INTEGRITY - Vol.7 - No.8 - Editorial - Are CatholicSchools Divisive?

Sep 29, 2026

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A monthly Catholic periodical issue centered on the journal title INTEGRITY, featuring an editorial argument on whether Catholic schools are divisive. The editorial challenges claims about democracy, patriotism, and social danger by reframing the discussion as a self-examination guided by the Holy Spirit. It explains “Catholic” as universal in spirit and practice, then critiques school policies and attitudes that risk segregation, class identification, neglect of minority children, or narrowing holiness to exclusivity rather than charity and service.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages52

Reading Time2 h 11 min

AccessFree to download

Editorial

Are Catholic Schools Divisive?

Justification (A Poem)

For Whose Honor and Glory?

What About Our Colleges?

"Infiltration"

How to Teach Soc. 101 and 102

For Tomorrow (A Poem)

Book Reviews

v170. INTEGRIT CONTENTS 1 EDITORIAL - JUSTIFICATION(A Poem) 6 By DALE FRANCIS FOR WHOSE HONOR AND GLORY? By SISTER MARY DULCIDIA,S.S.N.D.- 7 WHAT ABOUT OUR COLLEGES? By A.P.CAMPBELL16 "INFILTRATION" 26 By BRENDAN O'GRADY - HOW TO TEACH SOC.101 AND 102By JoHN STANLEY32 FOR TOMORROW(A Poem)By BARBARA L.SAMSON - 38 BOOK REVIEWS39 INTEGRITY is published by lay Catholics ancdodicated to the task of discovering the newsynthesis of RELIGION and LIFE for our times. May 1953 Vol.7,No.8 Published monthly by Integrity Publishing Co.,Inc.,157 East 38th Street,New York 16,N.Y.,MU-5-8125.Edited by Dorothy Dohen.Re-entered as Second Class Matter May 11,1950 at thePost Ofice in New York,N.Y.under the Actof March 3,1879.All single copies 25each;yearly subscriptions:Domestic $3.00,Canadian $3.50,Foreign $4.00. INTEGRITY 1s indexed in THE CATHOLIC PERIODICAL INDEX R.C.Hessler452 E.Shadbolt StLake Orion,Mich.EditorialAre CatholicSchools Divisive? T I HAT is the great question—bandied back and forth by theenemies of the parochial schooland answered at length by itsfriends.Are Catholic schools offensive to democracy?Do Catholic schools turn out graduateswho are disloyal to the highest ideals of America?Are they adanger to the common good? So ridiculous do these questions seem to a Catholic,so inane,so lacking in the reasonable foundation which is indispensable ifthey are to be answered in intelligent vein,that one is left sput-tering speechlessly—or else driven to needlessly frantic fag-waving in proof of one's patriotism.It is expecting a great dealto think that put on the defensive by the secularist frenzy,weCatholics should yet remain calm and clear-minded enough todiscuss the issue objectively,to proceed to self-examination dis-passionately,to confess our faults with such tranquil humility thatwe can then live our Christian ideals in a more mature way thanformerly.All this is admittedly a high expectation,yet with thelight of the Holy Spirit it can be attained. We should like to propose a few points that seem necessaryto consider in such a self-examination.We give them to provokethought—not because we feel that we ourselves have the solutionsto the manifold difficulties involved,but because we think theyare considerations worth careful pondering Are Catholic schools divisive?We could throw down thechallenge that Catholic schools are divisive when they are notthoroughly Catholic—or,in other words,not Catholic enough. (This,please note,is quite different from what our antagonistssay:that they are not American enough.)Now Catholic meansuniversal,and the Church has always been marked by its desire toembrace all men,for its ability to take to itself all nations andall classes of people,for its eagerness to use and to assimilate allcultures.The Body of Christ is never static in its growth;alwaysthere is the mission to include all,to spread out,to reach out,tobe synonymous in extension with all mankind. Catholic schools are divisive if they do not manifest com-pletely this awareness of the Church's universality.If,for instance(as actually happened),in an archdiocese which forbids segrega-tion,tuition fees in a Sisters'academy are inexplicably raised uponthe application of a little brown-skinned girl.If,for instance,there is not the same attentiveness shown in the parochial schoolto the children who come from a minority group,as to those whorepresent the dominant national extraction.If,for instance,theteachers do not show in their attitude and speech the reverencedue the blood relations of Jesus Christ.(Is Our Lady the onlyJewess to be treated with respect!)If the children are not madeto realize day in and day out that their inclusion by the grace ofGod in the Church of His Son does not mean that they shouldassent to the exclusion of all other men.The Church is not aclosed corporation with jealously guarded doors. 人不 Catholic schools are divisive if they do not manifest thatuni

FAQs

What central question does the editorial raise about Catholic schools?

It asks whether Catholic schools are divisive, including concerns about democracy, loyalty, and the common good.

How does the editorial define what makes schools truly “Catholic”?

It defines Catholic as universal—embracing all peoples and assimilating cultures—so schools must reflect that universality in practice.

According to the editorial, what makes a school divisive in the Church’s terms?

It says divisiveness appears when schools narrow Catholicism to class or politics, exclude minorities, or promote exclusiveness of truth without equally strong inclusiveness of love, charity, and service.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Noah