FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 08, 2006

CONTACT: Brendan Daly/Jennifer Crider 202-226-7616

Pelosi: We Salute Catholic Schools for Teaching our Children Character, Compassion, and Values

Washington, D.C - House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today in support of House Resolution 657, honoring the contributions of Catholic schools, which passed unanimously in House this evening:

“President John F. Kennedy said in his Inaugural Address:  ‘With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth, God's work must truly be our own.’  I rise today to thank our Catholic schools for doing God’s work here on earth for generation after generation.

“More than 163,000 educators teach in nearly 8,000 Catholic schools in America, and they educate nearly 2.5 million students every year. My husband and I, and our five children, have attended over 100 years of Catholic school education.

“I can tell you firsthand that Catholic schools provide exceptional education.  They contribute to a student's intellectual, ethical and spiritual development.  As a devout Roman Catholic and the product of Catholic schools, I rely every day on the values and the sense of responsibility that were deepened for me by my Catholic education.

“The theme of this year's Catholic Schools Week is ‘Character. Compassion. Values.’   Education is about more than reading, writing, and arithmetic, although itis certainly about that.  But it is also about teaching each child to live and work with integrity and in a way that serves others.

“My Catholic education helped me appreciate that we all contain a spark of divinity, to recognize that spark of divinity in every person, and to respond to that spark with humility and awe, even when it’s found in ‘the least of these.’

“Catholic schools teach their students that our personal faith means public obligation.  Simply put, faith means we have work to do.  My Catholic education taught me that to minister to the needs of God's creation is an act of worship. To ignore those needs is to dishonor the God who made us. That lesson should inform every debate we have here in Congress, whether it is education, health care, job creation, or the budget, which should be a statement of our national values. 

“Our Catholic schools truly do God’s work here on earth, and they deserve our nation’s gratitude.  I join my colleagues in thanking all of the teachers, parents, and students of Catholic schools who bring our nation closer to the ‘beloved community’ it was meant to be.”

“ Democrats are united in presenting a New Direction for America, one that will make our nation as strong as its people, one that brings opportunity, security, and prosperity to all Americans. ”

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi