Catholic Education Sunday and Greater St. Albert Catholic Schools
Growing in Love, with the Father
Every November, typically on the first weekend of the month, we celebrate Catholic Education Sunday in Alberta. We have been given flexibility this year, which is why we are marking Catholic Education Sunday today.
We recognize Catholic education as a gift – a gift that we treasure and protect. On Catholic Education Sunday, we acknowledge the value and blessing of our Catholic schools and give thanks for the faith-based education they offer. Here in Alberta, unlike some other provinces, we are especially blessed to have publicly-funded Catholic education, which benefits us in many ways, including:
- Our children and school staff have the opportunity to learn more about the Catholic faith and the Church that Christ instituted.
- We enjoy the freedom and the benefit of prayer. In liturgical celebrations at school and in the church, our students and staff express and celebrate their faith.
- In every subject and in all aspects of school life, we freely apply and connect our faith. Faith is integrated or permeated in all we do whether it be through science, Language Arts, sport teams or Christmas concerts. Our faith connects us all, and is a part of all relationships between students, staff and families.
- Finally, in Catholic schools we have the opportunity to inform our young people about the faith, and to help form them in the moral or Christian life.
In a letter to all parishes and schools, the Alberta bishops recognize that parents, in the context of the family, are the primary educators of their children in matters of faith, with the parish and the school taking a supporting role.