Son of St. Joseph.

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The Craft of the Good Life: Education and the Lost Arts of Catholic Culture

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careful reexamination of great writers of the Western tradition revealed to us the extent to which they recognized not only the compatibility of, but the need for, unifying the theoretical and practical. Cicero speaks of this blending in works like On Duties. Hugh of St. Victors draws together all the arts for consideration. And Aristotle—the writer Adler most commonly cites in his defense of the utter separation of liberal and servile—emphatically advocates that for the student and scholar, theory and practice must be joined, even while he maintains a theoretical distinction in the arts. A single passage from his On the generation and corruption of animals will suffice as an illustration: Lack of experience diminishes our power of taking a comprehensive view of admitted facts.

Hence, those who dwell in intimate association with nature and its phenomena are more able to lay down principles that could allow a serious and coherent intellectual exploration; those whose studies have made them obtuse to reality are quick to dogmatize on the basis of a few observations.

In his formal consideration of education at the end of the The Politics, Aristotle states that a purely liberal arts education free from practical experience, or an education myopically focused on avoiding useful arts and perfecting only knowledge of the liberal arts, will “degrade the mind.” In his view, a good education must find the balance between the theoretical, the useful,

and that which will form student in virtue.

Aristotle admitted to being puzzled as to how one finds the balance. Would that Aristotle had encountered Christ.

The educational program and community life at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts purposes to bring the three into balance: the traditional liberal arts, the useful arts, and an education for virtue. Our guild program plays an important part in achieving this balance by providing an encounter with Catholic tradition, an occasion for growth in the virtues (particularly humility and prudence), and an opportunity to serve and delight both those within the College and in the surrounding area, with the results of the Guild art.

Catholic guilds flourished during the Middle Ages, but by the 19th Century they had all but disappeared under pressure from revolutionary governments seeking to destroy all signs of tradition and fidelity to the Church and all political associations which could resist or operate outside of the grasp of the State. Guilds in their earliest form had developed out of man’s natural spirit of association. Guided explicitly by Church teachings, guilds encouraged a corporate enactment of charity and political prudence. They were fraternal benefit societies, religious associations, civil organizations, as well as educational alliances (for they provided a forum for both novices and masters to meet and practice their crafts).

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INSPIRED BY THESE ORIGINS, Thomas More College intends that the guilds enable students to gain practical skills and experience in areas such as woodworking, sacred art, homesteading, and music. The College’s guilds derive their spirit from those earlier voluntary communities of men and women who advanced their trades and arts while responding to the needs of their local communities.

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Restoring a Radical Tradition

EACH GUILD MEETS FOR A FEW HOURS EVERY WEEK and is taught by someone devoted to perfecting the skills of his or her trade, if not already a master. Students are required to meet a series of benchmarks throughout the year so that their performance can be measured— whether that is the perfection of a dovetail joint, the correct reading of plain notes, or the memorization and performance of a dozen folk tunes.

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FOR MANY STUDENTS, of course, the guilds are a welcome and relaxing break from their studies. This is to be expected; participation in them is meant to enjoyable. However, the guilds offer more than simple recreation. Each guild offers practical experience that is integrated with the College’s academic curriculum. One objective is to demonstrate our belief that a Catholic liberal education need not, in fact should not, divide what is contemplative from what is practical, what is beautiful from what is useful.

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Restoring a Radical Tradition

THE GUILDS ARE A FORUM IN WHICH THE VIRTUES ARE TAUGHT THROUGH HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE. A hammer blow to the thumb, falling in the mud chasing a chicken, singing an off-key pitch: these teach humility in a bodily way. The lessons learned through the guilds can be applied to any aspect of daily life, even if one does not pursue woodworking, art, music or gardening as a career. After all, virtues such as patience, exactitude, practical self-mastery, apprenticeship, and creativity—whether it results in the creation of liturgical art for a chapel or the performance of songs at a festival— profit the whole person and his community.

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THROUGH THE EXPERIENCE PROVIDED BY THE GUILDS, students come to understand what is meant by a living tradition.

The core principles of an art come alive and can be passed down. This orderly and personal participation and knowledge is at the heart of tradition. In the guilds, students learn from a master and are then in a position to assist in guiding the junior guild members.

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Restoring a Radical Tradition

A LIVING TRADITION TRANSMITS KNOWLEDGE THAT WAS LEARNED IN THE PAST TO THE NEXT GENERATION. Once the tradition is known, students use their own creativity to speak to the present generation.

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OUR HOPE, OF COURSE, IS THAT THIS DUAL PROCESS OF LEARNING AND TEACHING will not stop once students leave the College. For example, each member of the St. Gregory Music Guild will be highly capable of joining or forming a choir or teaching others, even those with no experience, how to chant the Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours.

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Restoring a Radical Tradition

THE THOMAS MORE COLLEGE GUILDS CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STUDENT, the life of the College and the common good. Each guild instills a spirit of cooperation, prayer and service. Service to the community is as simple as singing to the elderly in nursing homes, taking on construction projects in one’s parish, and baking bread for the homeless.

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THROUGH HABITUAL CONSIDERATION of the end to which the guild’s activities are directed, students will understand how work, paid or unpaid, can be directed towards the common good. The old Roman virtue of labor comes alive! Through their twin labors—both intellectual and practical—our students creatively engage the wider culture and serve as agents of its transformation.

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One of the greatest problems of our time is that many are schooled but few are educated.

—St. Thomas More

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A College in the Lived Trad of the Faith in Australia

Article By: Beverly Stevens

Photo Credits: Jenna Barlow & Michael Mendieta

Opened in 2006 as Australia’s first liberal arts tertiary college, Campion College was named after the 16th century Oxford scholar and martyr, St Edmund Campion. The Saint has long served as a patron of lay Catholic educational initiatives in Australia, beginning with the Campion Society in the 1930s.

Less than ten years later, this college in Sydney’s west is expanding under the leadership of the College’s president, Paul Morrissey. Here, Dr. Morrissey and Dr. Matthew Tan discuss Campion’s unique offering and why it is thriving in a tough higher education marke

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dition

REGINA: Starting a Catholic college in the teeth of a market where post-secondary education is widely available is a very unusual venture in Australia. What inspired you to do this?

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: There were a number of inspirations behind the idea to start a Catholic Liberal Arts College in Australia. The first was a society of Catholic lay persons in Sydney called the Campion Society, which over the years came to the conclusion that there was an urgent need for a liberal arts education in Australia, only there was none. So the College slowly evolved out of that vision over some 40 years. Although there were already Catholic universities in existence, Campion was started to offer a genuine alternative in Catholic Higher Education. Australia has two Catholic Universities that have campuses across the Country but no smaller Colleges that attempt to integrate a humanities curriculum. Campion is very much modelled on the small Catholic Liberal Arts Colleges in the U.S.A. but it does have an Australian flavor in its curriculum.

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REGINA: With university education widely available at affordable (to Americans) prices, what makes you think there is a market for what you are offering?

DR. MATTHEW TAN: There are two factors. The first is that there seems to be an increasingly systematic erosion of the humanities in Universities, as universities gradually strip funding from these departments in favour of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects.

While these disciplines are valuable in themselves, they are good at teaching student how things are done, and do not of themselves provide the moral resources to think about why they are done or if they should be done. It is the humanities that do that.

The second is that what is left of humanities programs in many Universities has been left in a very fragmented state, with subjects being very highly specialised to suit those of the individual lecturer.

We think this is creating a considerable niche for

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students who want a humanities based education that is also integrated. Campion College offers both of these. We are currently the only tertiary institution that specialises in the humanities – we teach in History, Literature, Theology, Philosophy, Latin, Greek, Science and Mathematics. Part of our teaching mission is ensuring that what we teach in our individual disciplines is integrated with other subjects within the disciplines as well as other disciplines. A testament to that is a recent report in the Australian Financial Review that ranked Campion College’s history program as the equal third most comprehensive history program (in comparison with the standard set by Oxford and Cambridge Universities) in the country, surpassing a number of very well established universities with much larger faculties.

We think what we provide that many institutions cannot is an ability to think critically and analyse across multiple areas of specialisation. This is a skill set that is now becoming recognised as a cru-

Tradition in Australia

“Campion will always be a small College and deliberately so. It is a niche market to be sure but there is, I believe a market for this type of education although it is certainly a challenge getting the message out to the wider community.”

DR MATTHEW TAN

cial missing link in a number of professions like teaching and medicine, and even some industries like information technology.

REGINA: Was better academics one reason for starting Campion?

DR. MATTHEW TAN: There certainly are fine academics within the current university framework. You might find that, looking at the history from the beginning of the project to establish the College, the primary motivator was providing the type of integrated humanities based education that was never before present in Australia. But the integrated nature of the program required a unique set of academics, ones that were able to converse across several disciplines at once. This of course means getting academics with not only diverse academic backgrounds, but also a proven ability to harmonise those backgrounds within their own teaching areas and those of others. You will find

our lecturers will have formal postgraduate or doctoral qualifications in multiple disciplines, or have extensive experience in teaching or research in more than one discipline (I have taught in law, politics, history, anthropology, theology and philosophy). Another key factor is a strong solidarity within the faculty that enables a cross-disciplinary cooperation in both teaching and research, so that ideas from one discipline can enrich another.

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: There is certainly a view that as Universities in Australia increased dramatically in size and began to focus more on vocational education there was a less academic approach to higher education. Campion College certainly takes seriously the proposal that the primary benefit of learning is learning itself.

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REGINA: We know that in Australia poor catechetics in the last 50 years have resulted in widespread ignorance about the Faith -- its teachings, history, culture, etc.

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: Yes, one could say that there was some disenchantment with Catholic education in general in previous decades. Campion was founded in this context but also, one must add, within a more broader context of the Church’s awareness of the problem in religious education and an institutional commitment to improve it.

REGINA: Dr. Tan, you have spoken about Campion’s ‘respect for the lived tradition’ of the Faith. What does that mean, in terms of students’ daily experience there?

DR. MATTHEW TAN: It is important to remember that the Church was one of the most important

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institutional contexts for the development of the liberal arts tradition, especially in the Medieval period, and there is no way Campion College will forget that heritage. A visitor will notice at once that we have a visibly Catholic identity. For starters, our campus is founded on an former Marist Father’s seminary.

Though it is not compulsory, every student studying here will notice the day is always bracketed at distinct points by a rich liturgical life, with the Liturgy of the Hours, Mass in both Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms, weekly confession and regular retreats.

But the more decisive sign of Campion’s respect for a lived Catholic tradition set by the Medieval Church is integrating our liturgical life in a robust program of academic study. The college wants to follow St. Anselm’s pairing of belief and understanding, and it does so primarily through its integrated approach to teaching, not just between the disciplines of study, but also in the religious and cultural life of the college.

Tradition in Australia

“We have graduated 130 students. Around another 50 students have completed part of the program.”

Another facet of this endeavour is that I also direct the Centre for the Study of Western Tradition, which acts as a forum for innovative research in the disciplines that make up the liberal arts, and bring them into a fruitful engagement with pertinent issues of the day, particularly in Australia. In so doing, we hope to show the liberal arts is not an “other worldly” affair, but a valuable resource in dealing with concrete issues today. One example of such research would be a day conference in November which will bring lawyers, politicians, historians and legal scholars to reflect on the relevance of the Magna Carta after 800 years.

the success of many of our alumni in contributing significantly in society and the Church.

REGINA: Can you describe what your major challenges have been so far? Major rewards?

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: Most of the students to come from Catholic circles sympathetic to our project, however we do have non-Catholic and some non-Christian students attracted to the program and it is certainly our desire to accommodate more such students.

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: To be a completely private college means that there is always the challenge to raise funds. The other big challenge is student recruitment. The major reward has certainly been

REGINA: How many students have been involved in your various courses thus far?

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: We have graduated 130 students. Around another 50 students have completed part of the program. Currently there are 90 enrolled students.

REGINA: How do your students and professors typically become involved with Campion?

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REGINA: What are your housing arrangements?

DR PAUL MORRISSEY: We have student dorms and well as rental houses in the surrounding area.

The Foundation recently purchased the 10-acre campus at Old Toongabbie, which it had leased during the early years of the College’s operation, and we are looking at expanding the Campus.

Our residential accommodation needs expansion. There are also plans for a new chapel, library and academic spaces. We are also looking at expanding our offerings to include post grad research degrees as well as more vocationally orientated Masters programs.

But the best way to learn more is to visit our website

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HOW CATHOLICS ARE KEEPING CHRISTMAS 2015 Coming in the November issue of REGINA Magazine FREE CLICK HERE 214 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

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A Cure for the Malaise of the Uninspired College Benedictus in London

Article By: Beverly Stevens

Photo Credits: Hannah Palmer

They are brand new and a rare thing, indeed, in England --a start-up educational venture with the highest intellectual aspirations: nothing less than a learning experience to equal or exceed those world-famous, once-Catholic institutions of Cambridge and Oxford.

How are they doing? REGINA recently caught up with Dr Clare Hornsby, who studied both as an undergraduate and graduate at the University of Bristol, on her exciting Benedictus project in the heart of London.

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REGINA: What specifically inspired you to do this?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: It was the urgent need to do something to alter the environment of university education here in which scepticism and relativism seem to be the starting points of most courses and science is the only god.

REGINA: Did you visit other schools in other countries?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: We have seen this in the US obviously, mainly from visiting Thomas Aquinas College.

REGINA: And is Benedictus unique in the UK? DR CLARE HORNSBY: There is nothing like it available in the UK - no small independent liberal arts college and no college of any sort that offers one course centred on the Catholic intellectual and cultural tradition.

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“Benedictus will offer much more value for money than most other UK universities through the high level of contact hours and small classes.

US students will be able to study in London with us and receive an intensive and exciting education at a competitive price. Many UK humanities students are angry about the lack of depth in the courses they attend, even at excellent universities; we can offer an alternative.

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REGINA: Your daily schedule -- classes in the mornings and experiential visits, tours and concerts in the afternoon is highly unusual. Can you discuss why this is planned in this way?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: The course places equal value on texts and objects as fruits of our cultural heritage. The big questions and ideas have always concerned artists as well as philosophers and writers. Being based in London means that our students have a wealth of art and architecture available to them and we believe that the direct encounter with material culture is essential to understanding its importance.

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Benedictus in London

REGINA: Your website mentions that you will offer “small classes and the sort of tutorial experience normally reserved for students at Oxford and Cambridge.” Was better academics one reason for starting Benedictus?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Benedictus offers students the 2:1 or 3:1 tutorial experience and seminar discussion classes which is a combination of the traditional teaching method of Oxbridge and the ‘Socratic method’ employed in some US liberal arts colleges. It is highly focused and participatory and makes learning more meaningful and personal.

