Both universal and local: The catholic/Catholic identity of the Catholic school within the Church

This is the third in a series of four papers which seeks to articulate theologically and practically the consequences of the ecclesial identity of the Catholic school. (1) The series is based on the principle that the "marks" of the Church-one, holy, catholic and apostolic-are also marks of the Catholic school, since the Catholic school is within the Church and derives its ecclesial identity from the Church. Each paper analyses one of these "marks", discerning what it means theologically and practically for the Catholic school. In this paper, the third of the marks of the Church and therefore of the Catholic school- catholic- is discussed in terms of what it means for the school to be both catholic and Catholic. It is argued that as catholic, the mission of the school is universal, and the implications of this in terms of students from other Christian denominations and other religions are considered. It is also argued that as Catholic, the school is called to the religious socialization of Catholic students, and that this task takes place within a particular theological context, and has particular responsibilities.