Education seeks the beautiful, good and true

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Aug. 21, 2011
Fr. Joseph Eddy, O. de M.
Gospel: Matt. 16:13-20 “Who do men say that the Son of Man Is?”

Full homily text: Well, here we are at mid-August already. The “dog days” of summer when we try to get in those last mini-vacations or family gatherings before the end of the month. Because we all know the end of August means “back to school.” If we forget we will be reminded each time we turn on the TV and see commercials for “back to school sales.” For many of us at least 16-18 years of our life are spent in school. As Americans we value education.

Is God calling you to become a Mercedarian friar? Take our “” survey and find out. Fr. Joseph Eddy is the vocation director of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy, founded to redeem Christians whose faith is in danger.

Visit Fr. Joseph’s Facebook page, or the website of the .

But why do we value education? Is it because we want to be just like everyone else? Or is it because we want to be able to get a job in the future? Unfortunately, today many look at education only as a means of being successful or getting a job. Not that this isn’t important, but traditionally education has been seen from a more broad perspective.

The purpose of education

From the ancient Greeks, to the Romans, to our own Roman Catholic tradition, education has always been seen as a blessed opportunity to seek what is beautiful, good, and true. Those given the opportunity to study were given a gift that few had. Most people were concerned just with basic survival and their time was spent providing for their daily survival. Only in recent times and in developed nations are the majority of people given the gift of an education.  But do we still appreciate the value of learning? Has education lost its focus on seeking the beautiful, good, and true?

Understanding education as an opportunity to seek what is beautiful, good, and true changes the way we look at school and its purpose. Education becomes something that we want to do rather than what we have to do. Even when we finish formal schooling we do not stop learning or seek to better ourselves and grow as a person. As Catholics, we believe that God is the source of all that is beautiful, good, and true. “Oh, the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways!”

Begin and end with the Word made flesh

Our education must begin and end with the Jesus Christ the Word made flesh.  From the beginning of time, God spoke and “it came to be.” The Father’s Word is the Son, Jesus Christ, who created all things. The Creator of all knows his creatures through and through. We are created in the Image of God (with a reason and will). In the person of the God Man, we see ourselves, our dignity, beauty, and goodness. In the beginning, our first parents lived in communion with God and found in this relationship their self worth.

Yet, God does not force himself on us. He has given us his Son as the mirror into all that we are called to be. Jesus came bringing an invitation to a deeper life and fulfillment. In today’s Gospel, Jesus reaches out to each individual asking us, “Who do you say that I am?” Not what religion are you? Or what were you raised? Jesus realizes that each person must take ownership of their faith and search for the truth. Many of us were raised Catholic. We received all the Sacraments. We have gone to CCD or Catholic School. The Church has for better or worse tried to present us with Christ’s teaching. But, just like Jesus, his body the Church, does not force its ideas on people. At some point, it must go from my parent’s faith or the religion I grew up with to My Faith.

Responding to the graced moment

Who do you say that I am? No force or even persuasion to believe is given by the Lord. Jesus was called rabbi or teacher. He presented all that is beautiful, good, and true to those who would listen. Those who believed him and responded to this graced moment made a choice to accept who Jesus was. To say that Jesus is Lord changes everything in our lives. It means that we must acknowledge that he existed from the beginning and knows all things. Jesus wants what is best for us; he wants to give us his own life. What Peter did by acknowledging the truth about Jesus, was to make a statement which would affect every aspect of his life from that moment on.

For each of us education must be an opportunity to seek what is beautiful, good, and true.  We should see this as the main purpose of education. However, the further we get from our source and the source of all created things the more difficult it becomes to find the essential things. If we believe that we are created in the Image of God, then our understanding of ourselves and the world must start with him. Otherwise, we are trying to find our way through a dense wood without a map.

God’s revelation offered to every generation

Jesus’ invitation is a simple question, “Who do you say that I am?” Each child or person should have the opportunity to be offered this question. As Pope Benedict said to educators during his visit to America, “God’s revelation offers every generation the opportunity to discover the ultimate truth about its own life and the goal of history.” Catholic education offers each person the opportunity to pursue what is beautiful, good, and true. The response is on each person’s conscience. Jesus speaks to each person just as he did two thousand years ago. He is the fullness of truth offered to all.

Parents, teachers, and even grandparents are offered the opportunity to take part in the education of the youth. But, first we ourselves must make a conscience decision to seek true fulfillment in our lives. If we understand education as leading us to fulfillment as human beings, then it never ends. Our faith is reasonable and we are not afraid to follow Jesus and pose questions to ourselves and others. What can we learn about the creator from that which is beautiful in creation? What is really good about the human person?  And finally, what is objective truth? We believe as Catholics that those who look deeply at these questions will be led to the source of all beauty, goodness and truth: the Trinity.

Created in His Image

So from our earliest days of Catholic education we have been asked the question: Who do you say that I am? Maybe we are afraid to answer this question? St. Peter was not he responded that Jesus is “the Son of the living God.” In this simple revelation we discover who we are as those created in God’s Image. In looking at the source of all things, Peter found himself as a person created with great dignity. He found his true vocation to be “the Rock” foundation of the Church. We too only find ourselves by a relationship with the Word, Jesus Christ. In finding ourselves we become the source of life for those around us. We take our vision of the world out to others. We become educators and teachers in the true sense. Our words, actions, and lives show others that we see the world differently. That we believe in Jesus and see his handiwork in all things. By our lives we become teachers of all that is beautiful, good, and true.