Visitors since 22 JUN 2005

The second-most important activity on the face of the earth is preparing saints for heaven.  That is, training our children to become saints for God's heaven.  They are Saints in Training (SIT's).  In addition, the raising of SIT's is the primary purpose of our marriages.

Therefore, it stands to reason that good traditional Catholic parents will consider the education of their children with much prayerful consideration and a spirit of willing sacrifice in order to do the best by their SIT's.

Having served for four years as an Assistant Principal in a small traditional Catholic school, please permit me to offer the following, slightly tongue-in-cheek listing of the educational alternatives, in order of least to most preferred.

Worst option: Private Christian School or Novus Ordo Parochial School.  This option exposes your children to the Novus Ordo Missae (even if only once a week).  Not only will your children be confused Catholics as adults but you will go broke paying for their tuition in the meantime.  What's worse is that they will lose the faith at the first opportunity.  They may get a good education but they'll end up in hell (I wouldn't recommend this for even my enemies).

Next worst:  Public School.  At least here you know who your enemies are - everybody! You can deprogram your children of much of what they learn in the classroom.  It's what they learn from their fellow students that you need to worry about.  The only "good" thing is that you keep all that tuition money.  Consider this only if it is impossible to do anything better.

Acceptable alternative: Homeschooling.  This can be done quite acceptably.  You can develop a curriculum of your own or buy one of the "canned" programs available.  I developed a curriculum that you can also use.  The Blessed Margaret Gift Shop will offer some of these books in the future.  The downside of homeschooling is that it DEMANDS a total commitment on the part of the parents, especially the mother and it can be overwhelming to mothers who are not well organized and in control of their children.  It seems to work well with girls but it is not the best choice for boys who will buck under the reins of Mom beginning about 6th or 7th grade because they need the masculine touch and more formal regimentation than is typically available at home.  And if that masculine touch comes from Mom, you run the risk of destroying their manhood.

Acceptable alternative #2:  Traditional Catholic school with all laity faculty.  This can work well but my comments about older boys applies here as well.  Most of the faculty of these schools is female, primarily young maidens who, although typically sincere, do not have the experience or testicular matter required to properly form young men..  Be careful with a school that mixes the sexes much beyond the 6th grade.  This should never be preferred but frequently has to be tolerated due to local circumstances.  The biggest warning has to do with the priest who is the principal.  He needs to be in charge, support his faculty, and be in residence.  Satan will use the differences between the parents to constantly stir up divisions: between priest and faculty, faculty and parents, priest and parents, parents and parents.  It is just too easy for satan to use not only our differences in temperament but the differences in how each of us interprets the theological differences between us to tear the heart out of a school.  Sorry, I've seen it happen!

Best alternative:  Single sex school run by traditional religious.  Such a blessing if you have it.  Religious have an authority that no layman can ever hold.  The problems I mentioned above will still be present (satan's everywhere) but the grace and spirit of charity which is offered by the religious will bring out the best in your children.  (If only there were traditional Salesians.  St. John Bosco pray for us!)  However, (even the best alternatives have caveats) your own theological imperfections will rise to the surface and your children will see right through you.  This, along with the financial burden, will be a strain.  Either you get your own act together or choose a school which agrees with your theological leanings.  If necessary, change jobs and move there!

Those are my musings on the educational alternatives for your precious SIT's.  Feel free to contact us with your thoughts.  To hear more of our background in education to include my four years as a Vice Principal of a small traditional Catholic Academy, visit our page Vice Principal.