Gravissimum educationis

Gravissimum educationis is the Second Vatican Council's Declaration on Christian Education. It was promulgated on 28 October 1965 by Pope Paul VI, following approval by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,290 to 35.

To revitalize this teaching, updating it to today’s challenges, the Holy Father Francis created the Gravissimum Educationis Foundation – Culture for Education.

Description

The document is generally referred to, not by its English-language title, "Declaration on Christian Education", but by the opening words of its original Latin text, which mean "extremely important education".^[1]

The document quotes at length from Divini illius Magistri (That divine teacher, 1929) by Pope Pius XI.^[2]

Introduction
The Meaning of the Universal Right to an Education
Christian Education
The Authors of Education
Various Aids to Christian Education
The Importance of Schools
The Duties and Rights of Parents
Moral and Religious Education in All Schools
Catholic Schools
Different Types of Catholic Schools
Catholic Colleges and Universities
Faculties of Sacred Sciences
Coordination to be Fostered in Scholastic Matters
Conclusion

Parents as primary educators

"Since parents have given children their life, they are bound by the most serious obligation to educate their offspring and therefore must be recognized as the primary and principal educators. This role in education is so important that only with difficulty can it be supplied where it is lacking. Parents are the ones who must create a family atmosphere animated by love and respect for God and man, in which the well-rounded personal and social education of children is fostered. Hence the family is the first school of the social virtues that every society needs."^[3]

Gravissimum Educationis - Culture for Education Foundation

On October 28, 2015, Pope Francis founded the Gravissimum Educationis Foundation.^[4]

The Foundation is a not-for-profit, and pursues scientific and cultural aims to promote education and culture in the world. In particular, the Foundation aims to promote projects aimed at establishing and consolidating collaborative relationships between entities and institutions active in the educational sector; promote cultural projects and events aimed at fostering, also in the educational sphere, reflection on key topics of contemporary debate and dialogue between arts, cultures and faith; implement projects and initiatives related to the Global Compact on Education.^[5]

The Foundation is an instrumental entity and participates in the mission of the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See, that preserves and promotes the cultural and educational heritage of the Catholic Church.

The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça. The Secretary General is Monsignor Davide Milani, and the Treasurer is Dr. Paolo Buzzonetti.^[6]