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 * Franciscan Spirituality – St Anthony’s Catholic College **

 St. Anthony’s Catholic College is a relatively new school which was established in response to demand and population growth in the new housing estate areas of the Northern Beaches of Townsville. Webb (2004), in his article “//Charisms in Catholic Schools//” identifies two main types of Catholic schools, that is, those which are administered as diocesan systems of schools sharing government funding as well as those administered and/or owned by religious orders. While the former defines St Anthony’s Catholic College and the majority of Catholic schools in Australia today, scholars and theologians agree that one of the main challenges for //all// Catholic schools is to develop, maintain and reinvigorate the charisms of individual schools, so that the owners of the school – the staff, students, parents and wider parish community – are able to make meaning of their connection to Christ in communion with each other.

The college forms part of St. Anthony's Parish, which is in the care of the Franciscan Friars, so it stands to reason that Franciscan Spirituality greatly influences the values of the school. Franciscan spirituality is like any other charism, in that it is meant to be a way of believing, of experiencing, of living and sharing in the wonder of creation and in the fullness of the gospel. Franciscan spirituality is especially relevant to the particular social, cultural, ecclesial and historical needs and issues that affect the world that our students have inherited. The Franciscan love of nature, reverence for life, and openness to our fellows leads to joy and peace, with a down-to-earth and practical desire to correct our mistakes and reverse our wrong practices. It is also inclusive, and open to everyone – not only every human being, but also every creature, and creation itself (Ramon, 1994). 

The school website (www2@stant.tsv.catholic.edu.au/) claims strong links with the Franciscan tradition. As a relative newcomer to St Anthony’s Catholic College, I have been able to observe with objectivity the presence of charism within the college. In his discussion of “the 7 C’s of charism", Brother Michael Green(2009) identifies //Constancy of orientation// as a critical factor, stating that it takes time to embed a particular spirituality into a school community and that it is a constant process to establish and maintain a congruence between what the school claims and what its members actually are and do. I can confidently say that St Anthony’s Catholic College is a place where there is an active critical mass of lay people who have a self-identity defined by the Franciscan spirituality. This analysis will explore and analyse the current presence of the Franciscan charism in St Anthony’s Catholic College from the four perspectives proposed by Brien and Hack (2005, p75) which broadly cover every aspect of Catholic school life – school administration, the religious dimension, pastoral care and curriculum.