Education is a human right.
Education is relational.
These were the main points of the welcome given by Cardinal Finsaldi to the participants in the conference on Catholic Education in Rome from 18 to 22 November 2015. In 2000, twenty eight million children were not receiving education in a group of countries comprising Burundi, Yemen, Ghana, Nepal, Ruanda, India, Iran, and Vietnam. In 2015 that number is down to four million, that is still four million too many.
Taking the images of cultivator, the cardinal referred to the cultivator’s knowledge of the needs of the plants and crops under cultivation. Cultivators adapt their methods to climate, soil and maturity. So it is with teachers and students. For today and tomorrow the 1000 participants split into two groups, schools and universities. The conference is partly sponsored by the bishops of Austria, Germany and Australia.
