We go further in our efforts to make our schools centres of evangelisation

144. To be true to our mission of evangelising through education, ¹⁵ and what this means in terms of helping students to integrate life, culture and faith, ¹⁶ we develop explicit ways of nurturing their personal faith and social commitment.

145. At the heart of our school curriculum is a program of religious education which is comprehensive, systematic and conforming to the Church’s guidelines. ¹⁷ We aim for our students to become familiar with the story of Jesus and with what it means today to be a Christian. Where appropriate, we arrange sacramental preparation in conjunction with local parishes.

146. In classes of religious education, we focus on the students and not just the content. "We talk to them, and let them talk", ¹⁸ seeking to help them discover values on which to base their lives. Beyond the classroom, we provide additional opportunities for them to express and develop their faith. We arrange prayer groups, retreats, and other spiritual experiences that are open to all. ¹⁹ We celebrate our faith at special moments in the school year with well-prepared liturgies, gathering together the Christian community of parents, teachers, and students.

147. We pay attention to the religious environment of the school in terms of, for example, images, daily prayers, and sacred spaces. We encourage expression of our Christian vision of humanity, the world and God in contemporary language and symbols, especially through the creative arts.

148. For young people who desire an ongoing and deeper spiritual formation, we initiate apostolic movements within the school. We accompany them closely as they mature by means of a developmental approach, and by helping them to grow in the distinctive character of the movement. ²⁰

149. For those who wish to identify more closely with our Marist spirituality, we set up Marist apostolic movements. In keeping with our tradition, we give priority to formation in prayer, a strong commitment to society and Church, and a meaningful experience of community. We present Mary and Marcellin Champagnat as models on our journey towards Jesus.

150. We link our school into the overall pastoral programme of the local Church. In those countries where the Catholic school has become the major experience of church for many students and staff, we assume the pastoral and missionary responsibilities this implies, while still encouraging Catholics to connect with their local Church community. ²¹

151. While we all share a responsibility for the faith life of the school, we develop a structure of campus ministry to promote and co-ordinate our efforts. Besides taking an active role in the religious education and activities of the school, those of us involved in this ministry seek to be close personally to the students and our fellow staff members, and to provide whatever accompaniment is appropriate and requested.

152. We educate students in solidarity above all in welcoming into the same school young people of different religious and social backgrounds, as well as those students who are disadvantaged or marginalised. ²² To help our students live positively with such diversity which increasingly characterises our different settings, we educate them to dialogue and to be tolerant.²³ We create a climate of acceptance, mutual respect and support, encouraging the stronger to help the weaker.

153. We educate for solidarity, presenting it as "the Christian virtue of our time" ²⁴, a moral imperative for all of humankind, given our contemporary global interdependence and the pervasiveness of "structures of sin". ²⁵ We incorporate the challenge of solidarity in our general curriculum, as well as teach the social doctrine of the Church in classes of moral or religious education.

154. We encourage openness to the material, cultural and spiritual needs of humanity, locally and globally. We involve our students in charitable works that bring them into contact with local situations of poverty, and we mobilize the whole school community to concrete expressions of solidarity. ²⁶

155. Through our work in teacher training, in addition to providing professional formation, we seek to communicate our holistic vision of education, and to develop the students’ skills in catechetics and religious education. We work with them personally on their integration of life, culture and faith as befits future religious educators. We inspire them to be willing to serve as teachers, at least for a time, in neglected areas.

156. Our presence in the field of higher education gives us a privileged context to promote the dialogue between faith and contemporary thought. We foster high standards of academic discipline and research, contribute to cultural and social progress, and provide professional training and personal formation for future leaders. Through our campus ministry we assist students to integrate their development in faith with their personal ethics and their sense of social justice. ²⁷

157. We challenge our former students, especially the young ones, to join us in our pastoral and social ministries, and to live up to the formation they have received in their personal lives and in their workplace