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“BENEDICTUS’S MISSION IS EDUCATIVE, but in the fullest sense ‘the development of the whole person through the joyful pursuit of wisdom’ with the principle of the unity of knowledge at the centre.”

REGINA: Is this approach a highly felt need in the UK? DR CLARE HORNSBY: This is again a response to the disenchantment of many students who feel disconnected from their studies on university courses which are mostly delivered in lectures or by online forums. We wanted Benedictus to be a cure for the malaise of uninspiring teaching and uninspired students.

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Benedictus in London

REGINA: Are you geared towards Catholics alone?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Many young Catholics have no idea of the depth and meaning of Catholic culture; this was a key impetus for us in founding the project although we are not a college focused on teaching the faith to Catholics - we are open to all and hope to inspire non Catholic students to learn more about the Faith and Catholics to understand more about why their Faith is so important.

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REGINA: Your strategy appears to be to start with summer school and academic forums and to grow from there?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: That seems to be the best way, as we gather support and funding. We have used the summer school and forum to build up a reputation for academic excellence, integrity and rigour. We have also used these events to raise awareness of liberal arts education in the UK as it is not widely understood here.

REGINA: What reactions have you gotten so far?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: The reaction varies - many Catholics are delighted but some don’t seem to see the urgency of the need. Many enlightened people in academic life who know the meaning and value of liberal education are staunch supporters of the project - and are from all faith backgrounds.

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REGINA: Can you describe what your major challenges have been so far?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Formulating the course was a big challenge, completed with the assistance of our Academic Team in 2013. A challenge for us as for all non-profit initiatives is convincing major donors to join us and make a financial commitment that would bring the plans for the college to fruition but we have been very fortunate in the generous donations of our supporters so far.

REGINA: What’s the best part of the Benedictus project for you?

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been fabulous - very warm, very committed.

The feedback from academics who attend the Forum lectures and from the public who join us for our free cultural events throughout the year. There is a lot of love for Benedictus around, which makes all the struggle worthwhile.

REGINA: How do your students and professors typically become involved with Benedictus?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Students come by word of mouth from various countries and backgrounds - we use social media a lot to promote our courses and events. The academic committee is being constantly added to as more professors hear about the project and want to get involved.

REGINA: Are there non-traditional students there?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: We have had students from home-school backgrounds and others not pursuing formal higher education.

REGINA: What are your housing arrangements for the summer program?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Students stay in the Heythrop college campus accommodation which is based in central London just near Hyde Park.

REGINA: How many students have been involved in your various courses thus far?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: We had 12 students on our first summer school in 2014 and 12 this year also. We can only accept 15.

REGINA: What are your next steps?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: We are planning for the next Academic Research Forum, probably in late June 2016 - and the summer school of course. We are extending admission to 17 years olds as well for next year. We are building links with existing universities outside the UK and are planning to launch an online academic journal.

And of course continuing with fundraising and planning for the future when we can launch our Foundation Programme and the full three year degree course.

REGINA: How can people learn more about Benedictus?

DR CLARE HORNSBY: Sign up to receive our newsletter, like our Facebook page and subscribe to our Youtube channel. All the links can be found on our homepage www.benedictus.org.uk Regina Magazine 229

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Media Revolutionary John Paul Catholic University in San Diego Photo credit: Andrew Sommers JPCatholic staff

On November 2nd, 2000, while visiting Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, Derry Connolly experienced something that would change his life.

“I saw a campus full of young Catholic students on fire for the Lord. I had never seen that level of excitement about Jesus Christ by so many students on a college campus. Late on that evening, sitting in front of the Blessed Sacrament in the Portiuncula chapel, I felt the Lord placing on my heart the request to build a university, like Franciscan, in San Diego. My immediate answer to the Lord was ‘NO – Impossible, a university is too big and too expensive. And I don’t know how to do it!’

“During the summer of 2003, three key thoughts came together in my mind.

First, I had just finished teaching a class on the start-up process for entrepreneurial high-tech companies to graduate and under-graduate students at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). I was strongly impressed by the passion the UCSD students had to go out and change the world by building successful technology based businesses. Next, I reflected with deep concern on the fact that the Catholic influence on the media was near rock bottom.

The New Media industry was rapidly evolving and maturing daily, and was poised to radically change the landscape of the media industry.

“Finally, contemplating the role of Stanford University in the growth of Silicon Valley, I was convinced that a Catholic university, centered on Jesus Christ, in the model of Franciscan University, must be a critical centerpiece to the Catholic resurgence in the field of media. San Diego, long a hub for innovation in new media enabling technology and geographically very close to the creative center of the industry in Los Angeles, was a great place to start.”

John Paul Catholic University was born on September 2nd, 2003. Connolly’s vision for the University was a ‘niche’ Catholic university focused on the culturally influential field of media, with the dynamic spirituality of Franciscan University, and the creative and entrepreneurial spirit of UCSD. 232 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

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REGINA: What kind of young person is attracted to your school?

Derry Connolly: Students that thrive at JPCatholic have both a strong desire for a deep relationship with jesus, and a passion to acquire a professional skill in Entertainment Media, Business or Theology. Faith matters. They are not afraid of studying in an entrepreneurial academic environment. They come from all across the us – from vermont to guam, from Florida to Alaska.

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Media Revolutionary

REGINA: Given the scarcity of vocations in America, how is your school doing in this regard?

Derry Connolly: JPCatholic is a great environment for discernment. Many students deeply consider God’s call. We serve the local Chaldean rite Catholic seminary, providing Masters in Biblical Theology and undergraduate degrees, which include USCCB compliant pre-theology studies. A number of alumni are now attending major seminaries.

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REGINA: Cost is a huge factor these days as students balk at assuming large debts for undergrad degrees.

Derry Connolly: A college education can be the best investment one can make.

It is even better when the student grows deeper in their faith. We are proactive in assessing student success and are quick to recommend alternate career options for students that are likely not to benefit from their investment. In addition, we do give generous institutional aid.

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Media Revolutionary

REGINA: How would you characterize the formation of young Catholics these days – as opposed to 20 years ago?

Derry Connolly: There are great reasons for hope. The Lord is blessing us with increasingly fine young men and women with a great openness to encountering the Lord. Formation is very tough – Satan is powerfully present in our secular culture and he succeeds in confusing young Catholics - even from strong families.

Formation is a diligent battle, and often tiring to fight. We are proud of the very high percentage of our graduates who become strong Catholic men and women.

Christ is truly the source of our hope.

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“The JP Catholic experience is small, niche, and non-traditional, the academic approach and mix of disciplines is novel. It is not everyone’s cup-of-tea. For the student into Entertainment Media, Business and Theology – we are close to ideal.”

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Media Revolutionary

REGINA: How can people help?

Derry Connolly: Make a decision to help. Building a Catholic University is expensive and we don’t have a mega-rich patron. Consider funding a scholarship for a student with a great need or a professor in a culture impacting discipline. Help purchase a new building to house a chapel for our expanding campus.

If you feel called to connect your legacy with that of the University, please contact Derry Connolly, President at 858-653-6740 or email DConnolly@jpcatholic.com

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A Bold Vision Wyoming Catholic College Photo Credits: Fr Jeffrey Keyes

Dr Peter Kwasnewski is a professor of Theology who has been with Wyoming Catholic College since its inception a few short years ago.

In this candid interview, he takes REGINA on an insider’s tour of the College, and the joys and challenges of hewing out a brand new Catholic institution in God’s country.

REGINA: Tell us about yourself.

PETER KWASNEWSKI: I come from a family of six, all born in Chicago, although I grew up in New Jersey. In high school I rediscovered my faith in a serious way, thanks to a curious combination of a charismatic prayer group and a Latin-loving teacher who introduced me to Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Aquinas. My growing passion for philosophy and theology led me to Thomas Aquinas College, The Catholic University of America, and my first job at the International Theological Institute in Austria. Along this path, God in His mercy led me to discover the liturgical heritage of the Church, especially Gregorian chant, the venerable Roman Mass, and authentic Benedictine monasticism. I fell head over heels in love with it all.

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“WE HAVE NO MAJORS, NO MINORS, AND NO ELECTIVES: EVERY STUDENT TAKES THE WHOLE PROGRAM, EVERY PART OF IT, STARTING AT THE BEGINNING. Inspired by the great teaching of Dr. John Senior, Dr. Carlson proposes an “education in wonder” that begins in direct contact with the God-given reality of the natural world and, without leaving that behind, plunges into the depths of goodness, truth, and beauty found in poetry, in philosophy, and in all the classic disciplines, using the Great Books as our means for doing so.”

- Dr Peter Kwasnewski (l) with Dr. Kent Lasnoski.

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REGINA: You have been with the College since its inception. How did you get involved?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: I had a little time off of teaching and came back to the United States to do research, in the summer of 2006. While here, a friend mentioned to me out of the blue that a new liberal arts college in Wyoming had just been founded and that I should check out its website. (I later discovered that the website had only been launched a couple of weeks earlier.) I read with curiosity, which turned into fascination, and finally became conviction. This place was going to be very different, very special, and after discussing it with my wife, I sent a letter to the co-founders, asking if I could come for a visit.

The reply came swiftly and the visit was fruitful. I left convinced that this quixotic plan could succeed.

By the end of the summer, I’d been hired as the first faculty member, with a year to work on the curriculum, recruit the first class, and basically do any odd job that needed doing before we opened our doors in August 2007.

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REGINA: Why was Wyoming College started?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: Our philosophical vision statement (available here) is a small but wise book by Dr. Robert Carlson that I highly recommend reading as a potent critique of contemporary Western education and an eloquent apologia for the timeless relevance of liberal education. This book takes as its point of departure the obvious moral and intellectual bankruptcy of modern colleges and universities (including all too many Catholic ones), which have sold their souls to relativism, materialism, and careerism.

REGINA: So, in place of the morally bankrupt environments in which we are educating our children, you wanted to offer…?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: We wanted to offer an antidote to reductionism: the reduction of a person to his parts, the reduction of a citizen to a cog in the machine, the reduction of society to a network of utilities, the reduction of the university to radically

A Bold Vision “It’s like the shepherd David with his simple slingshot going up against Goliath with his more advanced technology and better government funding.”

disconnected departments, the reduction of education to narrow job-training.

REGINA: What do you think are the greatest challenges the College has faced?

REGINA: So, what was Wyoming College founded to do?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: Without a doubt, the financial challenge is always in front of us. Although America is a great place to start up something new (what we are doing would probably have been impossible in Europe), higher education is inherently an expensive enterprise, even with the tightest controls and the cleverest strategies. Our particular educational model, which strongly emphasizes student-teacher interaction, is costly; the tuition, room, and board covers less than half of our expenses. The rest has to come through philanthropy, to the tune of over $2 million per year. So, this is a constant challenge.

PETER KWASNEWSKI: We were founded as an organized protest against intellectual incoherence, moral depravity, and spiritual mediocrity; we were founded to form young men and women who would be notable for their versatile intelligence, integrity of character, and Christian maturity.

REGINA: Amazing.

PETER KWASNEWSKI: It was—and is—a remarkably big boast for a small school to make, and none too easy to pull off in today’s world, which is pretty much ranged against us in almost every respect. It’s like the shepherd David with his simple slingshot going up against Goliath with his more advanced technology and better government funding.

REGINA: And today?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: I think that our boldness of vision is a good part of the reason the college has caught the attention of so many people so quickly and has gained a nationwide student body and support base, at least among God-fearing Catholics. We opened a little over eight years ago (August 2007), with 34 students. Today we have 150 students. They have come from 46 of the 50 States. There are young men and women from outside the USA wanting to attend as soon as we are able to accommodate them.

We started with a handful of teachers and now, if we include everyone who teaches in the program in some capacity, we have a faculty of 20.

REGINA: Speaking of finances, the College has decided to reject nearly $1 million in federal aid.

Why? PETER KWASNEWSKI: WCC’s president Dr. Kevin Roberts has written convincingly and thorough of this question (see here), but I can give the short answer. The federal government has shown an increasing willingness to overreach its functions by establishing invasive requirements and even riding roughshod over human rights. We can expect any time now a more liberal or progressive president or congress to enforce conformity with aberrant sexual ethics as the price to be paid for government assistance with educational loans and funds. We simply don’t want to be encumbered by such a compromising alliance. Institutions that are already dependent will find it nearly impossible to extricate themselves.

Our donors respect our convictions and courage, and are supporting us in the difficult task of making a go of it without such aid.

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“THIS LIBERAL EDUCATION, the kind of education that befits and equips a free man, prepares for and leads seamlessly into man’s ultimate perfection, the knowledge and love of God. We are pursuing, with our own custom touches, the educational ideal of the Greeks, the medieval scholastics, and John Henry Newman. The Catholic Church has always praised this holistic ideal, and it would be hard to deny that it is more needed now than ever, as our society rushes headlong down the path of fragmentation, dissipation, and self-destruction.”

REGINA: What have been your biggest surprises in these years?

PETER KWASNEWSKI: A few of the many surprises: the fact that we convinced 34 students to come to a college that didn’t exist. (That was surely God’s doing.) The way teachers kept applying to come here and teach, not primarily because teaching jobs are not plentiful, but because they actually loved the philosophical vision statement and were ready to dedicate themselves to an audacious experiment. This allowed us to pick out the very best faculty, highly qualified and driven by high ideals.

The very first class, which graduated in 2011, is the one I still think of the most fondly, because it felt like they were my own children, more than any other class. I taught them all, they “grew up” with my own family, and their success made WCC seems worth all the crazy days and nights of work that we had to pour into it. I’m not sure I could do it all over again (if such an option were at hand), but I’m sure it was all worth doing, because it was always for Christ and His Church. And He has blessed us tremendously, far beyond our deserts.

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A Bold Vision

“WHILE WE’VE HAD STUDENTS FROM PUBLIC AND PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOLS and students who have already completed some years of college or even a degree elsewhere, our single largest source of incoming freshmen is homeschooling families. It’s not surprising that these families would see the immense value of an integrated liberal education, the need for orthodox Catholicism, and the desirability of high moral standards.”

