A topic of discussion which has come up a few times between my friends and I is the idea of "cultural literacy." Loosely defined, cultural literacy means that the culture has a broad enough familiarity with the "great" works of the past that the average (or average educated) member of the culture can recognize these works. This means a familiarity with the Great Ideas as conveyed by media such as books, art, or even music. Most people are still at least somewhat familiar with the Bible, though few know much about Dante and Milton and Chaucer, or Homer and Shakespeare and Dostoevsky, or Saints Athanasias, Augustine, or Thomas Aquinas, or Plato and Aristotle and Boethius (to pick a few examples); we may recognize the Mona Lisa or the David, but not the Dispute over the Eucharist or the Pieta. About this latter work of art, Fr George Rutler had this to say in his essay about Cynicism, written for Disorientation:

The Catholic scholars who formed the first great universities of Europe did so in the same age that popularized the image of the "Pieta" showing the Lady with Divine Wisdom on her lap. She reverences her own Son, whose divine Person existed before her. There is not much for students to sing about if they do not understand that.

There are a number of challenges facing Catholic schools in the 21st century, some unique and others age-old. One seeming minor challenge which will become a major challenge is brought to light by two cases, one in the Denver Archdiocese and the other in the Boston Archdiocese: both involve the children of same-sex couples. These two cases were handled similarly by the school's administrators (in one case, the children will be allowed to complete this year, but not to enroll next year; in the other, the child is denied enrollment altogether), though differently by the bishops of those two dioceses. His Excellency Charles Chaput, Archbishop of Denver, has stood behind the decision of Sacred Heart of Jesus School, stating (emphases mine) that

The policies of our Catholic school system exist to protect all parties involved, including the children of homosexual couples and the couples themselves. Our schools are meant to be “partners in faith” with parents. If parents don’t respect the beliefs of the Church, or live in a manner that openly rejects those beliefs, then partnering with those parents becomes very difficult, if not impossible. It also places unfair stress on the children, who find themselves caught in the middle, and on their teachers, who have an obligation to teach the authentic faith of the Church.