Video Transcript

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Not long ago a family talked with me about their experience of Catholic Education. Neither husband nor wife had attended Catholic Schools growing up; and, for some years, they had made the decision to place their children in public schools. But when they moved to Arizona, they took another look at the question of Catholic education for their children.

At first, they were hesitant because it would require them to sacrifice their income for tuition. Their kids were not too excited either, already frustrated at having to leave their former friends behind and now having to find new friends, attend Mass, and even wear a uniform!

Sometimes, hearing stories like this reminds us that Catholic Schools are a great gift for our young people and their parents. Many families never had the opportunity to receive a Catholic Education. Growing up, I went to a small country school with just a few students — and our family were the only Catholics! It was a good community, and I have some wonderful memories from there, but when I finally experienced Catholic education upon entering the seminary, I began to realize how much I had missed. I was amazed at the richness of the Catholic intellectual heritage.

My mind and heart became like sponges soaking up the insights and beauty of saintly scholars like Thomas Aquinas and Albert the Great, Bernard of Clairvaux and Teresa of Avila, Augustine, Basil the Great, and other Doctors of the Church.  I began to see how the search for truth and beauty was not squashed by confusing heresies or disputes but reached new levels of understanding and insight when faced head on. I discovered how faith and reason are, as St. John Paul II said, “like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.” Jesus is in the center of it all.

Anyone who receives a Catholic Education can discover, as St. John Newman wrote, that knowledge of God is the most important discipline of study because it is the foundation for all the arts and sciences. It allows us to explore the dignity of the human person, as well as the mystery of evil and the far greater mystery of Salvation in Christ.  Our Catholic Schools are the home for evangelization, catechesis, and discipleship – which support parents in their mission as the first teachers of their children in the faith. In Catholic Schools, history courses explore the story of humanity’s greatest achievements as well as its darkest hours, without omitting the role of God. Physical Education, Language Arts, Fine Arts, Philosophy, Theology and so much more teach us the dignity of the body as a temple of God, and the duty we have to love God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves.

Our Catholic Schools provide solid academic education but reach far beyond. We form the whole person: body, mind, and soul, helping students to see their lives as gifts from God, with an eternal destiny and noble dignity, a lofty purpose and mission to know, love and serve God.  St. John Paul II said:

“In order that the Catholic school and Catholic teachers may truly make their irreplaceable contribution to the Church and to the world, the goal of Catholic education itself must be crystal clear… Catholic education is above all a question of communicating Christ, of helping to form Christ in the lives of others.”

The family I was speaking about earlier who enrolled their kids in our Catholic Schools began to realize these many advantages after only a few months.  The father told me,

“My 9-year-old daughter asked me to pray with her before going to sleep.  She then went on to say, ‘Dad, do you know who Padre Pio is?  Did you know he could read souls in the confessional, and knew your sins before you could say them?  Did you know that his body is incorruptible?  Dad, this is amazing – can you take me to confession?”

His wife shared,

“When we parent at home and teach our kids between right and wrong, good and evil,  how life is about serving others, I feel like our kids are hearing the exact same message at the Catholic School.  It’s like we are a real community, helping each other raise our kids.”

This is true: Catholic schools are a community of faith-filled missionary disciples.

On Thursday, November 12, the Diocese of Phoenix will be hosting a 30-minute virtual event called Night of Hope. This special event will feature our Superintendent of Catholic Schools Domonic Salce, with several school principals and others, telling us about our schools and how this pandemic has affected our families and students. I hope you can join us for this virtual Night of Hope on November 12. It will give our entire community an opportunity to help families that are struggling due to the pandemic. Ryan Watson, principal of St. Francis Xavier Elementary School, will host the evening, and I am pleased to be a part.

Thank you for the part you have played in supporting Catholic Education. Please pray for all our students, and their parents and teachers, that they may always stay close to Jesus. And may Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.