Denver Catholic

4 JULY 22-AUGUST 11, 2017 | DENVER CATHOLIC Around the Archdiocese C F & C S N C A M A D For more information cfcsDenver.org MT. OLIVET CATHOLIC CEMETERY 12801 W. 44th Avenue Wheat Ridge, CO 80033 (303) 424-7785 ST. SIMEON CATHOLIC CEMETERY 22001 E. State Hwy. 30 Aurora, CO 80018 (720) 859-9785 ARCHDIOCESE OF DENVER FUNERAL CENTER Serving the greater Denver area (303) 425-9511 Start planning today: Funeral | Cremation | Cemetery | Family Estates W ith the opening of Frassati Catholic Academy this fall, the continued success of Our Lady of Lourdes School, as well as the newly-added classical track at Bishop Machbeuf High School, inter- est in classical education is steadily growing in Denver — and the teachers and administrators who run them are pursuing learning just as much as their students in order to serve them better. During the week of July 5-7, teachers and administrators attended the fi rst Institute for Catholic Liberal Education western regional conference, hosted at Our Lady of Lourdes in Denver. Bishop James D. Conley of the Dio- cese of Lincoln, Neb., explained in the keynote that the Institute exists because "we believe education exists to form the whole human person, not just to prepare someone for a career, but to live freely and beautifully, as God intended them to be." He recalled how the 1967 document written by university presidents, "The Idea of the Catholic University," more commonly called the "Land O' Lakes Statement," essentially made them- selves "more identifi ably American and less identifi ably Catholic" in teaching and tradition. This, according to Bishop Conley, crumbled faithful education in the country, infl uencing even elemen- tary and high schools. But he is hopeful. "If dissenting universities, actively distancing themselves from Catholic identity, can have an impact that pro- found on Catholic and civic culture, then faithful schools, alive to the best traditions and wisdom of the Church, and dedicated to forming disciples, can be an unparalleled instrument for the revitalization of Catholic culture," Bishop Conley said. "The work that you are doing, cre- ating authentically Catholic schools, without question, will signifi cantly impact the culture in the United States in the next 50 years," he added. But to change culture, which occurs when students' lives are transformed, teachers must fi rst embrace their unique vocation and know the Lord intimately. "Teachers and administrators must fi rst themselves be disciples of Jesus Christ. It means that prayer, silent com- munion with the Eucharistic Lord, is at the center of the vocation as a teacher. To e› ectively foster encounters with the living God, each one of you must cultivate a deep and abiding interior relationship, especially in the silence of prayer," Bishop Conley said. BY THERESE BUSSEN therese.bussen@archden.org @theresebussen Regional classical education conference inspires teachers and principals " Listening to the Master": The vocation of a teacher

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