What is Catholic, Classical Education?
Mr. Maxwell instructs Chesterton parents on what makes an education Catholic and Classical.
When somebody asks me what a Catholic, Classical education is, I sometimes struggle to give them a complete answer in just a few minutes. After a lot of thought, I’ve boiled the answer to this question down to what I would consider the ideal elevator pitch: A Catholic, Classical education focuses on these three things:
It grows the spiritual life of students and allows them to form virtuous friendships.
It is based primarily on reading original, classical texts rather than textbooks.
Challenges students to take ownership of their education through active participation.
When it comes down to it. Chesterton Academy is a community of friends pursuing Christ.
If I only had 2 minutes, that is how I would explain our school and the education it provides. However, since we have longer than it takes to ride an elevator, I would like to spend a little time reflecting on these points.
To begin, it is necessary to remind ourselves what we mean by Catholic and what we mean by Classical in the context of an education. It is not by accident that we place Catholic first in this phrase and we do not mean simply an education that happens to belong to the Church. In its truest sense, we are striving to live out the great commision which Christ gave to the Apostles and by extension to us:
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. (Matthew, 28:19–20)
This commission is the source of all Catholic education, regardless of the form it takes. However, in the context of educating the young men and women of the Church, the primary role will always lie with the parents. We are privileged to share in your mission of forming these beautiful young people and helping them to transition to living a fruitful, adult life in Christ.
Bringing students to understand and desire this life is where the mission of all Catholic education begins and ends. At its core, it is an apprenticeship in discipleship. It is a call to live the internal life of the Church throughout our daily routine.
C. S. Lewis paints a vivid image of this call in the Last Battle as the children and their companions enter Aslan’s country, “I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now … Come further up, come further in!” (The Last Battle) They are not compelled onward by an outside force but rather a mutual joy in finding their homeland. The call is intensely personal as if their very essence demands that they continue. Yet, it is also a communal call. Together they pursue Christ and their joy builds upon that of those they bring with them. This is what we aim for in Catholic education.
So how does this fit into a Classical education? Grace builds upon nature. Well what does that mean? Everything that Catholic students aim for is anticipated in the natural world. In short, we must know creation before we can truly know the creator. Just as the Old Testament anticipated the New, creation itself anticipates the coming of our Lord.
Students of the classical tradition immerse themselves in a great conversation that spans, to name a few, from Aristotle to Aquinas, Homer to Dante, Ovid to Elliot, and Euclid to Einstein. These, and all great thinkers like them, ask the truly perennial questions. They seek to understand the world around us, to peer into the soul of mankind, and to stretch the limits of man’s understanding. They all seek after the True, Good, and Beautiful. Simply put, they wonder at and explore God’s creation. Whether or not it is a conscious effort, they are searching for their creator and find His footprints in the world around them.
This is the conversation that students enter when they study a classical curriculum. At first, they are merely passive, taking in true opinions from the masters. However, no education is complete without challenge nor can knowledge be tied down and made one’s own without effort. This effort is the mark of classical pedagogy and students. They are not eavesdropping on someone else's conversation. It must be their own. Their primary effort is to assimilate the truth found in the texts, weigh them against their knowledge of the world, and apply them to their lives. Therefore, a classical education is a moral education as much as it is an intellectual one.
In the Nicomachean Ethics, which our students are currently reading in philosophy, Aristotle boldly asserts that the primary reason humans exist, their essential purpose, is to be happy. This happiness comes not from pleasure or gain but through the fulfillment of our nature. Since we are not solitary creatures neither is our ultimate happiness, happiness is meant to be shared. It is, therefore, found predominantly in friendship, “For those who are friends on account of their virtue are eager to benefit each other (for this belongs to virtue and to friendship).” (Ethics, 8.13) Good people need to have friendship to enjoy the best things about human life. “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” (Genesis, 2:18) God created mankind in relationship and it is inseparable from who we are. Aristotle sees this and says that we are designed to be in a relationship with each other that is marked by love “for love seems to be a virtue of friends.” (Ethics, 8.8) The love Aristotle calls for between friends is the same love and friendship that a classical education seeks to kindle amongst classmates. Together they seek after virtue and together they explore the True, Good, and Beautiful found first in creation and second in the texts they study.
Uniting both a Catholic and Classical education marries the wisdom of antiquity with the truth of the Gospel. The understanding of human nature we find in philosophy and great literature highlights man’s need for love and redemption. We are designed for a joyful and complete life which we fall short of at every turn. St. Augustine expresses this in his Confessions, “Thou hast made us for Thyself and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee.” (Confessions, I) Without the Gospel mankind is without any hope of living out our most essential purpose, happiness. However, the Christian life is the remedy to our fallen nature. Not only does Christ fulfill our natural needs, he offers us what the Ancients dared not hope for, friendship with the One true God and a happiness that is neverending.
Therefore the goal of a Catholic, classical education is the formation of the whole person, mind, body, and spirit, and the development of those moral and intellectual habits necessary to live a truly human life in union with Christ and his Church.
How does this all apply to our school? What do we do that marks Chesterton as both a truly Catholic and classical education?
At Chesterton Academy, we begin our day in prayer and we carry Christ with us into every classroom. The seasons are marked by the liturgical life of the Church in which our students participate both through the holy mass as well as daily liturgy of the hours. It is upon this solid foundation of prayer that our academic endeavor can begin.
Chesterton students rise to the challenge of a classical education. They test themselves by learning to prove, not simply memorize, mathematics; they encounter the many facets of the Beautiful as they recite poetry, act in plays, hone their ability to capture a likeness in art, and sing the ancient melodies of the Church; they learn to articulate their thoughts and consider those of their classmates in daily seminars; they delve into the art of rhetoric by writing essays, Summa articles, and giving speeches; they wrestle with the difficult questions of philosophy and understand the human condition through great literature; they learn to speak Latin and read the writings of Christendom and Rome; and they place this all in the relevant context of history so as to understand where they come from and why it matters.
Chesterton students are busy. All of this work is the foundational material necessary for the primary subject of an education at Chesterton Academy. Our students study the Sacred Scriptures and Theology of the Catholic Church, so that, knowing who they are and where they come from, they can approach Christ in prayer with a renewed spirit of gratitude. For our students, the work of education is the transition from childhood to adulthood. They are becoming men and women who are competent enough to lead and humble enough to follow. Our exhortation to them is best put in the words of St. Gregory of Nazianssus,
Let us offer ourselves, the possession most precious to God, and most fitting; let us give back to the Image what is made after the Image. Let us recognize our Dignity; let us honour our Archetype; let us know the power of the Mystery, and for what Christ died. (St. Gregory of Nazianssus, Oration I.4)
Students coming to understand and live this truth is what Chesterton Academy founded for.
This is really only scratching the surface of what it means to fully enjoy a Catholic, Classical education. It is truly a blessing not only to be a student but also to share this education as a teacher. Most of the time, people will only pause long enough to hear the elevator pitch version. However, we always hope to offer at least a glimpse into the beauty and depth of this education.
So to recap, the elevator pitch version, and what I hope you all now feel more encourage to share, is this:
Students are formed in their faith and virtuous friendships.
They read primarily from the Classics rather than textbooks.
They take ownership of their education through their active participation.