Why Jesuit Schools Need a New Ratio Studiorum

Ever since the decline of the Ratio Studiorum as the guiding document for Jesuit schools, the Society of Jesus has struggled to maintain a Catholic vision of education amid the continual movement to assimilate the structure and goals of the schools to the wider culture. Many attempts have been made in the twentieth century to define and shape the nature of Jesuit education, with limited effectiveness. Now, the curriculum of Jesuit schools is scarcely different from their secular counterparts, with its overall structure and goals reflective of postmodern, technological society. The Catholic faith has become compartmentalized in the theology classes, retreats, liturgy, and service programs. The knowledge that the students learn has no integrating principle, and so is very fragmented, just like the disciplines that they study. In response to this problem, this paper proposes to create a new Ratio Studiorum, reorganizing the entire curriculum around a Catholic worldview. Such a curriculum would not only stem the slide toward secularism in the Jesuit schools, but could also provide the impetus for a Catholic cultural renewal that transforms society from within.