“We have graduated five classes so far, and the alumni have gone into quite a number of areas. Many are in grad school—philosophy, theology, art history, psychology, nursing, medicine. A good number have become grade school and high school teachers. Several are working for the college—in admissions, horsemanship, student life, food service, and maintenance. Some are serving their local communities as law enforcement officers, paramedics, social workers, and caregivers for the handicapped; others are working for the Church as musicians or diocesan employees. A few have continued working the family farm or ranch, gone into real estate, or started their own businesses. “

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“One alumnus is working full-time for a foundation that trains exorcists; another is in charge of weed and pest control (actually almost a parallel field when you come to think of it). There is a computer programmer, a Forestry Service ranger, and a clerk for Wyoming’s representative in Congress. Some alumnae are now mothers, taking care of their small children at home.”

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A Bold Vision

“SIX ALUMNI HAVE ENTERED RELIGIOUS LIFE: two monks and four nuns. I’ve heard that others are discerning the priesthood. Thanks be to God, it is a heartening harvest of professions and vocations, as diverse and interesting as our students themselves.”

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A Bold Vision

“WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MOVE OUR ENTIRE OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP PROGRAM IN-HOUSE. When we opened our doors in 2007, we were heavily dependent on outside providers of services for our freshmen orientation, namely, the three-week summer backpacking trek in the wilderness and the one-week winter camping experience. With incredibly hard work on the part of dedicated faculty and staff, alumni who had acquired further training, and current students, this past summer we were able to run the three-week trip with all of our own people and equipment. Just a few years ago, no one would have thought this possible.”

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“A DIFFERENT KIND OF SURPRISE HAS BEEN THE SLOW AND STEADY GROWTH OF THE TRADITIONAL MOVEMENT in this country, as seen first hand in the student demographics. Only a few members of the first class had any awareness of the traditional Latin Mass. In contrast, about half of this year’s freshman class of 58 students either attended it before coming to WCC or have a clear idea of what it is. One can certainly see the gradual effect of Summorum Pontificum on the Church, and how WCC’s faithfulness to Pope Benedict XVI’s provisions has become a significant element in our good reputation among orthodox Catholics. We currently have a Low Mass every Wednesday and a High Mass every Sunday, both of which are well attended by students, faculty, staff, and locals.”

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A Bold Vision

“PERHAPS THE BIGGEST SURPRISE OF ALL has been our transition from an original master plan of building a campus on a big ranch outside of town, fifteen minutes away by car, to a revised plan of building up the college in town and, eventually, building a campus adjacent to town. The students and faculty just love being in the town of Lander (pop. 7,500), rubbing shoulders with the locals and making a difference here—and the locals definitely like us and want us to stay nearby. It was a really interesting evolution of thought and feeling to watch take place.”

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“ANOTHER, RELATED CHALLENGE IS GETTING PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS AND DONORS TO VISIT A PLACE THAT IS QUITE REMOTE. We are nowhere near a major airport. Lander is a beautiful place, a peaceful place ‘far from the madding crowd,’ and that is a large component of its charm and its suitability for our philosophical vision, but it still makes it harder, initially, for people to motivate themselves to get out here and experience in person the wonderful things that are happening. Once they visit, they’re usually hooked.” •

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A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La

Today, it’s the Shangri-la of college campuses. But it was not always so. The Catholics who founded Thomas Aquinas College in 1969 were laymen taking on an enormous challenge, unheard of at a time when Catholic schools were universally administered by the clergy. And the story of how they established this inspiring Catholic college nestled in the foothills of the Topatopa Mountains, at the entrance to the Los Padres National in the teeth of the enormous upheavals of the late 1960s is the stuff of movie plots.

Anne Forsyth’s entire life has deeply involved with this amazing story. The daughter of John Schaeffer, one of TAC’s redoubtable founding board members, today Anne is the Director of College Relations there. In this interview, Anne graciously conducts REGINA readers on a guided tour of this modern day Catholic miracle.

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REGINA: From the perspective of 50 years later, what inspired the founders to take on this mammoth project?

ANNE FORSYTH: The period of the 1960s was a time of great tumult in the United States, one that had devastating effects on the country’s institutions and mores. Its ravages could be seen perhaps nowhere more clearly than on college campuses. Truth gave way to skepticism and relativism, and expressions such as “free love” and “question authority” became the catchphrases of student life.

REGINA: In Catholic colleges, as well?

ANNE FORSYTH: Catholic colleges were not immune to these influences. Venerable institutions that for many scores of years had faithfully passed on the intellectual patrimony of the Church began to adopt the diluted curricula, methods, and aims of their secular counterparts.

Not only was campus life at many of these institutions succumbing to the permissiveness of the time, a long-standing commitment to Catholic liberal education was quickly disappearing.

REGINA: How did Catholic colleges react?

ANNE FORSYTH: In 1967, against this backdrop, Fr. Theodore Hesburgh, president of the University of Notre Dame, convened a group of prominent Catholic educators in Land O’Lakes, Wisconsin. Their aim was to chart a new course for Catholic higher education in America, one that would resemble all too well that of their secular counterparts. The meeting resulted in a document entitled a “Statement on the Nature of the Contemporary Catholic University.”

Hoping to garner the kind of reputation for academic excellence enjoyed by secular institutions of higher learning, the statement declared, “The Catholic university must have a true autonomy and academic freedom in the face of authority of whatever kind, lay or clerical, external to the academic community itself.” (emph. added) Going even further, it stated that the Catholic university “should carry on a continual examination of all aspects and all activities of the Church and should objectively evaluate them.”

In other words, where once the measure of the Catholic university was the Magisterium of the Church, now the Catholic university would not only be its own judge, but in an audacious upending of the tradition, it would also be the measure of the Church. Truly, this was a watershed moment for Catholic higher education in the United States.

REGINA: Ah, so they thought they could garner more prestige in the academy outside the Catholic world with this?

ANNE FORSYTH: Implicit in this declaration of autonomy was a deeply flawed understanding of the meaning of freedom. The teachings of the Catholic Church had for centuries been understood as a guide in the pursuit of truth, assisting those engaged in rigorous intellectual inquiry and bolstering their pursuit of knowledge about nature, man, and God. The Land O’Lakes Statement, however, asserted the opposite – that the truths of the Faith were instead an impediment to legitimate, academic inquiry.

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A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La REGINA: So, how did this contribute to the beginnings of TAC? ANNE FORSYTH: This notion captured the attention of the founders of Thomas Aquinas College, themselves professors at this turbulent time, and it galvanized their desire to found a new institution that would embody St. Anselm’s description of the Catholic’s quest for wisdom, “faith seeking understanding.” In 1969, they published what would become the governing document of a new college. Entitled A Proposal for the Fulfillment of Catholic Education, it articulated an alternative view of the Catholic intellectual life, one that echoes Christ’s teachings that He “is the way, the truth, and the life,” and that the “Truth shall set you free.”

In a key section of the Proposal, our founders describe the Faith as a “light … which illumines understanding and serves as an indispensable guide in the intellectual life….Contrary to what is often assumed, liberal education does not take place in spite of or even apart from the Christian faith. Rather, the Christian student, because of his faith, can be liberally educated in the most perfect and complete way.” Thus reasserting fidelity to the teaching Church as its foundation, Thomas Aquinas College opened its doors in 1971.

REGINA: With university education widely available at affordable prices at that time, what you’re your founders think there was a market for TAC's offering?

ANNE FORSYTH: To be honest, our founders did not know how much of a market there would be for the kind of college they were establishing. They publicized it in both the Catholic and secular press, held regional meetings to raise awareness of the school — and they prayed. They were united in the conviction that if God wanted the College’s success, and they did nothing to impede His will, the school would indeed attract students well-suited to the rigorous program 258 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

they had designed — four years of mathematics, four years of natural science, two of Latin, and four of philosophy and theology. They believed that the mass apostasy of the 1960s had put the need for authentic, genuinely Catholic education into high relief and that there would indeed be families who would sacrifice heroically to obtain it for their children.

REGINA: So, what happened?

ANNE FORSYTH: The first year (1971) saw some 33 young men and women enroll, a number of whom already had undergraduate and even graduate degrees in hand, some from prestigious institutions. They were attracted to the school by its orthodoxy and by its unique academic program — the breadth of the curriculum, the use of original texts (the Great Books) rather than textbooks, and Socratic discussions rather lectures. These students found themselves more engaged intellectually than they had ever been, and those with degrees found the pursuit of truth across the disciplines more satisfying than the specialized study or training they had done at other institutions.

REGINA: Okay, a great start! What happened next?

ANNE FORSYTH: The next 20 years or so saw classes of similar size, and enrollment grew to 150 or so. As the College grew in size, so also did it in reputation for orthodoxy and academic excellence, drawing students from across the country. Interestingly, from the beginning, the school was national, not regional in nature: even now a steady one-third of the student body comes from the College’s home state of California while an equally steady forty percent comes from east of the Mississippi. In the late 80s, the College undertook a campaign to increase enrollment steadily to its maximum level of 370, which it achieved in 2007. And in recent years, we have had a growing waiting list.

FROM THE BEGINNING, THE COLLEGE HAS BEEN COMMITTED TO A POLICY OF NOT TURNING AWAY ANY QUALIFIED STUDENT FOR LACK OF FINANCIAL WHEREWITHAL. To make that possible, we have relied on the tremendous generosity of our benefactors across the country who we sometimes refer to as our “spiritual alumni,” as their loyalty to the College and our students rivals that of our actual alumni. The early years were the most difficult for us: we had no track record and no alumni to point to as signs of the value of our unique program. And of course, we had no alumni on which to depend for financial contributions! Even now, because the College is intentionally small, we have a relatively small group of alumni, the vast majority of whom are under 40 and in the midst of raising (mostly very large) families. So even now, we continue to rely on our “spiritual alumni” who make it possible for so many of our students to benefit from this life-changing education. While among them are parents of alumni and alumni themselves, all of whom have received a great personal benefit from their generous giving to the College, there are an even greater number of generous souls who while receiving no benefit at all for themselves, nevertheless faithfully support the mission of Thomas Aquinas College and our students. They are, in a very real sense, making an investment in our students, recognizing that the intellectual, moral, and spiritual formation they receive at the College will have a ripple effect within the Church and in our culture. They truly are our partners in this noble endeavor.

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A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La

REGINA: Was better academics one reason for starting TAC? ANNE FORSYTH: Certainly. Until 1825, most institutions of higher education offered much the same kind of program that we offer now — the Trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric); the Quadrivium (geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, and music); natural science, philosophy, and theology (because most colleges were faith-based). Courses were prescribed for students who essentially followed the same curriculum, with little or no variation. Specialization was undertaken only at the postgraduate level.

In 1825, Harvard introduced the elective system, allowing for choice in the study of modern languages. By 1885, the majority of classes taken by students at that revered institution would be elective. In the field of higher education, this was a revolution, one that has had reverberations throughout the country over the last 200 years.

We are now at the point that most schools require very little in terms of “core” studies. Liberal arts programs have been gutted of their mathematics and science content, and courses such as “Queer Musicology” and “The American Vacation” take their place. Specialization and job-training predominate, with little or no general foundation of knowledge and little or no training in how to think well. Where once a college education was understood to be essential to the formation of the citizens of our democratic republic, it now is almost universally perceived to be preparation for a job or profession. In a culture where citizens have been reduced to “workers,” we should not be surprised.

REGINA: This is both very true – and very depressing.

ANNE FORSYTH: This state of affairs has resulted not only in widespread ignorance of the most basic information, but also a sweeping loss in the sense of what is true, what is good, what is beautiful — of all that uplifts human beings and 260 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

makes our lives worth living.

Our founders perceived these trends 45 years ago and were intent, as their founding document shows, to renew genuine liberal education — an education for the free citizen, one that included all the major disciplines from science and mathematics to philosophy and theology. Not only was there a body of knowledge to transmit to the next generation — the great intellectual patrimony of Western Civilization — but it was just as essential to train the minds of the next generations to be actively engaged in the pursuit of truth so that it might form — and transform — them.

REGINA: Quite prophetic of your founders.

ANNE FORSYTH: Their plan thus focused on both curriculum and pedagogy. Instead of offering textbooks, the curriculum would be composed of the seminal works in all the disciplines, original texts known as the Great Books, so that students might grapple directly with the works of the greatest minds in Western Civilization.

Rather than listening to lectures, they would instead engage in Socratic discussions, acquiring the ability to think logically, inquire fruitfully, analyze well, and defend their positions.

REGINA: What about the Catholic aspect of the College?

ANNE FORSYTH: Regarding theology, in particular, our founders wanted to re-ground the study of God in the works of the Angelic Doctor, our patron, St. Thomas Aquinas. They took seriously the 500 years of exhortations by our pontiffs to, as one put it, “Go to Thomas,” and they wanted to foster intellectual discipleship to the Common (‘Angelic’) Doctor in their students.

Thus, freshman spend their first year reading nearly the entire Bible; sophomores study the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, especially St. Augustine; and juniors and seniors study substantial parts of St. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae.

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A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La REGINA: Poor catechesis in the last 50 years has resulted in widespread ignorance about the Faith -- its teachings, history, culture, etc. Yet, TAC has more students applying for admission than you can accept. Where are they coming from?

ANNE FORSYTH: You’re certainly right about the wholesale loss of knowledge of our faith that has occurred in the last 50 years or so. But there are some in the Church who, witnessing it being swept away, clung every more tightly to it and have, through their own steadfastness and God’s grace, succeeded in transmitting the treasures of our faith to their children and grandchildren.

It is from this pool of young people that many of our applicants come. And yes, there are more and more each year — so many that we now have long waiting lists each year. Interestingly, there are some from that list who rather than enrolling elsewhere, wait until the following year to matriculate here at the College.

ANNE FORSYTH: In the beginning, there were many who were skeptical of our enterprise, including our accrediting body, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. I recall as a student going through our first self-study — the visits by their assigned examiners and the many prayers we offered that we would receive their imprimatur. In time, we did, and it has been renewed with every cycle.

It took some time before the College began to appear in the rankings by the secular college guides, as well, e.g., U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, and others. But for the past 20 years, we have regularly received the highest ratings and rankings from these and other organizations and are grateful for the national reputation for excellence that we have established.

REGINA: Yes, we are aware that the College has sterling ratings today. But that wasn’t always the case, was it?

Many of our applicants are homeschooled — ANNE FORSYTH: I believe that what underlay many through the Mother of Divine Grace the original skepticism about Thomas Aquinas School curriculum designed by our graduate, College was the widespread notion that a school Laura Berquist (’75). Some attend parent-found- that took the Catholic faith as seriously as we ed schools. And others attend parochial, private, did could not at the same time be academically and even public schools. It makes for a good mix rigorous — a notion in turn based on the false in the classroom, as the discussions benefit from opinion that faith and reason are incompatible. the varied backgrounds of the students.

