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| A Catholic Education |
Pope John Paul II has
written that "Christians today must be formed to live in a world which
largely ignores God or which, in religious matters... too often flounders
in a debasing indifferentism.... To ‘hold on’ in this world, to offer to
all a ‘dialogue of salvation’ in which each person feels respected in his
or her most basic dignity, the dignity of one who is seeking God, we need
a catechesis which trains the young people and adults of our communities
to remain clear and consistent in their faith, to affirm serenely their
Christian and Catholic identity... that they can be witnesses to Him in
a materialistic civilization that denies Him..."
The Holy Father continues by saying that "the most valuable gift that
the Church can offer to the bewildered and restless world of our time is
to form within it Christians who are confirmed in what is essential and
who are humbly joyful in their faith.
More than any other program of education sponsored by the Church, the Catholic
school has the opportunity and obligation to be unique, contemporary, and
oriented to Christian service. Unique because it is distinguished by its
commitment to the threefold purpose of Christian education and by its total
design and operation which foster the integration of religion with the rest
of learning and living. Contemporary because it enables students to address
with Christian insight the multiple problems which face individuals and
society today. Oriented to Christian service because it helps students acquire
skills, virtues, and habits of heart and mind required for effective service
to others."
In conformity with the U.S. Bishops’ pastoral letter To Teach as Jesus
Did, Mariamante stands apart from other private schools since the Catholic
faith forms our foundation and serves as the integrating element for all
of the other subjects taught here.
An Ignatian Education
In 1982 the Vatican’s Congregation for Catholic Education issued Les laics
Catholiques ("Lay Catholics in Schools: Witnesses to Faith") which
stated that "each Catholic school can preserve its own specific character,
spelled out in an educational philosophy" or rationale and called upon
lay Catholics to try to understand the special characteristics of such a
school and the reasons that inspired them. Mariamante Academy has selected
the Ignatian methods and objectives of education as the basis for its educational
philosophy which are described in the school’s "General Statement of
Educational Philosophy" which was adapted from the "General Statement
of Philosophy of the American Jesuit High School."
As a result, Mariamante provides an education that is based on the traditional
"Ignatian Model" which recognizes the primary importance of the
student’s spiritual and intellectual formation. Named after St. Ignatius
of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), this approach
fosters an intelligent obedience to authority; the Christian habit of mind
(through its emphasis on classical literature); habits of orderly thinking
(through the study of languages); competency in the art of expression; respect
for the significant contributions of the past; leadership, particularly
in religious activities; and loyalty and devotion to the Holy See.
In accordance with the Ignatian Model, Mariamante holds that the pupil is
endowed with intellect and will, and has other spiritual as well as physical
capacities and needs, which it is the function of education, in cooperation
with the student, to actuate and fulfill. Pursuant to the Academy’s Philosophy
Statement, it is the duty of the school to develop the memory through practice
(language study, acts of history, nature, etc.); to assist the student in
awakening and controlling sense observation (through descriptive writing,
audiovisual aids, study of inflected languages, reading, etc.); to aid the
student in the development and discipline of the imaginative faculty; to
help the student master the mechanics and techniques of expression; to further
the development of the student’s power to think grammatically, i.e., the
development of natural logic through the study of language; and to promote
the student’s character and training of the will.
Mariamante assists parents in training the student’s three powers of the
soul, memory, understanding and will. Self-activity, mastery of progressively
more difficult materials and the formation of the will through conscientious
application of study habits are inherent in the Ignatian method since one
of its goals is to help the student become a responsible human being, able
to cooperate with the Holy Father’s mission of lay evangelization in the
world.
A Mariamante Education
Mariamante Academy’s education is a "liberal" one because of its
broad areas of study, including Religion (knowledge of God and His revelation),
Science and Mathematics (what God has made and holds in His material creation),
Philosophy (knowledge of man in his love for truth), History and Culture
(knowledge of man’s achievements) and Languages. It is also "Catholic"
because our faith, mediated by the Magisterium of the Church, gives light,
direction and meaning to all that we do. At Mariamante the student is assured
of an education based upon Catholic principles.
The fundamental goal established for the Academy’s work in education is
to help parents lead their children to the knowledge and love of God. Accordingly,
our first concern at Mariamante is the development of a truly Christian
character in the student. Therefore, instruction in religious truth and
values is an essential part of the school’s program ( both our Catholic
and non-Catholic students are required to take religion class and participate
in the Academy’s liturgical life). Religion is not just one more subject
alongside the rest, but instead, is the foundation upon which the student’s
experiences of learning and living achieve their coherence and deeper meaning.
According to our General Statement of Educational Philosophy, the Academy’s
curriculum provides for the progressive mastery of materials which constantly
challenge the developing capacities of the student. This curriculum stresses
formational more than informational subjects and is integrated by a common,
Catholic Christian philosophy which permeates the entire curriculum. Thus,
during each year at Mariamante, lessons originally taught in the religion
class can easily reappear in an English, History or even a Science class.
Through its program of religious instruction and formation, Mariamante can
strengthen the students’ faith and prepare them for life in the world, with
the end of transforming it by their example in both word and deed. Thus,
while considering their levels of maturity, socialization and intellectual
development when tailoring its overall program of formation, the Academy
expects certain types of behavior and dress on the part of its students,
while prohibiting those contrary to the ideals and spirit of the school.
Students must be willing to work intellectually, discipline themselves morally,
and come to take their place responsibly in a Christian community of learners.
Mariamante Academy
P.O. Box 8453
Fredericksburg VA 22404
(540) 361-7007
info@mariamante.org