McLean, VA (November 20, 2012): Recognizing the dramatic decline of women religious teachers in Catholic schools over the past few decades, the Institute of Catholic Culture is launching the Magdala Apostolate, an outreach project dedicated to providing sound doctrinal formation—both initial and ongoing—for women religious and novices. This is in response to the Church’s call for a new evangelization. It is also inherent in the mission of the Institute of Catholic Culture: to offer educational programs structured upon classical liberal arts.
Over a generation ago, faithful religious sisters were dedicated to teaching the orthodox faith to the next generation. However, the presence of teaching nuns has declined by more than 90 percent since 1965. This has resulted in a catechetical crisis in the Catholic classrooms.
While theologians may debate why this decline has occurred, one fact does emerge: the direct correlation between the decline in quality of the education that these women received in formation and their rapid decline in numbers. According to a recent release from the Vatican: “The formation programs among several communities…did not have significant doctrinal content…..”
In response to the Church’s directives to use new media techniques to communicate the saving truths of the Catholic Faith, the Magdala Apostolate will employ the latest in web conferencing tools to create a virtual classroom setting where students (the sisters) and professors can communicate in a live educational setting.
Note that Magdala is the Galilean hometown of Mary Magdalen, one of the women who faithfully followed Christ and ministered to him. Today, the historic reputation of Saint Mary of Magdala, like the reputation of our devoted sisters, is under attack. What we do know, however, about Saint Mary Magdalene from Sacred Scripture reveals that she was healed by our Lord, and that she, along with other women, faithfully followed him and the Apostles and “provided for them out of their own means.”
For more information about this important apostolate and to make contributions to its continuance, please contact the Institute of Catholic Culture at its website: http://www.instituteofcatholicculture.org
Over a generation ago, faithful religious sisters were dedicated to teaching the orthodox faith to the next generation. However, the presence of teaching nuns has declined by more than 90 percent since 1965. This has resulted in a catechetical crisis in the Catholic classrooms.
While theologians may debate why this decline has occurred, one fact does emerge: the direct correlation between the decline in quality of the education that these women received in formation and their rapid decline in numbers. According to a recent release from the Vatican: “The formation programs among several communities…did not have significant doctrinal content…..”
In response to the Church’s directives to use new media techniques to communicate the saving truths of the Catholic Faith, the Magdala Apostolate will employ the latest in web conferencing tools to create a virtual classroom setting where students (the sisters) and professors can communicate in a live educational setting.
Note that Magdala is the Galilean hometown of Mary Magdalen, one of the women who faithfully followed Christ and ministered to him. Today, the historic reputation of Saint Mary of Magdala, like the reputation of our devoted sisters, is under attack. What we do know, however, about Saint Mary Magdalene from Sacred Scripture reveals that she was healed by our Lord, and that she, along with other women, faithfully followed him and the Apostles and “provided for them out of their own means.”
For more information about this important apostolate and to make contributions to its continuance, please contact the Institute of Catholic Culture at its website: http://www.instituteofcatholicculture.org
No comments:
Post a Comment