It is a notion that we still regularly encounter, We also have non-Catholic applicants, and we’ve but given that we now have a track record and a even had some atheists over the years. With a solid reputation, it is more easily dispelled and deep thirst for knowledge of the truth about replaced with St. Anselm’s description of the reality, they are drawn to the College’s rigorous Catholic’s pursuit of truth in all its facets as “faith curriculum. Not surprisingly, a good percentage seeking understanding.” A more difficult reaction of these students become converts to the Catho- for us has more often than not come from some lic Church, for honest search for the truth will, in colleges and universities within the Church. It time, bring one to the Fount of Truth Himself. should not be surprising, though, because after all, we are doing the very thing that they rejected REGINA: What reactions if any has TAC years ago — achieving academic excellence while elicited from the Catholic educational estabremaining fully faithful to the teachings of the lishment over the years? Non-Catholics? The Church. broader education field?

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OUR TUTORS ARE A UNIQUE GROUP OF MEN AND WOMEN. Nearly all hold doctorates, in a variety of specialized fields. Yet our program calls for them to teach all of the courses in our one curriculum, just as our students progress through one and the same curriculum. It is not at all unusual to find, for instance, a tutor with a Ph.D. in literature assigned to teach natural science to juniors, a class in which Newton’s Principia is studied; or again, a tutor with a Ph.D. in biology leading seniors in their study of St. Thomas’ treatise on the Trinity. Finding tutors with this kind of breadth of interest and ability, as well as a desire to guide classroom discussions rather than lecture, was quite a challenge in the beginning. But as our reputation has spread, we have succeeded in finding highly qualified faculty members, among them some of our own alumni.

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A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La

Then

THEN AND NOW: Those of us who were students in that fall of 1978 recall the spartan conditions under which we lived. One of the most notable features of that first fall and winter was the historic amount of rainfall we experienced. The campus was entirely un-landscaped, without even a paved pathway, and the result was mud — so very much mud, for months on end, until the spring when the sun at last shone again.

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Now

As poor as these conditions were, we were happy, deeply happy. Yes, we lived in “trailers” and attended classes in ugly “double-wides” on a campus that resembled, in the words of our founding president, “a gulag.” But we loved our classes which were endlessly engaging, and we developed deep friendships that were pure and sweet, and that have lasted through the decades since. And at the center of our lives, was a humble, makeshift chapel where Our Lord dwelt with us in the Blessed Sacrament.\ -- Anne Forsyth, Director of College Relations

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REGINA: TAC's campus is stunningly beautiful, and shows a clear architectural guiding spirit.

ANNE FORSYTH: To begin with, we were struck by the sheer natural beauty of the campus, It is the perfect setting in which to contemplate the true, the good, and the beautiful. Because we are in “Mission” territory here, on land which Saint Junipero Serra may well have traversed in a day-trip from Mission San Fernando to Mission San Buenaventura, it was a natural for us to choose the Spanish Mission style.

It was thought from the beginning that the campus ought to both reflect the nature of intellectual and community life that take place here and facilitate it.

The four years that our students spend at the College are in a sense a retreat from the world (not a permanent retreat, but a retreat by which to fortify themselves for the work they will do in the world). Because our program requires such intense study and many scores of hours quietly reading the original texts that compose our curriculum, we wanted a campus that would be serene and restful, with open spaces and airy, outdoor corridors, all of which would be conducive to a spirit of learning.

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IN 2009, TH HOLY TRIN as the Faith academic q do. That its our way, m

The other s on our staff layout of th to most pe weeding, fe who are in ing 13 hou

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HE CROWN JEWEL OF THE CAMPUS WAS DEDICATED, OUR LADY OF THE MOST NITY CHAPEL, which sits at the head of our academic quad, anchoring the campus just h does our program and community life. The location of our chapel at the head of our quad was by design, as a sign of the pre-eminence of the Catholic Faith in all that we s bell tower can be seen rising outside our gates extends this message to all who pass many of whom stop in to visit the campus and learn about the College.

striking feature about the campus is our landscaping. We have been blessed to have f an extremely talented fulltime landscaper who, with his assistant, have designed the he gardens all around the campus and supervise their maintenance. What is surprising eople is that their work crew is entirely made up of students who do all of the irrigation, ertilizing, trimming, and pruning over much of the 132-acre campus. These are students return for their financial aid are employed in the College’s work/study program, spendurs each week caring for the lawns and gardens and, in the process, gain valuable skills.

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REGINA: Thomas Aquinas College is a great inspiration to Catholics around the world – many of whom are starting up Catholic colleges in the English-speaking world today. What are your next challenges? How can people learn help?

ANNE FORSYTH: We would be extremely grateful for your readers’ prayers — for the College, its tutors, its staff, its administration, and its governing board — that we may

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continue to be faithful to our mission and to the teaching Church. And please pray for our students, too!

Please share what you have read here with friends, read news about the College on our Facebook page, and spend some time on our website. From our fact sheet to the FAQs in the Admissions section, to the seminal documents that undergird the College, there is a great deal of information there.

A Catholic Miracle in Shangri-La

AMONG OUR MANY REWARDS ARE THE ALUMNI OF THOMAS AQUINAS COLLEGE. While relatively small in number (nearly 1,900), they are having a tremendous influence for good in the Church and in our culture. In addition, they have a 0.0% loan default rate (as compared to the national average of 13.7%). And in 2013, because our alumni had the highest rate of giving to their alma mater, we were ranked #1 by U.S. News & World Report for being the “most loved” college in the country. There are a remarkable number of vocations: to date, we have 62 alumni priests and 40 religious sisters and brothers. Stunned by these numbers, the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education commissioned an article some years ago by our then president, the late Dr. Thomas Dillon, to explain how it is that an institution that is not a seminary, that is run entirely by laymen, and that is co-educational could produce such a steady stream of vocations. In this piece, Dr. Dillon explains how our genuinely Catholic academic program and vibrant spiritual life are a fertile soil in which vocations flourish.

Please also consider making a gift to our Annual Fund. We need to raise nearly $5 million in financial aid this year for the nearly 75% of our students who could not otherwise attend the College. These are worthy young people who, in the years ahead, will go on to do great good for the Church and our culture.

By arranging to make an estate gift to the College through your will or trust, you will be helping to ensure that young people for generations to come will continue to receive a genuinely Catholic liberal education. •

Our challenge now is to build up our endowment so that Thomas Aquinas College can become a self-sustaining institution.

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HOW CATHOLICS ARE KEEPING CHRISTMAS 2015 Coming in the November issue of REGINA Magazine FREE CLICK HERE 272 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

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Amazing Education

Amazing Seminaries Without priests, there is no Catholic Faith. And while most seminaries around the western world struggle to stay open for want of students, a few are flourishing with many avid vocations. REGINA visits some of these amazing seminaries in France, Austria, the USA and Italy.

French seminarians with Father Eric Iborra (center) at the parish of Ste Cecile/Ste Eugene in Paris, France.

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Thoughts on A Young Man’s Vocation Article By: Charles Bradshaw

Photo Credits: Harry Stevens

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Thoughts on A Young Man’s Vocation

I

t was early on a cool Palm Sunday morning in 2008 that I found myself a few centimetres away from the High Altar on St Peter’s Square, ready for Mass with Pope Benedict XVI. From the sagrato or platform, over the heads of thousands of people gathered in the massive baroque square, I could see the rays of the sun rising from the Tiber as Mass began.

It is a day I’ll never forget. Being within touching distance of a man who truly prayed the Mass touched my heart and reduced me to tears. But more beautiful than that were the words he spoke, which are etched into my very being: “When we touch the Cross, or rather, when we carry it, we touch the mystery of God, the mystery of Jesus Christ… We touch the marvellous mystery of God’s love, the only genuinely redemptive truth. But we also touch the fundamental law, the constitutive norm of our lives, namely the fact that without this “yes” to the Cross, without walking in communion with Christ day by day, life cannot succeed. The more we can make some sacrifice, out of love for the great truth and the great love, out of love for the truth and for God’s love, the greater and richer life becomes. Anyone who wants to keep his life for himself loses it.

Anyone who gives his life – day by day in small acts, which form part of the great decision – that person finds it.”

- Pope Benedict XVI

Yet throughout the ages “Magister adest et vocat te”: “the Lord is there and He is calling you”.

God never ceases to call each and every one of us to a unique vocation and through His divine Grace we discern His call and strive to answer it in our lives.

It is no surprise then that recent Popes have reminded us that we are all called to seek holiness: a universal call to holiness which should fill us with the zeal and confidence for New Evangelization. Just as the Church is universal, so too is this at the heart of every Christian life. Thus we are all called to a life of self-sacrifice either through marriage or a simple lay life. It seems that whatever vocation we have, it is seemingly under attack in these times.

Yet there is a much deeper calling which lies within those whom God has chosen “Sacerdos et Hostia”: “priest and victim”. It is a further call to die to self and to surrender one’s life to the service of Almighty God. That is the call to priesthood!

For young men discerning a priestly vocation, it is often disheartening to hear in both the secular and religious press of the crisis in vocations. Yet the truth is different: God never ceases to touch the hearts and souls of the young and to move them towards the priesthood.

The crisis is often in how we or others deal That glorious morning, it felt as though Benedict’s with this vocation and where we choose to place words were spoken directly to me, and indeed it. This is why choosing a good seminary is imthose words have played out their part in my life portant. Having experienced three very differboth as a seminarian and now as a layman living ent seminaries, I can say that finding the right out the ordinary duties of everyday life: for to love one is paramount to discerning what the Lord is God, to carry the cross is to suffer, to suffer even calling us to. at the hands of the Church Herself.

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•

Words To the Wise Young Man 1

2

PERSEVERE IN GETTING INTO SEMINARY: It can be a long process, so don’t be put off before you even get there.

DISCERNING YOUR VOCATION IS HARD. It is not necessarily within a diocese. It could be in a religious order or somewhere else. Be patient and sensitive with yourself.

3

PRAY A LOT AND DISCERN THROUGH PRAYER, BUT NOT JUST PRAYER ALONE. Sometimes we have to take action.

4

BE PREPARED TO FIND THINGS DIFFICULT: If God has called you then the Devil is also watching you closely. Don’t give up.

5

DON’T HESITATE TO SPEAK TO A VOCATIONS DIRECTOR OR YOUR PARISH PRIEST. Whatever the outcome, there is no harm in it.

6

NEVER GIVE UP: It is not because you are unsettled in the first seminary that you attend that you do not have a religious vocation. Persevere, find somewhere new but don’t give up until you can answer the question: Is this what God wants? Sometimes what He wants is not necessarily what we want.

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SOME USEFUL POINTERS, FROM SOMEONE WHO’S BEEN THERE • In a seminary there must always be a family atmosphere, where people are happy and feel at home.

• The seminary staff should be composed of priests who are happy in their priesthood, with a deep interior life, and zealous to spread the Faith.

• They should be strong in their Faith and anxious to spread the Doctrine of the Faith without error or compromise.

• Seminary life must follow a hierarchical order with the rector as head, just like the father of a family.

• A seminary should be a place of learning with a strong emphasis on teaching. Yet in a seminary, the main focus of life should be centred on prayer and times of communal prayer -- particularly the public recitation of the Divine Office.

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• A seminary should have a strong Marian devotion which includes daily rosary for Mary is the mother of seminarians and priests.

• Daily life should be ordered and follow a structured pattern of community living.

• A seminary should form good Christian men who the more they progress through seminary the more Christ like and priestly they become.

• A seminary should be a place of prayer and unlike a university or an education establishment should exude a sense of prayer.

• Similarly a seminary should be a place of quiet and peacefulness and not filled with noise and distraction.

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Raising Men To The Altar How One Seminary Forms Future Priests

By Donna Sue Berry Established in 1988 by Pope Saint John Paul II, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter is a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right which focuses on the sanctification of priests through the worthy celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. The Fraternity instructs and trains its priests to preserve, promote, and protect the Church's authentic liturgical and spiritual traditions worldwide. It now has over 235 priests and 140 seminarians studying in its two international seminaries in Bavaria and Denton, Nebraska.

In this candid and engaging interview with REGINA’s Donna Sue Berry, Fr Joseph Lee ‘opens the door’ to his seminary in Nebraska.

REGINA: Father Lee, what is the Fraternity’s idea of a great seminary?

FATHER LEE: Every Catholic seminary is a house of discernment and formation for the Priesthood. Since the vast majority of seminarians at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary are studying for the Fraternity, our formation program takes on a slightly different character or flavor flowing from the purpose of the Fraternity itself. As our Constitutions state “the object of the Fraternity of Saint Peter is the sanctification of priests through the exercise of the priesthood, and in particular, to turn the life of the priest toward that which is essentially his raison d’être, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, with all that it signifies. All that flows from it, all that goes with it.”

This specific objective requires and demands a specific means to accomplish it. Intellectual, psychological, social even physical elements in our formation will be colored the light and love and grace which the Sacrifice of the Mass offers us. This will hopefully permeate the spiritual air they will daily breathe in as future priests, whether they are rushing to anoint a dying person at the hospital, teaching an evening parish class or playing soccer with their youth group.

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LOCATED IN RURAL DENTON, Nebraska, Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary is the Fraternity of St. Peter’s international house of formation for English-speakers. Young men from all over the world have been formed for the priesthood in the seminary’s intensive seven year program.

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OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE SEMINARY attracts seminarians from countries around the world, including Hong Kong, Australia, England and Nigeria. Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz -shown here during the Consecration Mass of the chapel kindly invited the Fraternity into the Diocese of Lincoln to construct the seminary in 1998.

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“TAKE FOR EXAMPLE THE AREA OF MUSIC. Music, the most subtle and immaterial of all the arts, is also the most powerful and therefore most closely approaches the liturgy in creating a conducive atmosphere. Every seminarian takes a mandatory 16 credits of music throughout our seven year program, not including meeting twice a week to practice specific pieces. Some seminarians will join one of three scholas for sung Masses held twice a week and may also participate in the polyphonic choir.”

REGINA: Wow, that’s a lot of musical training!

FATHER LEE: It’s imperative that they learn the nature of music, recognize its fundamental elements and its effects on the passions. The seminarians listen, appreciate and understand for themselves how various masters have utilized and stressed different elements of music through history. Upon this natural foundation, they learn to read, sing and conduct Gregorian Chant, the Church’s very own music to suitably adorn its timeless Liturgy.

From the angle of being a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right, priests of the Fraternity of St. Peter are to live in community. Life in common in the daily grind can be understandably challenging on the natural level, taking into account different personalities and interests. However, when a Fraternity priest remembers that he is indeed his brother’s keeper and does his best to take care of him, the parish will reap the spiritual benefits this unified sacrificial charity produces. This fundamental thought and desire begins in the seminary.

