18: Education

Delinquency is a plague which can be fought only with education, in particular religious education. The government should help the Church in this difficult task, one that has become increasingly difficult since religion has been removed from public schools. Joseph Bernardin notes that Church and society are traditionally recognized as having distinct, important roles in a child's education. Therefore a good and conscientious cooperation among parents and educators is necessary. Catholic schools, the Cardinal asserts, better prepare children both for life and for successive educational steps. For this reason the number of lay teachers and administrators in Catholic schools has recently increased, giving rise to further challenges and perplexities. Another serious concern regards the media. Advertisement that publicizes the use of contraceptives or shows violent scenes should not be aired because it violates parents' rights and responsibilities to provide clear guidance to children. Another aspect is increased financial support in the private sector by the government so that low‐income parents have the option of choosing Catholic education for their children. Elitism, Cardinal Bernardin concludes, does not belong to the Catholic heritage.