brimming with hope

During July 1-4, I had the honor to be part of the Archdiocese of St. Louis delegation to the national Convocation of Catholic Leaders. It was four days of praying for and thinking about the Church in the 21st century.

We reflected on what missionary discipleship looks like in light of Pope Francis' apostolic exhortation "Evangelii Gaudium" ("The Joy of the Gospel"). There were many excellent presentations, panels and breakout sessions. While difficult to summarize in a single column, I want to share key takeaways from the convocation.

June is a natural time to review the previous school year and look forward to the next. While school years are linear on a calendar, they ebb and flow continuously. Recently I shared with our elementary principals that a good metaphor for the past school year is that of the labyrinth.

You surely know about two significant events that took place in St. Louis during the summer of 1904 — the World's Fair and the Summer Olympics. But you may not be aware of another important event that happened that summer.

Catholic school students in the Archdiocese of St. Louis are blessed to be supported by parents, parishioners and benefactors. These individuals support our schools not only because they recognize the individual benefit each student receives, but they recognize that Catholic schools benefit our entire community.

The 1633 trial of Galileo Galilei is often used as evidence that the Catholic Church opposes scientific thought. The reality is that the Catholic Church has had a fruitful relationship with science and has been one of its biggest proponents. Scientific historian J.L. Heilbron asserts, "The Roman Catholic Church gave more financial aid and social support to the study of astronomy for over six centuries ... than any other, and probably, all other, institutions."

As a school administrator for many years, I have attended a good number of school Christmas programs. I have seen everything from simple songs on risers, to choreographed routines, to elaborate plays. This year, I had the privilege of attending the Christmas programs at Annunziata School, St. Gemma Center, and St. Joan of Arc, three locations for our Catholic special education programs. What I witnessed at each was extremely impressive, even for a veteran audience member.