The Shrine Gift Shop is pleased to offer a new coloring book entitled “Rose Philippine Duchesne: Pioneer Saint.” This 28-page book, illustrated by Susan O’Callaghan Lorenz and written by Susan Howard Scarpinato, is available for $7.50. For further information, please call the Shrine at 636-946-6127, ext. 1801.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, in designating a different American Saint for each month of this Year of Faith, have named February the “Month of Philippine.” To contribute to the celebration, members of the Sacred Heart family from around the country are sharing reflections, homilies, poems and prayers― something different for each day of the month. The opening reflection, “Philippine: Woman with a Global Heart” is by Sister Glavin. See it on the Society website, www.rscj.org.
We at the Academy of the Sacred Heart are proud to be the stewards of Philippine’s first and last American school, stewards of her inspirational story, stewards of her saintly remains, and stewards of her holy example through our lives and our loves.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MR. JOHN STORJOHANN
This week all the Catholic schools throughout the country are celebrating Catholic Schools week. We at the Academy have some special reasons to celebrate, given our unique role in the history of Catholic education in St. Louis. I am sure most of you already know this, but, we the Academy of the Sacred Heart, St. Charles can claim to be the:
• First Catholic School in what is now the Archdiocese of St. Louis
• First free school west of the Mississippi
• First place which provided formal education to girls in St. Louis.
• First to bring educational opportunity to poor girls in St. Louis.
• Oldest currently operating Catholic school in the St. Louis metropolitan area
As faculty and staff, we have been reflecting on the charism or gift which the Society of the Sacred Heart has brought to Catholic education. The following writings from the Society’s constitution provide a tiny window into that charism:
“We are sent by the Church to communicate
the love of the Heart of Jesus.”
#10, Constitutions of the Society of the Sacred Heart, 1982
“Our service of education is carried out in a
genuine relationship of mutual interaction,
where each person both receives and gives
so that all may grow together.”
#14, Constitutions of the Society of the Sacred Heart, 1982
“(Our service of education) asks of us generous commitment, serious ongoing
formation and a broad critical vision of the world, enlightened by faith.”
#14, Constitutions of the Society of the Sacred Heart, 1982
As a grand way to culminate this week, I am excited to share with you that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, in designating a different American Saint for each month of this Year of Faith, have proclaimed that February is the “Month of Philippine.” To contribute to the celebration, members of the Sacred Heart family from around the country are sharing reflections, homilies, poems and prayers― something different for each day of the month. I invite you to join in the fun by visiting the Society of the Sacred Heart website, www.rscj.org. Or, if you wish, you can even choose to receive an e-mail of each daily reflection. (See rscj website for details.)
We at this Academy are prouder than ever to be the stewards of Philippine’s first and last American school, stewards of her inspirational story, stewards of her saintly remains and stewards of her holy example through our lives and our loves. Thus faithfully living our educational mission, may we continue to serve our children, our Church and our world!
United in the Heart of Jesus,
Maureen Glavin, rscj
Plan now to attend our 11th annual tropical Trivia Night on Saturday, Feb. 2 for fun, food, drink and an opportunity to share your vast collection of knowledge! Tables for eight are available. In addition to trivia, a bottle booth and 50/50 drawing, there’ll be a Silent Auction featuring sports memorabilia, photos, plaques and items celebrating St. Louis favorites. Click here for more Trivia Night info. For further information, call 636-946-5632.
The Pre-Primary children enjoyed decorating their “Kingdom” recently as they learned about the letter “K.” They created windows, painted bricks, added glitter and attached a door Knob. The children decorated crowns with their names so they could be “King” of their kingdom. Next, they will let their imaginations run WILD for “W” week as they play inside the beautifully decorated kingdom.
Two of our Eighth Class students were winners in the City of St. Charles’ first annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “I Have Dream” Art Contest. Placing first in the 6th-8th grade category was Michael S. for his entry, “The Mountains in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dream.” Winning third prize in the same category was Gus F. for “I Have a Dream.” Winners were recognized at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. service Jan. 21 at St. Charles Borromeo Church. Beginning next week, all of the nearly 30 entries will be displayed for viewing on the first floor of the St. Charles City Hall Rotunda. Congratulations, Michael and Gus!
Join Academy moms on Sunday, Jan. 20 for the next meeting of Sacred Space, a prayer group that meets on alternating Sunday evenings in the Shrine. This week’s topic: “Clutter: How to manage it all.” Prayer and discussion will be led by the Sacred Space Committee.
We look forward to welcoming prospective families to our Winter Open House on Wednesday, Jan. 16. We’ll begin in the Conference Room with a 9 a.m. presentation by Sister Maureen Glavin and our two Principals, followed by tours of the school given by our Seventh and Eighth Class Student Ambassadors from 9:45 to 11 a.m. All are welcome to join us for this glimpse into our classrooms, questions and answers, refreshments and more. For further information, contact Admissions Director Lisa Tebbe at 636-946-6127, ext. 1620 or admissions@ash1818.org.
As we move toward the culmination of the Christmas season, Sister Glavin describes her prayer for the new year.
Welcome Back!
I hope you all had a happy and holy Christmas! We continue to celebrate the Christmas season here. As such, you will continue to see our Christmas trees up, our Christmas lights burning and our crèche visible (with the wise men drawing ever closer) until the full 12 days of Christmas culminate with the Feast of the Epiphany―that wonderful celebration of wisdom recognizing divinity wrapped in humility and poverty.
And, Happy New Year!
My prayer at the beginning of each new calendar year tends to be the same, but since our life is a journey to greater wisdom (in that sense, we are indeed like the wise men on the road), my annual prayer simply becomes deeper each year.
May we all become ever more poignantly aware of the depth of God’s great Love for us! Steeped in new levels of security in that Love, may we continue to grow in the freedom to reflect God’s Beauty, Goodness and Truth through the very living of our lives.
As each of us travels our life’s journey, we are sure to struggle through the ups and downs that inevitably will be found along the road. Sometimes it is BECAUSE of the difficulties and challenges, our hearts are broken open (by circumstances rather than through our own choosing) and as a result of these difficult moments we end up learning more about ourselves, more about God and more about what is important and what is not important on the journey.
Consequently, you will notice that I am not praying for “no bumps” on the journey; I am only praying that, through the bumps, we grow in our capacity to more beautifully and more perfectly allow the incarnation to continue in us. The goal is to BECOME Christ, which means that, like Christ, we become the face and heart and hands of God’s goodness, grace and love.
So, may the growth continue and deepen on each of our journeys during 2013!
Maureen Glavin, rscj
Join Academy moms on Sunday, Jan. 6 for the next meeting of Sacred Space, a prayer group that meets every other Sunday evening in the Shrine. This week’s topic: How to Restart a Relationship with God, presented by Kathy McGrath, RSCJ.
