The Society of Jesus (S.J.), a Christian Religious Order, founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1540, has been active in the field of education throughout the world since its origin. In India, the Society of Jesus is at present responsible for 100 schools and 25 colleges in which young people, belonging to every social class, community and linguistic group, are being educated through the medium of English and nine regional languages. These institutions are part of the Catholic Church’s effort to share in the country’s educational undertaking. This effort, while being particularly responsible towards the Christian Community, has always been at the service of the whole nation.
St. Paul’s founded in 1856 is a Government recognised Christian Minority High School for boys, conducted by the Society of Jesus. It prepares boys for the Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examination (S.S.L.C.).
Through the primary purpose of the school is to cater to the needs of Christian community yet other pupils are also admitted. The school respects the religious feeling and freedom of conscience of non-Christian students but without impairing the Christian character of the institution.
Jesuit education is inspired by a vision of the human person drawn from the life and teachings of Jesus Christ who has always been respected and admired by the people of India. It is also based on the principles of character formation elaborated by Ignatius of Loyola. This vision and these principles give Jesuit institutions a specific character and set before their staff and students high ideals of humanism and service, towards which they are invited continually to strive.
We teach a religious humanism in which man puts God and not himself at the centre of the universe.
We therefore require every child to attend religious or value education classes as taught in the school. These religious and moral values we consider essential and of the utmost importance in our education.
Our aim is not simply to teach, to develop good professional men or to give our students a chance to obtain a position in society. We must educate in such a way as to transform ourselves and change and transform society. Even if we want men to be eminent in their professions or in any form of human achievement, it is not for selfish reasons or merely for their own satisfaction; but rather to be of service to others, to be men for others.
Our aim is to educate our students as persons and teach them how to live in a Community. Our plans, programmes, methods, examinations are all developed in accordance with these objectives. We hold these values; man should be a subject and not an object to be used; he must think for himself; he must have a healthy critical spirit; intellectual and affective maturity; creativity, with a strong and well-defined personality; he must be capable of upright, free and just decisions.
The young man we educate must be able to live in solidarity with others especially with those who are most in need, We want our students to be men for others. Selfishness, deceit, dishonesty, anxiety for material possessions beyond moderation, consumerism, a spirit of competition which tries to conquer others, or take advantage of them, are against our policy. Society around us and even the family today, often stand opposed to these values. Therefore it will be essential that everyone, parents, teachers and students be united in affirming and upholding this policy. At a time when the vast majority of our people barely have what is essential to live, we cannot allow needless expenditure, ostentation, worry about appearance.
We are educating our young men for Justice. Our focus and activities will go beyond works of charity and include works of justice and active measures directed towards the effective creation of ‘a more human and just world’.
The role of our education is to mould young men who in their adult lives, will be involved in many forms of direct and indirect efforts to promote a more just social order. We wish to increase the number of such young men who in the prime of their lives, will be committed to the direct promotion of justice and to the study of the transformation of social structure which that direct promotion requires.
Our unjust social structures are due to fears, warped aspirations, maimed self-images and the self-centredness of human beings. The all pervasive influence of consumerism and materialism, joined with affluence and the uncontrollable desire for it, lead people into choices that place things above human beings, consumption above stewardship, profit above human costs, present gratifications above concern for the future.
We will educate for liberty where our students must learn to free themselves from everything which can enslave them : egoism, falsehood, hypocrisy and sensual enjoyment. This freedom is truly human and social; freed in order to know how to love, to be generous, to make sacrifices, to dedicate themselves to the service of others and improvement of the world; free in the face of the pressure of everyone, who is speaking and acting otherwise : mass media, public opinion, and at times even home up-bringing.
We want to educate for democracy : not a false democracy which gives privileges only to those who have money, knowledge, power or those who are favourable to us; but rather a democracy which allows participation and equality of opportunity to all, which respects the dignity of each person whether rich or poor, high or low caste, and gives special attention to those who are underprivileged, without power, knowledge or possessions.
We emphasize the values of love, forgiveness, fraternity, truth, hope, justice, freedom as an invitation from God, who loves all of us and invites from us a free response. These values will not become a reality without the collaboration of parents who must fulfil their primary role in education. We do not want one set of values set by the school and contradictory set of values encouraged in the home.
We also teach the brotherhood of all people and so do not allow any distinctions based on colour, caste, religion or economic differences. This is our contribution to a progressive, peaceful and united India in which all are equal.
A school moulds and fashions the minds and hearts of youth. We want to set ideals before our youth and motivate them towards achieving these goals. Therefore we need parents and families who are vitally concerned with the education of their children and who will participate closely in this co-operative effort. All our educational efforts will be used for the promotion of values which are deeply spiritual, humanitarian and just. This effort is irreversible and here too, the participation of the parents is indispensable. We expect parents to assume more and more responsibility in the education and development of their children. Children whose parents do not want to join in this co-operative endeavour, are not for St. Paul’s.
Our school thus aims at making its own contribution towards a radical transformation of present day social conditions, so that the principles of social justice, equality of opportunity, genuine freedom, respect for religious and moral values, enshrined in the Constitution of India, may prevail; and the possibility of leading a fully human existence may be open before all. This is the type of person we are trying to educate today and we seek the co-operation of all teachers and parents for its achievement. This education will really be for the greater glory of God and the advancement of our country.
Parents, who want their children to be educated by us, must subscribe to our policy and back it totally. If they cannot accept these ideas they must find another institution for their child.