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REGINA: Tell us about the seminary’s focus on theological studies.

FATHER LEE: The writings and thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, the universal Doctor of the Church, forms the backbone of our theological program. With the words of Pope Leo XIII, we tell our seminarians “Ite ad Thomam” Practically, every single Pope after St. Thomas Aquinas’s death in 1274 has recommended him as an intellectual guide. We want our seminarians and priests to be able to read like St. Thomas, write like St. Thomas, think like St. Thomas. Over the centuries, the Church has experienced that when its seminarians study St. Thomas, they advance on a sure, safe and direct route as future teachers of Scripture and Tradition.

BISHOP CONLEY OF LINCOLN VISITS DENTON: Those acquainted with St. Thomas with his academic method will remark how self-effacing while being very respectful and even gentle with those he disagrees with while never compromising a single premise in his faithful commitment to the Truth. Just as the Israelites took the gold and silver and even raiment of the Egyptians and found them useful to build and beautify the Ark, so St. Thomas takes the best and precious achievements that human literature and philosophy have to offer, elevates them and transforms them to a higher use, namely, service of Theology, the queen of all sciences.

ON CATHOLIC THEOLOGY: We are not Protestants.

The Church values the goods of nature. The Church values secondary causes. Grace is clearly above nature, but in God’s Providence, builds upon it. St. Thomas takes this very healthy and balanced and holistic approach in his study of God.

WE TRY TO IMPRESS UPON THE SEMINARIANS THAT THEOLOGY IS MUCH MORE THAN SOMETHING APOLOGETICAL IN NATURE, wherewith our seminarians are able to crush their opponents with valid and logical arguments. We want our seminarians to join St. Thomas to simply enjoy theology, just because it is a good thing to do. Hopefully, they will pass this love of theology on to their students. We want the seminarians to wonder how God is outside of time and space, how one angel teaches another angel, how Our Lady possessed more grace than all the angels and saints together in her Immaculate Conception. Thus, even in this life, we see what joys contemplation can bring, which in turn, provides a distant glimpse of life in heaven.

UNFORTUNATELY, ONE IS UNABLE TO REALLY APPRECIATE AND REALLY UNDERSTAND ST. THOMAS unless he really dives into and appreciates the works of Aristotle, or as St. Thomas refers to him, “The Philosopher”. This demands a difficult and virile discipline.

The passions of the seminarian have to be ordered in addition to the faculties of his soul, the imagination and memory.

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Raising Men To The Altar

REGINA: Is this a problem for young men?

FATHER LEE: This is often quite arduous for the young man entering the seminary, whose mental powers are dormant and suffer atrophy, due to the over reliance our culture places on technology. For impoverished minds filled with a diet of often shallow knowledge of passing things, it is difficult to digest more nourishing and substantial topics such as the nature of motion since the appetitive and cognitive powers are used to intellectual fast food.

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WHETHER IT’S DURING THE YEAR OR ON VACATIONS, our seminarians have various opportunities for pastoral experience, whether they participate in various summer camps, altar boy trainings, youth groups and adult education classes in a parish. The ideal priest is omnia omnibus (all things to all men). He can make the elderly lady in the church feel comfortable. His talk is relevant to the young working professional attending a young adult event. The little children easily approach him and like to play a game with him. The seminarian should be placed in situations to prepare him for all of these situations.

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REGINA: Besides the studies of philosophy and theology, what can you tell us about the spiritual preparation of the seminarians?

FATHER LEE: Well, keeping the Fraternity’s purpose in mind, since the primary source of sanctification for every priest of the Fraternity is the Mass, the same principle holds true for its future priests. It is our duty to permit Our Lord to transform us when He comes to us in the Mass. As St. Thomas reminds us, grace builds on nature. The Mass is our most lofty teacher, the best practical and concrete expression of both Scripture and Tradition that our religion offers to man to experience. We try to prepare our seminarians for worthy celebration of the Mass, the apex of liturgy, the public prayer of the whole church, in the name of the whole church, by one officially deputed.

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WE ATTEMPT TO IMPRESS UPON THE SEMINARIANS IN THE FIRST YEAR the nature of prayer, its mental and vocal aspects, conditions which facilitate prayer or obstacles that arise. The idea is that private prayers, such as meditation, order a man, his exterior senses and interior powers of his soul and prepare him to better participate in the Liturgy. It’s possible that nature places obstacles to the flow of grace that Our Lord makes available to us. It’s imperative that with St. Francis of Assisi, we reign in ‘Brother Ass,’ as St. Francis called his body suffering from original sin. Thus, a healthy sense of the need for personal penance is taught.

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CONSIDERING THE TITLE OF YOUR PUBLICATION, you will be happy to hear that every year, Father William Lawrence, who specially has charge over the First Year Seminarians, promotes St. Louis De Montfort’s Total Consecration to Our Lady. Much more could be said about his method and the spiritual benefits but very briefly, it’s important that each seminarian remember that better than anyone else, Our Lady prepares us for Our Lord and the Rosary prepares us for the Mass.

SEMINARIANS REMAIN KNEELING as Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone confers the Minor Orders of Porter and Lector.

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REGINA: Are you seeing an increase in interest from Priests who want to learn the Extraordinary Form of the Mass?

FATHER LEE: Actually, we have. It’s quite edifying to meet these priests, usually quite busy pastors, who make so many sacrifices to learn the Mass. We believe that it has been the experience of many a priest that learning and celebrating the Extraordinary Form serves as a revitalizing and enriching element in their priesthood. Thus, after they themselves have been so spiritually nourished, they in turn are more capable and generous in tending to their own flocks. The training is quite exhausting for both the good priests who come to us and for ourselves, but it is quite rewarding. We are pleased that we can be of service to the whole Church in handing on this wonderful gift of the Mass.

REGINA: Can you tell us about their training?

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this wonderful gift which Pope Benedict XVI made more accessible for the whole Church. Following the mind of St. Thomas, during prayer, there are three objects of our attention. The first would be the first the words and actions of the prayer. The second would be the meaning of those words and actions. The third object you can pay attention to in prayer is God. One comes before two and two leads to three. With the time constraint of five days, we mainly focus on point one. We tell the priests that during the five days, we are trying to squeeze seven years of formation into five days. Repetitio est mater studiorum (Repetition is the mother of learning)! It’s been estimated that approximately 80% of the priests who have attended our Priest Training Program are celebrating the Latin Mass on a regular basis.

REGINA: What does the seminary look for in a candidate?

FATHER LEE: Traditionally, the elements of a priestly vocation are determined by examining a young man’s intellectual ability, moral virtue and attachment to the Priesthood. Personally, I look for common sense, maturity and a sense of humor.

“I PERSONALLY LIKE TO SEE A SENSE OF HUMOR. Being able to laugh has long been a manifestation of rational activity, even by the ancient Greeks. Laughter at one’s self could be a sign of humility and not just humiliation, which the seminary easily and amply provides free of charge.

The seminary can be a difficult seven years, making many costly demands on our fallen human nature. Our Lord wants every seminarian and priest to give and not simply to give, but to give cheerfully. Fortunately, our Good Lord is never outdone in generosity.”

The Ideal Priest

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REGINA: Why those three qualities?

FATHER LEE: There are a lot of things the seminary formation program can teach and offer whether it’s conducting a piece of Gregorian Chant, proving the immateriality of the soul or applying some obscure norms in the Code of Canon Law. Common sense is incredibly difficult, if not entirely impossible, to teach.

REGINA: True.

FATHER LEE: Immaturity is one of those things that’s difficult to define but easy to point out. Those who are immature grasp universal principles but the application of those universal principles in a particular situation does not happen due to problems with either the cognitive or appetitive powers. Imagine a teenager who knows he needs to get to work on time but repeatedly sleeps in due to late night partying. He knows he needs to get to work. He knows he needs to get out of bed. However, time and time again, he shows up late for work until he is eventually fired.

Regarding more serious life decisions such as marriage, the median age for marriage for men was 22. In 2011, it was 28. It’s taking longer and longer for young men to stabilize and decide on the natural level. A candidate to the seminary will suffer from this culture as he enters the seminary.

REGINA: What would you advise a young man wishing to join to do?

FATHER LEE: Get a spiritual director. Pray the rosary every day.

Visit www.fssp.org.

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Living the Truth Charity

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By Michael Durnan It’s not every day that a parishioner has the chance to quiz the Order which administers his church, but that’s exactly what REGINA writer Michael Durnan does in this far-ranging interview with Canon Jason Apple, General Prefect of the seminary of Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest. The subject is the success of their seminary, now full to overflowing with seminarians studying in the Tuscan hills outside Florence.

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REGINA: As someone who attends one of the Institute's Shrine Churches, St. Walburge in Preston, England, I know the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest has a very successful seminary. Why is this, do you think?

CANON APPLE: We must give thanks to God for any success the Institute has had in forming good priests and continue, by His grace, to try to live up to our motto, Vertitatem facientes in Caritate, “Living the Truth in Charity.” Teaching seminarians the Truth of the Faith and being charitable to one another is the secret of Christianity. Love God with your whole heart and your neighbor as yourself.

REGINA: How many seminarians are there at present and are you able to accommodate all that seek to study there?

CANON APPLE: We have eighteen new men this year and eighty-four seminarians all together, twenty of whom are spending the year away from the seminary, helping the canons in the different churches and schools of the Institute.

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“In our seminary we try follow Saint Benedict’s model of putting God first, which is why the chapel is the most important room in the house.”

- CANON APPLE

REGINA: How many young men do you accept each year to the seminary and how many are ordained per year, on average.

CANON APPLE: Divine Providence always provides so we never have to turn anyone away, but, yes, the seminary is full to capacity. We will continue to trust in God for the answer, and I must say that too little space for all the vocations is a rather good problem to have when you consider all the seminary buildings that are empty and closed. This summer we had eleven men ordained priest, compared to eight the year before.

REGINA: The Institute place not only deacons, but sub-deacons into Shrine Churches along with the ordained Canons. Could you tell us more about the pastoral experience and training the seminarians receive before they become active priests?

CANON APPLE: Most of the seminarians spend a year away from the seminary in one of our houses. They help the canons of the Institute and contribute to the community life we are called to live.

By observing, assisting, as well as by serving at sacred ceremonies, they learn many useful things for their future ministry. The deacons obviously carry out an active ministry which makes the leap to the priesthood is less drastic because of the experience they gain through it.

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Living the Truth in Charity

REGINA: Although the Institute is traditional in its formation and outlook, I've noticed the seminarians and Canons are very familiar and comfortable with the latest technology such as computers, smart phones and digital cameras and photography, along with building and operating websites. Does the Institute train its seminarians in the use of these things?

in Africa to foster the missionary spirit and then gave them a house in Italy, in the peaceful Tuscan hills by Florence. The relatively short distance from Rome helps us foster a sense of Romanitas, or closeness to the Vicar of Christ and the Holy See through prayer, of course, but also through a Roman style and little touches that show our allegiance to the Holy Roman Church, for example our habit is a Roman cassock with fringe, a recognizably Roman detail. Our Constitutions stipulate that we are to add the prayer for the Holy Father every day at Mass.

CANON APPLE: We must not leave these useful tools of evangelization in the hands of the devil, who will definitely use them whether we do or not. In and of themselves, technological advances are good and, with moderation and prudence, REGINA: I know many of the Institute's semican and should be used for God’s work as Saint narians are from France, but what other counMaximilian Kolbe believed of film in the early tries do the seminarians come from? twentieth century.

CANON APPLE: There are also seminarians There are no computer classes at the seminary from Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Italy, but any previous knowledge the seminarians Gabon, Germany, Malaysia, Nigeria, Poland, have of computers, photography, and other Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerdeveloping technologies comes in handy for our land, and the United States. Other nationalities publications and website, which are done by are represented among the canons. The majority seminarians. However, the seminarians’ access to of the seminarians today are not from France.

Internet, telephone, etc., is limited out of pruHowever, the Catholic Church has always gathdence and also to prevent them from wasting ered everyone together from every nation. We all time. love our homeland but we are Catholic first.

REGINA: Your seminary is in Gricigliano, Italy, but the Institute's founders are French and the seminarians are taught in French, so why is the Institute's seminary located in Italy and not France? Could you tell us about how you acquired the buildings and how long you have been at Gricigliano?

CANON APPLE: Divine Providence! The founders were looking for a house in France but, unexpectedly, Divine Providence wanted a foundation

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REGINA: Could you tell us about the academic and theological study undertaken by the Institute’s seminarians?

CANON APPLE: The seminarians receive a formation of at least seven years, which is two years longer than the minimum required by Canon Law.

“TRULY TRYING TO LIVE IN HARMONY AND PEACE with those God put around them here in the seminary is also the best way for a seminarian to prepare to be a loving father to the faithful who will one day be entrusted to him.”

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”THEY BEGIN WITH ONE YEAR OF DOCTRINE AND INTRODUCTORY COURSES, then complete two years of Philosophy (Natural Philosophy and Metaphysics), and finally four years of Theology (Dogmatic and Moral Theology, the Sacraments, as well as Ascetic and Mystic Theology).”

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“THEY ALSO STUDY HOLY SCRIPTURE, Canon Law and Church History, Gregorian Chant, Latin, Greek, and other subjects. Conferences on varied topics underscore important aspects of intellectual and practical life. There are two sessions of examinations, the first in February and the second in June.”

- Canon Apple

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“WE ALSO TRY TO COMPLETE THEIR HUMAN FORMATION and explain the foundation of good manners on Christian Charity so that they are polite out of love of God and true goodwill towards their neighbor.”

- CANON APPLE

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“IT IS PARTICIPATION IN THE LITURGICAL LIFE of the seminary with their superiors which prepares the seminarians to become canons because a canon is a priest who lives in community whose daily life is centered on glorifying God through as solemn a liturgy as possible for the sake of the people.”

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“OUR SPIRITUALITY is the spirituality of Saint Francis de Sales who teaches how to ‘cook the Truth in Charity until it tastes sweet’. He also teaches the renunciation of self-will for a life centered on the Love of God and of our neighbor.”

THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS at noon is the center of the day.

- Canon Apple

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“THE CROWN JEWEL OF THE MASS is surrounded by other spiritual gems throughout the day: meditation and Lauds in the morning, the office of Sext after Mass, the Rosary after lunch, Vespers in the evening, and Compline before bedtime.”

“Each seminarian chooses a priest to guide him as a spiritual father whom he sees at least once a month for spiritual direction.

