Choosing the right college where Catholic students can freely practice and deepen their faith while developing their God-given gifts and discerning the path that he has chosen for them is a momentous decision. For the past 21 years, the Register’s Catholic Identity College Guide has been an indispensable resource for both prospective students and their parents. This year’s guide features snapshots of 53 schools that have affirmed their fidelity to the Catholic faith, in accordance with standards established by Pope St. John Paul II.

What sets these schools apart?

These colleges and universities abide by a set of norms the U.S. bishops adapted from John Paul II’s 1990 apostolic constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae (“From the Heart of the Church”). Fundamentally, the schools recognize a student’s right to receive instruction in authentic Catholic doctrine, especially from theologians.

What is a mandatum?

A mandatum is an acknowledgement, required by the bishops’ norms, by a Church authority (usually the local bishop) that a Catholic professor of a theological discipline is teaching within the full communion of the Catholic Church. All of the 53 schools in the guide have mandatums.

What is the Oath of Fidelity?

As it applies to a Catholic college or university, the Oath of Fidelity is a promise made by an individual assuming an office. By this oath they affirm their commitment to uphold the teachings of the Church and maintain communion with it. Many of the schools in this year’s guide require the oath, but not all.

What does “Catholic identity” mean?

The essential elements of Catholic identity include:

•  having an administration, trustees and faculty who believe what the Church teaches and promote it on campus;
•  having a majority of faculty that is Catholic;
•  offering daily Mass and confession on campus;
•  excluding advocates of abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem-cell research, cloning, or the redefinition of marriage as commencement speakers and/or recipients of honorary degrees; and
•  having student health services prohibit referrals to abortion businesses.

How do we collect our data?

The schools in our guide fill out or update a questionnaire available on the Register’s website. Please join us in praying for the continued growth of this important list!