Brick by Brick

Our Saint Is Dead!

Wednesday, April 2, 2008 marked the third anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II. We observed this occasion with remembrance and an all-school liturgy celebrated by our friend, Fr. George O'Brien. I told our students that we're lucky; JPII's a great guy and a great namesake. I am grateful to have the such an life and example for our school to emulate.

May we always be worthy to be known as Pope John Paul II's high school.

Read Fr. O'Brien's homily: Download 20080404144210745.pdf 

The Wonderful Cross

The paradox of the cross -- a tough idea to 'get' both intellectually and emotionally -- is at the heart of our faith and central to how we can approach Holy Week. The paradox of the cross, the idea that it is in giving that we receive and that it is through dying we are born to eternal life, helps us accept the inevitable sufferings of life in a way that unites us with the life of God. 

I was thinking about this idea as our school prayed the Stations of the Cross (as re-formulated and prayed by Pope John Paul II in 1991) today. I watched our students struggle with mystery of Holy Week as they move from a childhood sense of Christianity into a more personal, adult, appropriated faith.  Not an easy journey at all but one that is the core of our mission as a Catholic school.

Watching this struggle also makes me wonder what struggles Holy Week has for me. We're all freshmen in high school, at least in God's eyes.

Wishing all the joy of the Resurrection this Easter season! 

Guest Blogger -- Hannah Dulmaine, '11 on the Washington D.C. March For Life [02-13-08]

In mid-January, 14 freshmen -- nearly 40% of our student body -- participated in the Washington, D.C. March for Life led by Bishop Coleman. Hannah Dulmaine, '11, a participant on the March, offers the following reflections:

"On January 20-22, the 35th anniversary of Roe v.Wade, I joined thirteen of my classmates on a journey to Washington, D.C. where I participated in a momentous event, the March for Life.

The pilgrimage began early in the morning when I boarded a bus and began the eight-hour drive to Washington, D.C. The bus stopped at Bishop Connolly High School, where we joined many other students from Fall River Diocesan schools for a Mass. The Mass unified the group as one body in Christ, got us excited about our faith, and encouraged us to stand up for what we believe in.

Once we arrived in D.C., everyone was quickly grabbing their sleeping bags, crash pads, pillows, and bags. Along with the other girls from the Fall River Diocesan schools, I piled in the gymnasium of Bishop O'Connell High School where we slept for two nights. That evening, in the auditorium of Bishop O'Connell HS, nearly 450 high schools students from Cape Cod to Boston spent an hour of prayer, praise, and adoration with Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Archbishop of Boston. Cardinal O'Malley talked to us and encouraged us to live our faith and stand up for our beliefs. That is exactly what we did.

The next day, we toured Washington, and that night, we joined bishops, priests, deacons, seminarians, and thousands of religious and lay people for a Vigil Mass celebrated at the Basilica Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The basilica was breath-taking but the number of people that overflowed the basilica meant even more.

Early that final morning, we joined over 20,000 people in the Verizon Center Sports Arena for a Rally and Mass. We celebrated Mass, sang along with songs of praise and adoration, listened to motivational speakers, and became ready to prove that we are Pro-Life Catholics. This event lifted my spirits and made me eager for the March. When the March came, I was shocked at the number of people who made the journey. Over 200,000 people marched and I was honored to be among them.

It was an emotional journey and truly made me closer with God. It helped me realize the importance of standing up for your faith and making a difference in the world. We are not too young to make a difference and our participation on the March for Life proved just that."

Experience: The Best Teacher [1-22-08]

It's obvious (I hope!) that, along with college preparation, helping young people know God is our core mission.

But how do we help people know God? Many might imagine daily religious instruction in the classroom to be the central component. Maybe. But in my experience, not really.

Don't get me wrong: The work of the classroom is needed and forms an important foundation for knowing God. But for the most part, it doesn't get you there. To use the terms of classical logic, daily religious instruction is a necessary, but not sufficient, cause.

The gift of Catholic education, in my experience, is the gift of experience -- namely, that Catholic schools provide opportunities where experiences of God has the power to transform. Retreats, prayer rituals, acts of service and the like provide opportunities for God to break through our barriers. One such opportunity took place these last three days as fourteen of our students joined hundreds from our Diocese and many thousands from across the nation attending the March for Life in Washington, D.C. They were remembered in prayer at school this morning.

Was theirs a transformative experience?  Did our pilgrims know God in a special way these past three days? God knows...(God does know!). We'll find out. Our pilgrims return late tonight.

A Young Family [01-08-08]

Part of my "stump speech" in the year leading up to our opening was to point out that Pope John Paul II High School is the seventh Catholic school I have been involved with as student, teacher, or administrator. Most recent and formative was my experience in Cleveland, Ohio. As a rust-belt urban area, greater Cleveland features numerous Catholic schools, some with histories approaching a century. When Principal of Padua Franciscan High School, I occasionally felt our school was a "new kid" for having only forty years of existence.

One by-product of numerous schools with long histories is that years of Catholic school graduates embedded in the community creates an oft-reinforced sense of unity -- ("Ohh, you're at Padua? My wife went to Nazareth and I went to St. Ignatius..."). More than simply experience of shared locations, this fellow-feeling taps a deeper set of shared values and Catholic identity. In an unexpected way, these different schools reinforce our unity as one Church. School loyalty becomes Catholic unity.   

With the opening of JPII, there are now five Catholic schools on Cape Cod. None of these schools existed even fifteen years ago. I believe that, with this young family of schools, we have the real opportunity to revitalize the Church on Cape Cod. Catholic Schools Week is celebrated annually at the end of January. This year, a special Mass of unity will take place bringing together students and staff from all five Cape Catholic schools. On January 29, nearly one thousand students and staff from St. Margaret's (Buzzards Bay), St. Francis Xavier (Hyannis), Holy Trinity (Harwich), St. Pius X (Yarmouth), and JPII will join Bishop Coleman in a celebration of Catholic education on Cape Cod. Why wait for unity?

Blog readers are welcome to attend this special event. Go to www.pjp2hs.org for more information. 

Advent and a Little Grace [12-21-07]

A funny thing happens as Christmas recess approaches: Whatever stresses ordinary life provides tend to melt away into good feelings amongst staff and students alike. Sure, a ten-day vacation from school will do that. But I choose to believe that, in addition to the gift of time, a little of God's grace relieves us of the useless anxieties of the day.

At Pope John Paul II High School, we end our calendar year with Advent liturgy. This liturgy helps sharpen awareness in all of us of God's role in helping us let go of our burdens. It sure did today.

Below is an excerpt of my remarks given to families and students at our Advent Liturgy:

"Today is our Advent Liturgy and the close of the first 74 days of our school's life. Advent is about watching and waiting, and also working. Watching and waiting for the Messiah, for the Incarnation, for God in his majesty to become human for our sake. But it's not just about waiting passively for God to do something. It's about working to make ready and make room for Him.

With this school we know about waiting and watching and working. Getting the doors of our school open involved plenty of waiting, watching, and working. As we now build our school culture with real students and real families, we realize still that good things require waiting, watching and working.

Jesus was born as a baby. Our school begins this way too. My prayer this Advent is than now and always we make room for Him at Pope John Paul II High School."

Blessings of Peace and All Good this Advent and Christmas season!