GEORGE WEIGEL Karol Wojtyła had two convictions that shaped his papal ministry and his thinking about education: Father Karol Wojtyla, the future Pope John Paul II, is pictured reading in a kayak in this photo dated 1955. CNS photo
Catholic World Report Editor's note: The Pioneer Institute, a Boston-based public policy research center, has just published a groundbreaking study, A Vision of Hope: Catholic Schooling in Massachusetts . The book explores the history and achievements of Catholic education in the Bay State, empirically demonstrates the superior performance of Catholic schools in educating poor and at-risk children, and makes a strong case for the imperative of parental choice legislation in the reform of American elementary and secondary education.