Cabrini University encourages faculty, staff and students to reflect on the task of higher education from a variety of perspectives. Foundational to the University’s own mission is a specific perspective rooted in Catholic thought on the aims of higher education in general, and the mission and work of a Catholic institution in particular.
To promote constructive reflection on the calling and resources that come with being a Catholic university, we have compiled the following documentary resources drawn from a range of sources within the Catholic tradition.
Foundational Documents and Commentaries
This section includes documents issued by the popes and bishops conferences of the Catholic Church, which hold varying levels of binding authority on Catholic institutions, as well as commentaries and other secondary documents that discuss the application of these documents to the life of a college or university.
Ex Corde Ecclesiae (From the Heart of the Church). An Apostolic Constitution of Pope John Paul II. Known commonly as “On Catholic Universities.” Gives guidance on the role and responsibilities of Catholic universities.
The Application for Ex Corde Ecclesiae for the United States. A United States Conference of Catholic Bishops document laying out the norms of Catholic higher education in the United States.
A Summary of Ex Corde Ecclesiae prepared by Dr. Nicholas Rademacher, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Cabrini University.
Comments from Pope Benedict XVI’s Meeting with Catholic Educators at the Catholic University of America. April 17, 2008.
An Address by Pope Benedict XVI to American Bishops in their 2012 Ad Limina Visit.
Educating Today and Tomorrow: A Renewing Passion. Instrumentum laboris for the Congregation for Catholic Education. 2014.
Cabrinian Charism and Mission
This section holds documents that are specific to the way Cabrini University and the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus approach higher education through their charism and mission.
Seven Formative Factors of a Cabrinian Education. President’s Initiative on Mission Integration. 2012.
Green, Rose Basile. “The Cabrinian Philosophy of Education.”
Critical and Constructive Dialogue
This section collects a range of scholarly engagement with the foundational documents above, as well as the broader tradition of reflection on and practice of Catholic higher education, to pursue both theoretical and practical questions about the work of Catholic colleges and Universities.
Boeve, Lieven. "The Identity of a Catholic University in Post-Christian European Societies." Louvain Studies 31.3-4 (2006): 238-258.
Butler, Francis J. American Catholic Identity: Essays in an Age of Change. Ed. Francis Butler J. Kansas City, MO: Sheed and Ward, 1994.
Cesareo, Francesco C. "Can a Catholic College Exist Today?: Challenges to Religious Identity in the Midst of Pluralism." New England Journal of Higher Education 22.2 (2007): 17-8.
Cook, Timothy J. "Responding to Leadership Challenges in U.S. Catholic Schools: The Lived Reality".00/00, 2008.
Flynn, James E., S.J. “Sustaining the Founding Spirit: Institutional Identity and Mission.”
Review for Religious January/February 50.1: 116-125.
Gallin, Alice. American Catholic Higher Education: Essential Documents, 1967-1990. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1992.
________. Negotiating Identity: Catholic Higher Education since 1960. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 200.
________. Ex Corde Ecclesiae: Documents Concerning Reception and Implemention. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2006.
Garrett, Matthew. "The Identity of American Catholic Higher Education: A Historical Overview." Catholic Education 10.2 (2006).
Gleason, Philip. "The Catholic Church in American Public Life in the Twentieth Century." Logos: A Journal of Catholic Thought and Culture 3.4 (2000): 85-99.
Heft, James, L., editor. Faith and the Intellectual Life. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1996.
Hesburgh, Theodore M. The Hesburgh Papers: Higher Values in Higher Education. Andrews and McMeel, Inc., Kansas City, KS, 1979.
________, editor. The Challenge and Promise of a Catholic University. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994.
Houser, R.E. “Rekindling of the Light: The Past, Present and Future of a Catholic Core Curriculum.” Studies in Catholic Higher Education (September 2008).
McCluskey, Neil G., editor, The Catholic University: A Modern Appraisal. South Bend: University of Notre Dame Press, 1970.
Pearce, J.A. “The Company Mission as a Strategic Tool. Sloan Management Review 23.3 (1982): 15-24.
Salvaterra, Mary E. "Catholic Identity at Risk: Case Study of Two Colleges.".04/00, 1991. .
Shimabukuro, Gini. "The Catholic Identity of the Teacher: An Invitation to Wholeness in a Challenging, New Age." Momentum 30.2 (1999): 47-53.
Weakland, Rembert. All God's People: Catholic Identity After the Second Vatican Council. pbk ed. New York: Paulist Press, 1985.
Whetstone, T. “A framework for organizational virtue: The interrelationship of mission, culture, and leadership.” Business Ethics: A European Review 14.4 (2005): 367-378.
Wright, Bradley E. and Sanjay K. Pandey. “Public Organizations and Mission Valence: When Does Mission Matter?” Administration & Society (2011) 43.1: 22-44.
Young, Robert B. "Colleges on the Cross Roads: A Study of the Mission Statements of Catholic Colleges and Universities." Current Issues in Catholic Higher Education 21.2 (2001): 65-81.