Frequent sacramental confession is also obviously very important to progress in the spiritual life.” - CANON APPLE

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REGINA: Besides the seminarians’ academic study and work, what other work, of a more practical nature, do the seminarians undertake at Gricigliano?

CANON APPLE: The Institute’s seminary is not subsidized and has no endowment. There is therefore much practical work to be done.

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“Each seminarian has responsibilities and chores besides cleaning his own room.”

- CANON APPLE Regina Magazine 327

“WE ALSO INHERITED A VINEYARD and olive grove with the villa which houses the seminary.”

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“SEMINARIANS’ TASKS RANGE FROM OFFICE WORK to kitchen and laundry, gardening and many other things besides.”

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“All these are good for imparting a sense of duty and a family spirit of working for the common good.”

- CANON APPLE

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REGINA: I understand the Institute has strong connections with Gabon and has a mission there. Could you tell us a little about that?

CANON APPLE: The Institute was originally founded in Gabon with the help of Bishop Obamba of Mouila where we still have a mission.

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“We have a deacon from Gabon who grew up in our mission. He will be ordained a priest in November.”

“EVERY YEAR WE ALSO SEND A SEMINARIAN OR TWO to help the four canons and they always have a good memory of their time in Gabon. Many of them were able to return to attend for the blessing of the façade and to receive the consolation of seeing the progress of the parish and of the mission to which they contributed in years past.”

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“WE ALSO HAVE A PARISH IN THE CAPITAL CITY OF LIBREVILLE where the archbishop blessed the façade of the new church. A pontifical Mass was then celebrated by Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke who gave the papal blessing. Monsignor Agostini, Papal Master of Ceremonies, read the decree granting the papal blessing and announcing the indulgences. All of this took place in the presence of the President of Gabon, who has done much to help with the construction of the façade and who hopes to see the interior of the church done with as much splendor.” - CANON APPLE

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REGINA: Having joined the choir at St. Walburge's, after the Institute arrived in September of last year, I have learnt that music and chant is a very important part of the liturgy and worship, so music and singing must be an important component in the training of the seminarians. Can you tell us more about this?

CANON APPLE: Gregorian Chant plays a central role in the life of our seminarians. It truly is a gift from God to lift our minds up to Him. It is a form of prayer, where the words of Scripture are meditated in harmonious tranquility. We follow the famous method of the French Monastery of Solesmes which turns every syllable into prayer and worship.

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REGINA: I know the Institute celebrates Mass, and the other sacraments, in the Extraordinary Form only. What experience do the seminarians have of the EF before they arrive and what do they need to learn?

CANON APPLE: Most of the seminarians have had exposure to Latin before entering the seminary, but not all.

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“WE HAVE THREE LEVELS OF LATIN CLASSES for those who need it. Many have served Mass in the Extraordinary form and those for whom it is new learn during their first year to serve low mass and then move on to learning the different roles in the solemn mass year by year. It is fascinating to see how the liturgy and its language amalgamate so many different peoples and temperaments, as it always has done.” CANON APPLE 338 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

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THOMISM, THE FRIARS AND THE TRUTH The Dominicans in Washington, DC Article By: Meghan Ferrara

Photo Credits: Fr Lawrence Lew, OP

F

or 800 years, the Dominicans have been forming priests at the heart of the Catholic Church. Nowhere is this more evident than in a truly Catholic, amazing seminary like that of the Eastern Dominican Province of St. Joseph in Washington, D.C.

Recently, REGINA Magazine’s Meghan Ferrara sat down with Fr. Andrew Hofer, OP master of students at the Dominican House of Studies, to discuss his seminary’s extraordinary work.

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REGINA: What is the Dominican House of Studies?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: The Dominican House of Studies is an English translation of the Latin term “studium” as it applies to the Order of Preachers. It includes both the Priory of the Immaculate Conception, founded in 1905 on the occasion of the U.S. Eastern Dominican Province of St. Joseph’s 100th anniversary, and the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception. The Prior, the elected local superior, heads the priory and the President of the Pontifical Faculty heads the school.

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“AFTER THE NOVITIATE, professed brothers are sent to the House of Studies where they study to be preachers of the Gospel. Most of the brothers are clerical, meaning that they are studying to be ordained to the priesthood. Some of our students are cooperator brothers, meaning that they are Dominican friars, just as the clerical brothers are, but they are not called to be priests. St. Martin de Porres from Lima, Peru is probably the Order’s most famous non-clerical brother. “

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Thomism, the Friars and the Truth

REGINA: What is a Pontifical Faculty?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: In 1941, our school was raised to be a pontifical faculty of theology, an honor and responsibility given to few seminaries in the United States of America. The Holy See has special oversight of pontifical faculties throughout the world, which grant pontifical degrees, degrees that one would receive in Rome. Among the degrees that we are authorized to grant are the Bachelor of Sacred Theology (comparable to a Master’s degree), the License of Sacred Theology, and the Doctor of Sacred Theology.

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the Association of Theological Schools also civilly accredits the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception. We grant the civil degrees of the Master of Divinity and the Master of Arts. Thanks to the Thomistic Institute within the Pontifical Faculty, we also grant degrees that are specialized in the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, the Common Doctor of the Church.

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REGINA: What is special about St. Thomas Aquinas for your Pontifical Faculty?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: According to the Second Vatican Council’s Optatam Totius and the Code of Canon Law, men who study for the priesthood are supposed to have St. Thomas Aquinas as their teacher in dogmatic theology. In fact, St. Thomas is the only theologian singled out by the Second Vatican Council and the Code of Canon Law for this honor.

REGINA: Really? We didn’t realize this!

FR. ANDREW HOFER: Since the thirteenth century, the Order of Preachers has claimed St. Thomas’s teaching in a special way as its own. You could say that we Dominicans have a great interest in fulfilling the Catholic Church’s call to have St. Thomas as a teacher in priestly formation. His teaching is God-centered, pastoral, dialogical, open to further questions, and true. People really need to hear the truth.

REGINA: Speaking of truth, we understand that you have quite a lot of seminarians!

FR. ANDREW HOFER: We usually have about 100 students in our student body for the different graduate degree programs. About half are Dominican brothers. Because the priory had over 80 resident friars last year and was running out of space, the Dominican Province of St. Joseph set up a new studentate of deacons at St. Dominic’s Priory, a priory and parish established in the 19th century near L’Enfant Plaza here in DC. The school retains its original purpose of forming Dominican brothers, and has brothers from both the Priory of the Immaculate Conception and St. Dominic’s Priory.

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REGINA: What do your Friars go on to do?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: The Dominican friars formed here go on to serve the Church and the Order in many capacities. The Dominican Province of St. Joseph sponsors Providence College in Rhode Island, the only liberal arts college in the U.S.A. run

by Dominican friars. We also have seventeen parishes, three of which are university parishes with campus ministries, and six additional campus ministries—including service at schools such as Dartmouth, Brown, Johns Hopkins, New York University, and the University of Virginia.

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REGINA: Do any go outside the US? FR. ANDREW HOFER: This Province has responsibility over the Vicariate of Eastern Africa, and we presently have one priory and two smaller houses in Kenya. As preachers in the Catholic Church, we also have friars dedicated to itinerant preaching and others who serve in various teaching capacities, including at The Catholic University of America.

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HOW CATHOLICS ARE KEEPING CHRISTMAS 2015 Coming in the November issue of REGINA Magazine FREE CLICK HERE Regina Magazine 351

“MANY RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES ESTABLISHED HOUSES NEAR CUA AFTER IT WAS FOUNDED IN 1887. We are directly across Michigan Avenue from CUA and diagonally opposite the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. Both CUA’s School of Theology and Religious Studies and our own Pontifical Faculty are members of the Washington Theological Consortium, an ecumenical association that offers benefits such as cross-registration and library borrowing privileges. Our friars also have been teaching at CUA for many decades, 352 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

and our presence at CUA has reached beyond the discipline of Theology. For example, Father Gilbert Hartke, O.P., founded CUA’s Department of Speech and Drama, and Fathers Ignatius Smith, O.P., and Kurt Pritzl, O.P., served as Deans of CUA’s School of Philosophy. Every year we celebrate the Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas in January near the beginning of the spring semester with CUA, which honors him as the patron of Catholic education and as its own proper patron, in a festive Mass at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.”

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“FOR SEVERAL DECADES THE SCHOOL HAS BEEN OPEN TO STUDENTS BESIDES DOMINICAN FRIARS. Some religious communities have a formal cooperation with our school, and we attract additional religious—both men and women. We also have laymen and women and diocesan priests studying with us. Besides our typical study body of about 100 students, in the summertime we additionally have about 25 Nashville Dominican Sisters study with us.”

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REGINA: Do you train teachers and professors?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: Aside from priestly and religious ministries, our graduates (religious, clerical, and lay) often have jobs of teaching and service to the Church and to the world.

Some go on to Ph.D. programs. For example, in the past six years we have had eight graduates (five Dominican, one Benedictine, and two lay) in doctoral programs in Theology at the University of Notre Dame.

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SACRED MUSIC, FROM OUR HOUSE TO YOURS.

TWO ALBUMS FROM THE SCHOLA CHOIR AT THE DOMINICAN HOUSE OF STUDIES IN WASHINGTON, D.C. FEATURING CHANT AND POLYPHONIC TREASURES FROM THE CHURCH'S MUSICAL TRADITION.

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“One guest to our priory’s liturgy once told me that she loved coming to pray with us because the liturgy is so reverent. A student brother serves as porter from 6:30 to 7:00 am to welcome people to the Mass and Morning Prayer.”

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”FRIARS TYPICALLY PLACE GREAT EMPHASIS ON THE LITURGICAL HOMILY, as we want to be true to the charism of the Order of Preachers.”

“I think our choral office is quite beautiful, and it is usually accompanied by the organ. Many of our brothers have outstanding musical gifts.

We currently have eleven student brothers who can play the organ. Our schola usually numbers about twenty student brothers, and they spend a lot of time learning various types of music, especially Latin pieces appropriate for the feasts to be celebrated. Student brothers serve as acolytes, lectors, cantors, sacristans, house chapel custodians, and florists. A lot of effort is made to worship God with reverence.”

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Knights of Columbus Traditional Latin Mass Association “Equites Traditionis”

Join Knights from around the world promoting the traditional Latin Liturgy. We have monthly conference calls to discuss various ways of accomplishing this and to coordinate collaborative events www.kofclatinmass.org Join today!

“OUR HORARIUM, OR LITURGICAL SCHEDULE, IS FULL. After the morning liturgy, on weekdays we have Rosary and Midday Prayer at noon, Office of Readings and Evening Prayer at 5:30 p.m., and Night Prayer at 9:00 p.m.”

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REGINA: Besides studying and praying, what else do your brothers in formation do?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: It is true that the brothers study and pray a lot; that is what most of a typical week is about for student brothers. But there are also other duties for them. They are gradually introduced to pastoral ministries, such as campus ministry, teaching in RCIA, caring for the poor and elderly, teaching in schools, serving at parishes, etc. Before a brother is ordained to the priesthood, he will have had many years of ministry experiences both part-time during the academic year and full-time in summer assignments within our Dominican Province and Order.

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REGINA: Do Friars have chores?

FR. ANDREW HOFER: In addition to pastoral work each week during the academic year, the brothers also do what we call regular “bellman work,” such as maintaining the community’s cars, computers, and library, as well as working in the advancement office, and so forth, plus being on rotation to clean bathrooms, cook Sunday dinners, waiter our family-style weekday formal dinners, etc.

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Thomism, the Friars and the Truth

“The brothers also love to recreate regularly in a variety of ways such as playing sports like soccer, softball, and basketball; playing board games; playing musical instruments, including Bluegrass music; watching movies or sports on television; listening to music; reading; or going out to see the sites of Washington, DC and its environs. It’s good that the brothers enjoy one another’s company. They truly are brothers in the Lord and in our holy father St. Dominic.”

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REGINA: What would you advise a young man wishing to join your com FR. ANDREW HOFER: Be open to the Holy Spirit and contact the Vocatio Vocation Director has what are called aspirancy guidelines, expectations should and should not be doing if he thinks that God is calling him to be friar in the Province of St. Joseph. The Vocation Director may invite the m House of Studies for a Vocation Weekend. We have four Vocation Weeke it’s a time for young men to experience something of the Dominican life about the Dominican life, meet the brethren, and especially pray to the L being called to take up his cross and follow Jesus in the way that St. Dom 368 Regina Magazine | Amazing Education

mmunity to do? on Director! The s of what a man e a Dominican man to come to the ends each year, and here, listen to talks Lord to see if he is minic did.

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ANDREW HOFER: 2016 will mark the 800th anniversary of the Order’s papal approbation. Dominicans believe that Our Lady interceded with her Son and expressed her desire for this Order of Preachers for the salvation of the world. A man interested in this vocation today should turn to the help of Our Lady of the Rosary, and she will guide him in the mysteries of salvation of Jesus Christ. He is Lord and Savior of us all.

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In the Austria

Living Ignatian Spirituality & Theology with the Se

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an Alps

& Dominican ervi

Founded in 1988, the Servants of Jesus and Mary are an Order of Papal Right. They are based in Blindenmarkt, in the district of Melk in lower Austria. Today, the Order has 50 members, of which 30 are priests working closely with the Scouts in Europe, as well as in parishes in Austria, Germany, Belgium, France and Kazakhstan. Here, REGINA writer Christoph Pitsch interviews Fr Christoph Markus, the Prefect of Students for the seminary.

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In The Austrian Alps

REGINA: Why would a young man seek out your Seminary?

FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS: Actually the main reason why anyone enters a seminary is (hopefully) the Lord who calls a young man into this or another seminary.

REGINA: How do young men find you?

FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS: Many know our congregation from our youth movement, especially the Scout movement „Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas“ and spiritual guidance.

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“Still for others, our appreciation for both forms of the Roman Rite (ordinary and extraordinary form) is the reason for their entry. There are not many seminaries in the German speaking world which go the bi-ritual way.”

- FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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“Finally, others wish to study in a seminary whose teachings are in conformity with the Magisterium.”

- FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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In The Austrian Alps

REGINA: Can you describe the seminary’s spirituality?

FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS: Our spirituality is Ignatian. We live according to the rules of St Ignatius, which he developed for the Jesuit Order. Our routine is affected by this spirituality: daily one hour of contemplation, twice Examen conscientiae, dedication to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Holy Mass, but no choral prayers. Additionally, rosary and dedication to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

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“The liturgy is culmen et fons not only of the ecclesiastical life but also for our spirituality. Daily Mass is the most important, most beautiful and most striking “task“ for our members. Therefore Mass has to be the center, with absolute priority.

