Pope Leo XIV on the Global Compact on Education
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The seven commitments of the Global Compact on Education (GCE), the seven action areas of the Laudato Si' Action Platform (LSAP), and the Characteristics of Marianist Education (CMEs) form the bases for our five Marianist Encounters' goals. Pope Leo XIV wrote about the Global Compact on Education in his Apostolic Letter, Drawing New Maps of Hope, and added three priorities to its seven commitments.
Promulgated by the Second Vatican Council in 1965 under Pope Paul VI, Gravissimum educationis—Latin for “extremely important education”—is a foundational declaration on Christian education that inspired Pope Francis to renew the Church’s educational mission.
Continuing the vision of Pope Francis, Pope Leo XIV issued his Apostolic Letter titled “Drawing New Maps of Hope” on October 28, 2025, the sixtieth anniversary of the Declaration of the Garvissimum educationis. In the tenth point of this Apostolic Letter, Pope Leo refers to the Global Compact on Education (GCE) as the lodestar, meaning a guiding star. Pope Leo calls the GCE part of the broader Global Educational Constellation, containing diverse charisms and institutions that form a united design guiding our steps in the darkness of these present times.
Pope Leo XIV writes:
The lodestar of the Compact on Education: Among the stars that guide our path is the Global Compact on Education. I gratefully accept this prophetic legacy entrusted to us by Pope Francis. It is an invitation to form an alliance and networks to educate in universal fraternity. Its seven pathways remain our foundation: putting the person at the centre; listening to children and young people; promoting the dignity and full participation of women; recognizing the family as the first educator; opening ourselves to welcome and inclusion; renewing the economy and politics in the service of humanity; and caring for our common home. These “stars” have inspired schools, universities, and educational communities around the world, giving rise to concrete processes of humanization.
Pope Leo also adds three priorities to these seven pathways: a deeper inner life, placing people before technology and AI, and using it fairly and wisely, and working towards an unarmed and disarming peace.
Reflection Questions:
Read Pope Leo XIV’s Apostolic Letter Drawing New Maps of Hope
Reflect on the tenth point of Pope Leo's Apostolic Letter: The lodestar of the Compact on Education. Share some thoughts from this Apostolic Letter that inspire you towards the ministry of education. You can add your reflections to the discussion here.