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ADBU VC addresses Vatican Education Congress

By CM Paul |

A Vice-Chancellor from northeast India university was the only Indian to present a paper at the Vatican organized World Congress on Education today, 19th November. Dr Stephen Mavely the VC of Assam Don Bosco University presented the paper on “Educating Today and Tomorrow: Renewing A Passion” at the evening session held for Universities at Centro Mariapoli, Castelgandolfo outside Rome.

The congress started in Rome on 18th November will conclude on 21st November 2015.

According to the Secretary of the Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education Archbishop A. Vincenzo Zani the goal of the Congress is “to re-energize the Church’s commitment to education.”

With this Congress, the Congregation for Catholic Education is celebrating 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration Gravissimum Educationis (Declaration on Christian Education - 1965) and 25th anniversary of the Apostolic Constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae (Apostolic Constitution on Catholic Higher Education). 

As part of these celebrations, the Congregation aims to re-energize the Church’s commitment to education, by means of this World Congress. 

“These documents really set the Church’s expectations of Catholic education,” says Dr Stephen Mavely who is also a Board Member of the International Salesian Universities. 

Explaining the timeliness of the congress Dr Mavely states, “I think that Catholic educational institutions may often lose sight of the ultimate mission of the educative community - students, teachers and family members -journeying together.”

“The above two documents,” Dr Mavely says, “are like two pillars of Catholic Education, highlighting the grave nature of education and the serious responsibility educators have in the faith formation of their students.”

Dr Mavely asserts saying, “In fact, Catholic centres of education are not only ‘professional expertise providers’ by their very nature, but they are also places of encounter, dialogue and mutual enrichment.”

Dr Mavely insists, “Catholic educational institutions foster education for living, in openness to others, embracing diversity and tolerance with a view to the common good.”

There are over 214,000 Catholic Schools with some 59 to 60 million students, 1,365 Catholic Colleges and Universities and another 500 plus Pontifical Institutes of Higher Learning across the globe.

 

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