We attach importance to an accurate and reverent way of celebrating Holy Mass – in both forms.”

- FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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REGINA: What is the seminary’s theological approach?

FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS: In theology we do not follow the tradition of the Jesuit order, but rather the Dominican way, also regarding the interpretation of St. Thomas Aquinas who plays an important role in our curriculum.

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“EVERY MEMBER HAS TO KNOW AND TO CELEBRATE BOTH FORMS though of course personal preferences are allowed. In our seminary we celebrate both forms in a balanced way, the forma ordinaria also in Latin, but not solely.”

--FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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“IN THE PARISHES we choose each form according to the expected spiritual benefit for the faithful.”

--FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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“LIVING DAILY LIFE FROM HOLY MASS is very important.

We try to keep connected to the Eucharistic Lord, in our heart but also physically when visiting the Tabernacle.”

--FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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“OUR COMMUNITY should provide an atmosphere where one can grow in their relationship to the Lord.”

--FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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“IN THE COMMUNITY is the environment which supports the growing in Christ in order to act for the salvation of the souls. Of course, for this an amicable spirit is necessary within the community, but – again – the community is not an end in itself.”

“MAYBE ONE THING IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO SAY: our Order has its roots in the Scout movement; our first members were all Scouts. This no longer the case today. But I think that one characteristic of our community is a simple way of life; i.e. the willingness to live with less material goods and to do our own housework– the cooking, cleaning, etc.”

- FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS

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REGINA: What would you suggest that a young man interested in your seminary do?

FR CHRISTOPH MARKUS: Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Get to know our community, through religious exercises, living with us together for a short time or participating in activities in the parishes.

Visit the SJM website

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The Secret of the Seminaire de la Castille Article By: Daniel Rabourdin

Photo Credits: Courtesy of the Seminary

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t’s one of the bright lights of Catholic France. Nestled on a hillside overlooking the azure Mediterranean sea, the Seminaire de la Castille today has an astonishing 53 seminarians – this, at a time when most of France’s seminaries are nearly empty, and many are quietly closing. What is the secret of the Seminaire?

REGINA Magazine’s Daniel Rabourdin recently sat down with Father Jean-Noel Dol, PhD, Superior of the Castille Seminary of the diocese of Fréjus-Toulon to find out.

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REGINA: Why should a seminarian choose your seminary?

FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL: For several reasons! First, we are set in an idyllic environment: on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in a large estate surrounded by vineyards and mountains, with an 18th century castle.

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“Our seminary is built on three clearly defined pillars: 1) fidelity to the Tradition and Magisterium of the Church; 2) primacy of the spiritual life (daily hour of adoration, spiritual accompaniment); 3) a clear commitment to the new evangelization of Europe and our parishes, by developing in our seminarians a true pastoral zeal and knowledge of new means of evangelization; 4) finally, a warm welcome to the new communities and members of new communities as well as the various charisms that come to life in the Universal and local Church.” FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL Regina Magazine 395

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REGINA: Sounds beautiful. Any other reasons?

FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL: Then, because we live in a vibrant diocese. It is famous in France for its many pastoral initiatives and wealth of ecclesial life.

REGINA: How would you describe your spirituality?

FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL: Our spirituality is first liturgical, with all services sung together morning, evening and in the middle of the day at Mass. This is so that all of us, in our international diversity, are gathered in the unanimous praise of the Lord.

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OUR LITURGY ASPIRES TO BE BEAUTIFUL AND PURE, IN THE SERVICE OF THE ALTAR, in the songs (that borrow from both traditional repertoire and contemporary praises). We are committed to adhere to the liturgical calendar of the Church in marking the difference between weekdays, memories, celebrations and feasts. Every Monday, Mass is celebrated in Latin – the universal language of the Church - and once a month according to the Tridentine liturgy, so our seminarians know the extraordinary form of the rite and are able to celebrate it as priests in the future if it is requested of them.

“In terms of schools of spirituality, we draw on three main sources: 1) Carmelite, with the emphasis on interior prayer; 2) French School of the 17th century (Bérulle, Ollier, etc.), centered on the Incarnation and the spirituality of the priesthood; 3) Finally, Jesuit for the discernment of God’s will and his particular call.” FATHER JEAN-NOEL

The Secret of the Seminaire de la Castille

REGINA: What is the atmosphere like?

FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL: The atmosphere in the seminary of Castille is brotherly and joyful. The 50 seminarians are very diverse in their ages, their country of origin, their intellectual capacities, the catholic communities to which they may belong. But everyone knows how to welcome the other, in a true fraternal charity, which prepares to the future communion in the presbyterium of the diocese.

The Secret of the Seminaire de la Castille

WORKERS IN THE VINEYARD OF THE LORD: “To a young man who wishes to join us, I would ask first if he has discerned his vocation, over time, with the accompaniment of a spiritual father, with an Ignatian retreat. If this is the case, I would ask him if he is ready to give his life, with conviction and generosity to the Lord and the service of the Church, with a real concern for the salvation of souls; and for this if he is ready to spend seven years of spiritual, biblical, theological, pastoral formation to become a priest after the heart of God. If this is the case, welcome to the Castille, and may the Lord continue in him the action that he has started!”

- FATHER JEAN-NOEL DOL Contact:

General email / Superior / Website

543 Springfield Avenue Summit, New Jersey 07901 908.273.1228

95 years

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Help the ‘Soap Sisters’ Into their Second Century This 95 year old Order of cloistered Dominicans in New Jersey is growing with new, young vocations.

They need your help to repair their old buildings and build anew. With Christmas coming, consider purchasing their handmade soaps and creams, all made with love right on their premise. Click HERE -and God bless you!

Visit the Dominicans of Summit, NJ

Click here

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The Homeschooling Chronicles Parents love it. Most education experts don’t know what to make of it. Regardless, the phenomenon continues to grow, to more than a million homeschooling families in the US today -- and no one knows how many of them are Catholic. In these photo essays, REGINA visits veteran homeschoolers in the USA and England.

AMERICAN REVOLUTION The Inside Story on Seton Homeschooling Article By: Bridget Green

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he may not look like a revolutionary, but make no mistake about it – Mary Kay Clark most definitely is. In 1980, she and Catholic educator Anne Carroll embarked on a shoestring start-up homeschooling adventure which has become an astonishing American success story. With the expansion of the internet’s capabilities and reach, today 14,000 students are enrolled and 30,000 families are using Seton materials in 44 countries.

But how does such an American dream get started? REGINA writer Bridget Green, a homeschooling mother of six, recently interviewed Mary Kay to learn more about this amazing story.

REGINA: What originally prompted you to begin homeschooling?

MARY KAY CLARK: Along with a group of Catholic parents, I started and was the principal of a private Catholic grade school in Columbus, Ohio, which my sons attended.

REGINA: So they had a good basic education, then.

MARY KAY CLARK: When my oldest son reached high school, I sent him to a Catholic boys’ high school. Long before the year was over, I realized that the curriculum was decidedly not Catholic, and my son would not even ride home in a car with any of the boys. I decided to home school him at home the following year along with my second son who was just starting high school. They did their home schooling mainly during the day while I worked, which I checked over in the evening and on weekends.

REGINA: How did you become involved with Seton?

American Revolution MARY KAY CLARK: Anne Carroll had started Seton about the same time I started the school in Columbus, so we knew each other fairly well. Dr. Carroll and I had discussed the need for our materials to be made available for those who could not travel to our schools. She hired me to write a curriculum based on the school I had been running for ten years.

REGINA: And today you are still very much involved. Why is that?

MARY KAY CLARK: As the founder, I want to remain involved as long as possible to keep the Catholic philosophy in the curriculum. I do have confidence that my sons will continue it, so I have no worries. Nevertheless, I hire the writers as well as read, proof, and even edit the books and online courses, though I have others who help me.

REGINA: Seton’s study program is designed to adjust the program to fit the child. How does this work for the average student?

MARY KAY CLARK: Parents are free to adjust the lesson plans, subject by subject, especially the rate of learning the lessons, as they believe is best for their child. In a classroom, the slower are left behind struggling, the bright are bored. Nothing beats individualized instruction. I do think it is important for fathers to be involved also because often they have strengths in different areas than moms.

We even encourage older brothers and sisters to help teach the younger children, which strengthens the older students as well.

REGINA: What is it that sets Seton apart from other programs?

MARY KAY CLARK: Honestly, I have not had the time to look at other programs. We just keep going and thinking about how to make Seton learning better and easier for

students as well as moms and dads teaching.

My sons and I as well as others who have been on our staff for many years have dedicated our lives to helping Catholic families. After more than thirty years, many of us who work here are related, so everyone is ready to help everyone else! Several of us here are working well past “retirement” age. We often talk about Seton being a “families to families” apostolate.

REGINA: Why did you seek out certification?

MARY KAY CLARK: Almost from the beginning of Seton, we have been certified by one organization or another because we want our students to be able to attend college without the problem of possible difficulty being accepted from a program without certification.

We have never been pressured in any way about our curriculum. Never.

REGINA: What prompted you to start publishing your own books?

MARY KAY CLARK: When we started Seton, Catholic books were going out of print and Catholic publishers were going out of business because Catholic schools started using secular books provided by the states in the late sixties and early seventies. For the first couple of years, we had to rent books being thrown out by the Catholic schools. Almost immediately, however, we started writing Catholic textbooks. A printer had a printing press in his home and ran off the first books for us.

REGINA: What are the problems with publishing Catholic science books?

MARY KAY CLARK: Seton is continually pressured to publish Catholic books as fast as possible, yet we need to have writers who are specialists in the subject area. Many science writers know their material, but many have

difficulty writing science books for children.

We now have Catholic science books and two online science courses, and more are being produced, but it takes much longer to check for accuracy regarding all the scientific details.

ture which is in the air we breathe and via the many different types of media, and is reflected in the schoolbooks, the teachers, and even the schoolchildren, Catholic parents really have no choice. PHOTO: Class at Regina Caelorum Academy in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania If you believe it is too much of a struggle, ask the children’s grandparents or friends who are home schooling to help you during the first year.

REGINA: If you could give one piece of advice to families considering homeschooling, what would it be?

MARY KAY CLARK: If you want your children to practice the Catholic Faith and to reach eternal happiness in Heaven with Jesus Seton’s high-quality instruction and materials and Mary and, hopefully, with you and your are now available online. Click here. spouse, you need to take the responsibility to teach your children! In the current secular cul-

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FUN WITH ST. MONICA’S Good Times with a 250-Family Homeschooling Group Article By: Priscilla Mc Caffrey

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Photo Credits: Kristin Gawley, Monica McCaffrey Patti Ward, Lynn Wehner, Julie Weyant Luke Weyant

•

ow can Catholics build community when they hail from widely-separated parishes and locales? In this remarkable photo essay, Priscilla Mc Caffrey explains how it’s been done for two decades, quietly and effectively, by one sizeable group of homeschoolers spread across two states in the Northeastern US.

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OUR HOME IS IN WESTERN CONNECTICUT so over the years we have enjoyed the benefits of knowing two homeschooling groups, one in near-by New York and the other in more central Connecticut.

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St Monica’s

GAMES GALORE: In Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, a beautiful 4000 acre park in Westchester County, New York, the annual Kelley picnic hosts games for all – including one where my daughters join friends and Moms for the soccer match for 13 yr. olds and up.

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ON THE SIDELINES: There are players and spectators from dozens of large and small families.

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The Patrolman’s Fraternity of St. Michael Do good. Avoid evil. Join today.

The Patrolman’s Fraternity of St. Michael

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THE VIEW FROM THE PARK: The parking lot, as usual for any of these events, looks like a mini-van convention.

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St Monica’s

SIZABLE FAMILIES, SENSIBLE CARS, REASONABLE REFRESHMENTS -- a supply of water and light beverages, a camping pot for hot tea, a coffee box from Duncan Donuts, or later in the day perhaps vino or beer will make their appearance.

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THE ENTIRE PICNIC, A COOK-OUT FOR 250 PEOPLE, happens without too many missives sent to too many people.

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THE KELLEY FAMILY HAS HOSTED THIS FOR YEARS and bears the organizational burden; captains are established for competitions, games, play, food and clean-up.

THE REST OF US agree to contribute and it happens.

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St Monica’s

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EACH FAMILY RETURNS HOME WITH WEARY CHILDREN AND HAPPY MEMORIES of the annual Kelley Picnic, grateful for the group of friends who come under the umbrella of St. Monicaʼs.

WHO BELONGS TO ST. MONICAʼS? Anyone in the area who considers their family a homeschooling Catholic family and gets on the email list for posts.

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St Monica’s

THERE’S NO MEMBERSHIP FEES. No official calendar. Lots of prayers offered and requested.

BESIDES THE KELLEY PICNIC, St Monica’s has evolved over the years so that there are several events throughout the year that usually one family arranges for all or part of the group.

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ANOTHER ANNUAL FAVORITE IS THE BRADLEY PUMPKIN PARTY, with autumn ambiance to rival anything out of Hollywood -- a cross between Nanny McFee and Meet Me in St. Louie.

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IN THE ROLLING HILLS OF AVON, CT. WE ATTEND A YEARLY MUSICAL PERFORMANCE put on by the members of Adoro Te homeschooling group. It is spectacular.

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St Monica’s

THE YOUNG ACTORS AGES FIVE TO EIGHTEEN HAVE AN INTENSE REHEARSAL SCHEDULE FOR TWO TO THREE WEEKS AND SING AND DANCE AND ENTERTAIN IN OUTSTANDING FORM. It is a credit to extremely gifted moms whose talents would grace any corporation, university, chemistry lab or theater, and to eager and cheerful students. Iʼve seen many children blossom in the atmosphere of expectant charity. (‘We know you can do this!’)

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WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE SEVERAL OF THESE PERFORMANCES ON AN OUTDOOR STAGE ON EXQUISITE DAYS IN JUNE, with gardens in bloom and tables on the lawn for 300 picnickers.

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ADORO TE WITH ITS WEEKLY FRIDAY ACTIVITIES which include clubs of interest, making lunch bags for the homeless, and easy access to Mass and Confession, encourages young people to be true lovers of life. My humble contribution is to host the annual teen hike in Hemlock Hills before the trees leaf out in April. Love that first splash of sun they come back with. There is also year-long tennis organized by another of the indefatigable moms.

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THERE ARE TWO SCHEDULED DANCES EACH YEAR, the Fall Ball for families and Silver and Gold for the young people in high school and those returned from college.

