Reclaiming the Pastor's Role: Mapping out Magisterial Foundations, Historical Development, and Pathways to Renewal in Catholic Education

Drawing on a phenomenological study of sixteen school pastors across three generations, this presentation traces a decades-long shift in how priests understand their roles and responsibilities in leading their parochial schools. The findings illuminate what has been lost in priestly school leadership and chart a path toward its renewal, grounded in canon law, magisterial documents on education, and the pastor's threefold office as Christ the Teacher, Sanctifier, and King.