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FRIDAY JANUARY 22, 2021
The Observer
Theme Outlines Purpose of Catholic Schools
W
e hear a lot of talk about evangelization these days. Everyone seems to agree that there needs to be more of it. In a world that is fractured, divided and so often angry about many things, people need to hear some good news. Evangelization is the process of bringing to the world not just good news but the best news. That is the Gospel and the hope for salvation in Jesus Christ. Strangely, one of the hallmarks of the modern world in many places is a reticence about sharing faith. Instead of shouting from the rooftops the good news about Jesus coming to save us, faith has become more individualized, personal, and for some even a source of division. But as followers of Jesus Christ, we recall Jesus mandate to evangelize. Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature (Mk 16:15). In short, the world needs to hear our message. One of the ways that the Catholic Church in the United States has historically engaged in evangelization is through its network of Catholic schools. Those institutions, typically grade schools and high schools associated with dioceses, parishes or religious orders, seek to form the souls, minds and bodies of our young people. And experience shows that even youth from other faiths and sometimes from backgrounds of no faith often take advantage of the excellence of education and formation in Catholic schools. Next week, from Jan. 31 through Feb. 6, we will once more celebrate this tremendous contribution to the coming generations by the annual celebration of Catholic Schools Week. This years theme is Catholic Schools: Faith. Excellence. Service." Those three components, in that order, outline the purpose of Catholic schools. First, faith means that our schools faithfully teach the whole of Catholic faith from prayer to the Scriptures to the sacraments to moral living, so each student learns, understands and puts into practice the teaching of Jesus. By excellence, we reect our pride in the academic achievements for which the students of Catholic schools are known. Their consistently high test scores conrm that Catholic education prepares its students to engage the world with knowledge, understanding and rst rate skills. And Catholic schools pride themselves on teaching young people to give back through service. Jesuss constant attention to the poor and the needy in so many ways is a primary lesson for imitation in our schools. Of course this past year has really put the Catholic schools of the Diocese of Rockford to the test. The COVID-19 virus made it necessary to pivot from in-person to virtual learning in March of 2020. And our teachers, principals, administrators and students responded with commitment and innovation. Having experience and technology already in place for virtual teaching on snow days, the school year continued. Teachers, families and students worked tirelessly to complete the academic year under circumstances not experienced before. Even more, we can be so proud that by last September, all diocesan schools had reopened and were fullling the mission of evangelization with combinations of in-class instruction and e-learning. And as always, a safe learning environment was furnished for students, teachers and sta. I wish to express my very sincere appreciation during Catholic Schools Week to the teachers and students and their families who have made this year possible. The willing adaptation to protocols of distancing, masks and sanitizing helped incorporate those measures into the daily life of Catholic education. This has demonstrated commitment and exibility on the part of all to keep moving toward the goals of faith, service and excellence. Please celebrate Catholic Schools Week with us. Pray for our teachers and students. Perhaps you could contribute to a nearby Catholic school. And if you have children, give those schools a good look and consider enrolling. This week reminds us that Catholic schools are great places to be. BY BISHOP DAVID J. MALLOY
From General Audience, Library of the Apostolic Palace, Jan. 13, Part 1
Let us continue our catechesis on prayer, and today we will give space to the dimension of praise. We will take as our starting point a critical passage in the life of Jesus. After the rst miracles and the involvement of the disciples in the proclamation of the Kingdom of God, the mission of the Messiah goes through a crisis. John the Baptist doubts and makes Him receive this message - John is in jail: Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another? (Mt 11:3), because he feels this anguish of not knowing whether he is mistaken in his proclamation. There are always dark moments, moments of spiritual nighttime, and John is going through this moment. ... Now, precisely in this disappointing moment, Matthew relates a truly surprising fact: Jesus does not lift up a lament to the Father, but rather He raises a hymn of jubilation: I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, says Jesus,that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes (Mt 11:25). So, in the midst of a crisis, amid the darkness of the soul of so many people, such as John the Baptist, Jesus blesses the Father, Jesus praises the Father. But why? First and foremost, He praises Him for who He is: Father, Lord of heaven and earth. Jesus rejoices in His spirit because He knows and He feels that His Father is the God of the universe, and vice versa, the Lord of all that exists is Father, My Father. Praise springs from this experience of feeling that He is Son of the Most High. Jesus feels He is Son of the Most High. And then Jesus praises the Father for favoring the little ones. It is what He Himself experiences, preaching in the villages. The learned and the wise remain suspicious and closed, ... while the little ones open themselves and welcome His message. This can only be the will of the Father, and Jesus rejoices in this. We too must rejoice and praise God because humble and simple people welcome the Gospel. ... Therefore, in that moment of apparent failure, where everything is dark, Jesus prays, praising the Father. And His prayer also leads us, the readers of the Gospel, to judge our personal defeats in a dierent way, to judge dierently the situations in which we do not see clearly the presence and action of God, when it seems that evil prevails and there is no way to stop it. In those moments Jesus, who highly recommended the prayer of asking questions, at the very moment when He would have had reason to ask the Father for explanations, instead begins to praise Him. It seems to be a contradiction, but it is there, it is the truth.
Praise God in the Midst of Darkness
BY POPE FRANCIS
(CNS photo/C. Peri via Reuters)
I
wish to express my very sincere appreciation during Catholic Schools Week to the teachers and students and their families who have made this year possible.
S
o, in the midst of a crisis, amid the darkness of the soul of so many people, such as John the Baptist, Jesus blesses the Father, Jesus praises the Father.
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