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VENDORS REALIZE WE ARE A NICHE --middle-of-the-schoolweek customers -- and have come to enjoy us. They gladly work with sizable groups with a lot of younger tag-alongs.

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St Monica’s

ORGANIZATION, GENEROSITY AND SOLID FRIENDSHIPS make this homeschooling group a success.

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THE ONLY PROBLEM FOR MY CHILDREN HAS BEEN deciding whose bus to travel on to Washington, DC, for the March for Life.

They are all joyful witnesses who mean to have a good time, even when a six hour journey lands them in a snowdrift and delays them by a night. ( Just more time for dancing!)

Priscilla Mc Caffrey is an editor at Roman Catholic Books. She is in her last year of homeschooling and grateful for the remarkable homeschoolers she has met. She recommends that interested folks check out the St. Monicaʼs site – for new members and information on current events, upcoming activities, and items of interest to homeschoolers.

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A Very English Education Homeschooling in England

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hey have been carrying on, in the time-honored English manner.

Amanda Lewin (left) runs the monthly Catholic Home Schooling group at the Oxford Oratory. Her blog is designed to support Catholic families battling with the UK secular system. Kathryn Hennessey lives in Reading, where she has been homeschooling since 1999. Here, they take time out of their busy days to discuss their experience doing what’s simply ‘not done’ in England – homeschooling their children.

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A Very English Education

REGINA: When did you begin homeschooling, and why?

REGINA: It’s pretty amazing how a book can really galvanize one’s thinking, right?

Amanda: I discovered home schooling via a good friend who was about to begin home schooling too and I read a lot of John Holt. I researched it thoroughly and found to my joy that there were many resources and I especially loved the Montessori philosophy. I then implemented a Montessori way of teaching, making many of my own Montessori materials. We didn't have access to the web then and I used the library all the time.

Kathryn: That book helped me to clarify my thoughts. It also forced me to ask some serious questions about my faith and how important it was going to be in the education of our children. Mary Kay Clark’s advice, ‘Before you do anything else, make a novena’, made me realise that I hadn’t really been looking at the question of education from a truly faith-filled perspective. I’d been very pragmatic; I had not been thinking of the issue from a supernatural perspective. I hadn’t asked the simple yet fundamental question: what does God want me to do?

As soon as I did that, all the fears and the arguments against home-education evaporated and I felt a lot of peace about the decision. I was under pressure from my family to start ‘schooling’ our eldest child was four. With hindsight I can see that it was counterproductive as he just wasn’t ready for’ proper lessons’.

After a few frustrating weeks I gave up the attempt and instead we just played a lot, talked a lot, visited people and places. He was still learning but in a much more informal (and, for his age, a much more effective) way.

Kathryn: A friend was home-educating her five year old and she produced a newsletter to support Catholic home-educators. She gave me a copy, but my eldest was only a baby then and I remember thinking, 'No way am I doing that, it sounds far too difficult!”

I felt sure that the schools couldn't be so bad. And I kept telling myself that, right up until the day came to enrol him. I really did not want to home-educate: I suspect now that I was simply afraid: of what people would say, of giving up my 'me time', of not being able to cope - the usual fears. However, faced with the realities of sex-education for five year olds and a heterodox religious education programme, I started reading. A few quotes from papal encyclicals on the duties of parents led me to pick up Mary Kay Clark's 'Catholic Homeschooling.' See REGINA’s interview with Mary Kaye Clark in this issue.

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REGINA: Have you used/do you use on (online or on paper) homeschooling program?

Kathryn: No, we've always done our own thing, mainly because in the UK there are no Catholic home-education programmes. We simply don't have anything similar to your Mother of Divine Grace, Seton Homeschool etc. Many of us use American books (especially for teaching the faith) and some families actually sign up to a whole programme so that their children gain an HSD at the end of it.

However, I would say that most just dip in, or use the programmes for primary school then move over to the UK system for secondary level. Our two systems are very different and it isn't really possible to mix and match them, since our system is based almost entirely on public exams taken at ages 16 and 18, for which there are very strict specifications. If we want our children to take these, we are obliged to use the required (secular) textbooks.

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Amanda: We once tried an online course called CLLA (Catholic Liberal Arts Academy) which I thought at the time was an answer to prayer as it followed the classical curriculum which I am greatly fond of, but it wasn't successful with our then 10 year old son Samuel. I have always preferred to create my own lessons for the children when they were young.

One can be spontaneous and use interesting materials and also concentrate on what the child enjoys and is interested in. I loosely followed a classical curriculum and bought some books from America (Catholic ones which were unavailable here) and then added my own materials and books. Once the child reaches IGCSE standard, and that can be anywhere between 11-16 yrs old here) there are many courses and tutors available to study these subjects from home but they are more rigorous than the GCSEs a schooled child would sit so usually home schooled children space them out over a few years or do less subjects.

A Very English Education

“One can be spontaneous and use interesting materials and also concentrate on what the child enjoys and is interested in.”

REGINA: How did your friends, neighbors and family react to your decision?

Kathryn: The problem with home-education in England is that, historically speaking, it stems from groups of families who were essentially 'unschoolers' – John Holt style. Of course there are a lot of secular parents who do take teaching very seriously, but the image of the wild, barefoot, untutored, undisciplined child still dominates in the public mind. Unfortunately, for people who have no direct experience of it, home-education is simply not regarded as a serious option. So, we were not at all surprised that our own families and friends were strongly opposed to it. We faced comments like, 'You will ruin their chances of doing well,' or, worse, 'You'll ruin their lives – and your own. It's just not normal.' Our parents were understandably concerned about the stress levels on us (and their grandchildren not 'achieving their potential'), whilst our friends were more concerned about the children growing up odd. In short, just about everyone thought it was a VERY bad idea and they were sure we would regret it.

Amanda: Home schooling is still rare in England but we were met with fascination rather than disdain. The friends I have who have children in school thought it was intriguing and many people didn't even realise it ​ was legal. My family were extremely supportive and although it wasn't something they would have considered they gave me much moral support and encouragement.

Kathryn: Have they changed their minds? I think on the whole, yes. Our children have followed a fairly standard approach to education in terms of public exams etc. and they seem perfectly able to socialise. The apocalyptic scenarios of ruined lives have thankfully never come to fruition! More specifically, our practising Catholic friends and family have certainly been struck by the fact that unlike many teenagers, our sons do take their faith seriously (even if as teenagers they struggle with it at times). It was a great joy to me, when a year or so ago my mother in law, who had been strongly opposed to our original decision, wrote to me about a new (dreadful) RE scheme for Catholic schools and said, 'Thank God you are home-schooling'.

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REGINA: How has the schooling your children have received compared with the state schools in your area?

Kathryn: The main difference I would say is at Primary Level. In the UK we have pretty strict rules about what children are supposed to be learning and achieving from the age of four and all schools have to abide by the rules. Many years ago I became convinced that early formal schooling did more harm than good, especially for boys, and this led me to take a much more relaxed approach to early years learning. Thankfully in England we have very liberal laws on home-education: so long as you have never registered your child with a school, you will not automatically be registered with the authorities and, in effect, you can teach what you like when you like.

The law states that 'all children from the age of five must receive an education suitable to their age, ability and aptitudes, at school or otherwise' but it does not require that the education provided be in line with what schools teach and, moreover, education itself is nowhere defined in law. So, we have a lot freedom and we take advantage of that.

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Amanda: I think homeschooling ​is incomparable to any school. Children enjoy a different style of learning, even if the structure of their day is similar to what they would experience in school. Firstly there is virtual one-to-one teaching so the child receives complete attention from the mother and therefore it is more likely a subject will be better understood and the mother will be very clear on the standard and capability of the child. There is no legal requirement to follow the national curriculum although some people do.

Kathryn: In our own family, we don't seriously get into gear with 'proper' school-style curricula and syllabi until the exams approach, about age thirteen onwards. I have found, however, that by the age of 16 my children are just about in the same place as their peers - though I hope they have a had a less pressured and more pleasant time getting there! The focus on exams in the UK system is somewhat unfortunate inasmuch as it can cause teachers to teach to the test and lose sight of the equally important job of encouraging the child to use his own brain and engage critically with the material in front of him. For us, home-education allows us a broader approach.

A Very English Education

Amanda: Things like team games and group participation are less easy (although many families have many children like a mini class!) but the presumption that children who are home educated do not take part in sports is wrong. My children have enjoyed, and continue to enjoy lots of sports including rugby, ​ football​, etc.

Amanda: We are blessed to live in an area which is steeped in history and has many​ ancient buildings from Roman times to the present day. These help to bring history alive for children more than any number of dusty old textbooks would. I am certain that we visit many more places of interest than schoolchildren ever have the chance to.

REGINA: England is full of sites that are key to understanding the history of the West. Has visiting these places been part of your homeschooling?

REGINA: What sites have you visited?

Kathryn: Absolutely! My husband read History at Oxford and has managed to pass on his enthusiasm to several of our children. Each year he takes a posse of children to the re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings in Sussex, which attracts people from all over Europe (most either fight or sell their wares: we once bought a replica Saxon mead horn which is passed around on dark winter’s nights whilst Daddy recites Beowulf....).

Kathryn: We are lucky to live near a Roman amphitheatre, in the old town of Calleva Atrebatum: just the other day my youngest were having gladiatorial battles there. It was great fun. You could almost hear the cheers as the emperor (Daddy) was giving the thumbs up or thumbs down.

Amanda: In recent years we have visited a Roman villa, several manor houses that were used to hide priests during the Reformation, and many other fascinating sites.

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REGINA: Do you live near historical places? Have you attended re-enactments?

Kathryn: In our own town of Reading we have the remains of a medieval abbey: Blessed Hugh Farringdon was martyred there during the reign of Henry VIII and Henry I is buried there (under what is now the car park). The town museum contains the world’s only full size replica of the Bayeux tapestry, woven by local women in the 1800’s (it is huge).

PHOTO: Battle of Hastings

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A Very English Education

Amanda: We attended many ‘living history’ days which were wonderful and the children would partake in these and learn so much. We’ve been to historical re-enactments which are greatly loved by the children, and my husband and I, too!

Kathryn: We are blessed to have plenty of Saxon, medieval and Roman sites to choose from, but my children’s favourite is probably Hadrian’s Wall. It is so impressive and has everything a boy could want. So long as you’ve brought your wooden sword you can really pretend you were there – or at least that you were an extra in the film ‘The Eagle’!

PHOTO: At the re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings

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REGINA: Many people fear that homeschooling will affect their children's ability to socialise with their peers. Have you found this to be the case?

Amanda: I absolutely do not agree with this statement....I believe school is both an artificial and unusual environment which doesn't depict normal life.

Kathryn: I believe that the ability to socialise depends first and foremost on the personality of the child rather than on the form of education which he receives.

When a schooled child suffers problems with socialisation we are told that 'some children are just shy' and will come out of their shell in their own time...yet if that child is home-educated everyone will immediately blame the fact that he or she has never been to school.

Amanda: Being in a class with 30 other children their own age is not a natural way to live whereas home schooled children interact all the time with all different age groups and people. They learn to converse with adults and are usually more inquisitive as they have the freedom to ask questions and inquire whereas in school one is being more spoon fed.

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Kathryn: Personally I would argue that much of the socialisation in schools is negative and damaging, and it is ironic that in the face of endless reports of the dreadful things going on in schools, people still maintain that keeping a child out of school will damage him. Quite often, it is the opposite which is true.

REGINA: How are homeschooled children socialized differently?

Amanda: Homeschooled children learn to converse freely with adults and older children and feel free to ask questions and direct the course of the conversation. More so than in school where teachers are too busy to spend more than a minute or two with a single child each day and there is very little opportunity to discuss matters with children in different years.

Kathryn: When you have a fairly large number of children you begin to see quite quickly that you have been blessed with all manner of different personalities and that it is not essentially what you do which makes them who they are: God has made them that way! Some are bold and confident, some are shy. I don’t think home-education is necessarily a major factor in this.

A Very English Education

Amanda: We attended two homeschooling groups for many years and I now run the monthly Catholic one. They do usually have less friends than schooled children yet these friendships are usually stronger as they choose their friends rather than being thrown together in a classroom. I find all my six children to be extremely sociable and outgoing, unafraid to ask questions and are inquisitive and have a hunger for learning and life which is beautiful to see.

Kathryn: So long as your children meet with a variety of people and have the chance to develop a few close friendships they will not be at any disadvantage. In fact, they are likely to socialise easily across a wider age range than their schooled counterparts – from younger children to adults to elderly people - and I think that is actually a great advantage.

Ultimately, we want our children to socialise well for another important reason: so that, at the end of their education, they can go out into the world and carry their Catholic faith to others, especially to their secular peers who so badly need it.

Amanda: All sorts of people home school herethere is certainly not one type of person...people from all religions, although it is particularly popular with Christians, and people from all classes. In one home school group there will be a great range of people from extremely wealthy to people living on benefits...ho​m​e education is very diverse and therefore the children meet all different kinds of people which is also a great learning experience.

Kathryn: It is also growing amongst Catholics, as our schools become less overtly Catholic. Many of our schools are becoming more openly aligned with secular government agendas; numbers of non-Catholic and nominally Catholic children continue to rise, causing the Catholic ethos to become ever more diluted; Catholic teachers who uphold Catholic teaching in controversial moral areas often find

themselves isolated and under attack even from those within the Church. All these things sadden and scandalise faithful Catholics who are beginning to see home-education as an attractive option.

Kathryn: The problem here in the UK is that there is so little support. As I mentioned above, there are no Catholic programmes which parents can sign up to.

We have to either use an American programme or make up our own as we go along, which can be very daunting. Amanda and I have both tried to provide some online support but it is a drop in the ocean and so much more is needed.

REGINA: Recent statistics show that more than a million US children are being homeschooled – a 62% jump in ten years. Is homeschooling starting to catch on in England?

Kathryn: I think it is growing here, yes, and for a variety of reasons: for example, many parents feel that teaching and testing starts too early; that there is too much pressure to reach performance targets; that there is too much bullying which is not being dealt with.

Amanda More people do home school here in England now. It is unclear just how many as one does not have to register their children with the LEA so the numbers are not exact.I would say it is becoming more popular and there are more resources than ever before with online courses and lessons and other home schooling parents running IGCSE groups etc.

I think there is a general dissatisfaction with our schools and many children are, sadly, bullied. Many children come to home schooling because of problems with bullying at school, which teachers have increasingly less time and authority to do anything about. The severe peer pressure and the need to fit into the social groups have a profound effect on some children so often they will leave school and continue their studies at hom​e.

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