Religious Education in the Catholic school is distinctive because of its focus on the faith development of children and young people within the context of a faith community.  Its central purpose is to assist learners to make an informed, mature response to God’s call to relationship.  The invitation of Jesus Christ for all people to live life in all its fullness is the challenge that lies at the heart of Religious Education within a Catholic school. Religious Education can respond to this challenge by facilitating regular reflection upon the impact of the message of Catholic Christian faith on learners’ understanding of life and on their personal response to their life circumstances.  The development of faith through Religious Education in a Catholic school is understood to be an event of grace, realised in the encounter of the Word of God with the experience of the person.

purpose and aims

Religious Education in the Catholic school endeavours to promote the relevance of the Catholic faith to everyday human life and experience. Understanding that God’s grace is at work in all people’s lives, Religious Education makes explicit what has already been experienced to varying degrees in the lives of all learners.  It is designed to engage learners in an educational process which will:

• assist them to develop their knowledge and understanding
• develop the skills of reflection, discernment, critical thinking and deciding how to act in accordance with an informed conscience
• exemplify and foster the beliefs, values and practices which are compatible with a positive response to God’s invitation to faith.

Teachers in Catholic schools will be aware of the spectrum of faith commitment among learners. For all learners, Religious Education can contribute to a personal search for meaning, value and purpose in their personal response to the revelation of God and, as such, should be central to their educational development.