...with the help of technology.
From Lancasteronline:
Bishop to lead religious formation classes
The Most Rev. Joseph P. McFadden, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, wants to help seniors at Lancaster Catholic High School move smoothly into adulthood.
"Their parents and their schools have been preparing them and supporting them thus far in their lives," the bishop said in a recent audio clip.
"Now is when the rubber will meet the road for these young people. As they go forth into the world they will be challenged to live their faith."
On six Wednesdays in Lent, beginning Wednesday, McFadden will lead religious formation classes for LCHS's 168 seniors and seniors at six other schools in the diocese.
The 40-minute classes will be broadcast from the Cardinal Keeler Center, Harrisburg, over the diocese's new Wide Area Network that interconnects most Catholic schools in the 15 counties in the diocese.
Students will interact with the bishop and each other on a high-speed fiber optic computer network.
Wednesday's classes will be just the second time WAN has been used at the school.
Course topics will be prayer, friendship, sexuality, vocation, contemporary moral issues — including the death penalty, stem-cell research and gay marriage — and living in a secular world.
"I want to spend time with them and talk with them on these topics that are so important," McFadden said.
"It's important for them to connect with a Catholic church, to find people who share the same values, to continue to grow in faith — to treat people with charity but understand that sometimes people are going to be critical.
"The world we live in doesn't embrace Catholic beliefs."
McFadden, 63, is a former high school teacher and chairman-elect of the education committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Thomas S. Fertal, LCHS principal, said the bishop "has a huge grasp of educational progress.
"He has a fondness in his heart for the role of educator."
The principal said the seniors —about 90 percent of whom will go on to some form of higher education, 15 percent to 20 percent of them to Catholic colleges — are excited to have the bishop as their teacher.
"In the Catholic world, there's something special about the bishop. As bishop, he's the master instructor. He elevates the discussion."
He said the topics the bishop will address fit into the curriculum that all high schools in the diocese follow.
"They are the kind of things our senior class gets into. They're very timely."
McFadden, a Philadelphia native, was installed as bishop in Harrisburg in August. Before that, he served six years as auxiliary bishop in Philadelphia.
Fertal, former interim principal, was appointed principal of the school, on Juliette Avenue in Manheim Township, in April. Previously, he was director of spiritual life at the high school.
He said the school, which has experienced some financial difficulties in recent years, is holding its own.
"It's not an easy time, but enrollment is steady, our annual fund is on track to meet its goal. As for giving — we'll see."
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