Early Childhood Development and Catholic Social Teaching

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Wednesday, January 17, 2024 12:00 pm

The first 1,000 days of a child’s life are a time of tremendous potential and enormous vulnerability. How well or how poorly mothers and children are nourished and cared for during this time has a profound impact on a child’s ability to grow, learn and thrive. This is because the first 1,000 days are when a child’s brain begins to grow and develop and when the foundations for their lifelong health are built.

This work of forging pathways out of poverty for children on the margins and preparing them for life success can happen through the global Catholic Church and its parish system; Home, Church, and School; when other infrastructure fails or is absent.
Raising Resilient Children explores the science of early childhood development and how parents, health professionals, and the Catholic Church can positively shape children’s future outcomes.

How do the science and theology of relationships and belonging intersect? Neil Boothby and Fr. Lou DelFra, C.S.C. of the Institute for Educational Initiatives discuss the ways Catholic Social Teaching paints a directive to address the needs of children and those at the margins of society, while science, in turn, shows us how to do so on Wednesday, January 17, 2024.

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Meet the Faculty: Fr. Lou DelFra, C.S.C. '92, M. Div. '03

Rev. Louis A. DelFra, C.S.C. ’92, M. Div. ’03, serves as the director of pastoral life for the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE). He writes and publishes in the fields of religion, literature, teacher education, and spirituality. Fr. DelFra resides in Keenan Hall on the Notre Dame campus. Fr. DelFra has also served as associate pastor at Holy Redeemer Parish and School in Portland, Oregon, and as a middle school and high school teacher at Malvern Preparatory School in Philadelphia. He received his undergraduate and master’s of divinity degrees from the University of Notre Dame, and he was ordained a Holy Cross priest in 2004.

Invest in Our Youth

Imagine a conversation between a psychologist and priest that investigates how science and faith can converge in ways that help some of the world’s most vulnerable children.

Neil Boothby and Fr. Lou DelFra, C.S.C., have that conversation in their new book, Invest in Our Youth.

Boothby, the founding director of the University of Notre Dame’s Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child (GC-DWC), and DelFra, the director of pastoral life for the Alliance for Catholic Education, explore the synergies between early childhood development science and Catholic Social Tradition. Developed for those championing change for children in the most vulnerable parts of our world, the authors present the science and theology behind investing in early childhood development and illustrate how Catholic Social Tradition paints a directive to address the needs of those at the margins of society, while science, in turn, shows us how to do so.

The book highlights themes of human connection and belonging, details the integral roles of parents and caregivers in the lives of children, and challenges the duality of science and theology to unify the two in one common goal: to aid in the lifelong success of vulnerable children through a whole child lens. 

“We do not presume to have all of the answers, and we learn more every day from both the communities we serve and each other,” Boothby said. “However, we hope this book provides a guide for how the Catholic faith and application science can work together to create a lasting impact in the lives of the world’s most vulnerable children.”

Invest in our Youth is available in both English and French and can be purchased in e-book and print versions on Amazon. For more information, please visit the Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child website.

L3 Equity Initiative in Haiti - Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child

L3E encourages racial equity and healing by supporting programmatic and economic development in the system most central to the Haitian community: home, school, and church.