A kapwa-infused paradigm in teaching Catholic theology/catechesis in a multireligious classroom in the Philippines

• Main Author: Macaraan, Willard Enrique R.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2019
• Subjects: Religious pluralism > Philippines; Religious education > Philippines; Fellowship—Religious aspects; Religion
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/2564
• Institution: De La Salle University

The increasing religious diversity in educational space has raised a legitimate question on how Catholic theology/catechesis must be taught in Philippine Catholic universities given the institutional mandate to educate students “into the faith of the Church through teaching of Christian doctrine in an organic and systematic way” (Wuerl, 1). On this note, the paper makes reference to “centered pluralism” (CP), a positional posture espoused by Georgetown University in dealing with this predicament. In an attempt to (re)appropriate CP into local context, there is a need to explore the Filipino conception of self/others as enveloped within the indigenous concept of kapwa. Hereon, the paper finds that CP is not just feasibly suitable in local context but with kapwa's more inclusive description of the relationship of self and others, a CP-based teaching paradigm in theology/catechesis is a promising project in the educational scene of the Philippines. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd