Thursday, September 28, 2017

We are ONE, part 2

Our theme this year, which comes from the archdiocese, was intended to shine a light on the archbishop's pastoral priorities of Catholic identity, evangelization, and stewardship.  For our community in particular, however, it resonates in a uniquely personal way as well.  "Community" was adopted as a core value of our institution when we wrote our current school mission statement in 2009.  We envisioned the ever-present ideal of  "learning, praying, loving, serving, working, and playing - as one."

The St. Robert School community continuously works toward forging a singular identity out of many sometimes disparate parts.  We live in many different kinds of neighborhoods in many parts of the city and its environs. Our families are representative of multiple races, ethnicities, and religions.  Our students bring a wide range of passions and abilities to their classrooms.  But we are united by our values and, most particularly, our values about education.  So, still, we are one.  Our ongoing efforts toward maintaining a singularity of identity and purpose stands as one of our unique strengths.

We can't forget, though, that the strength of a parish school comes also from an identity entwined with its sponsoring parish. This is another area where our school stands apart. Because our population of new students in any given year does not come primarily from St. Robert Parish, we have had to work strategically and continuously to maintain a oneness of community that understands the school as part of this larger parish identity.

There are, of course, many ways that a parish identity is forged.  Few would dispute that foundational among them is worshipping together every week.  If this isn't realistic for our diverse school community, then we do need to work intentionally at other creative ways to strengthen this critical bond.  A meaningful start would be to simply socialize as a larger extended family.  Don't minimize the potential of familiarity and friendship to build a powerful entity that could accomplish great things - and maybe feed your spirit along the way in ways you didn't even realize you were hungry. Whether or not you have previously engaged in the larger parish family, you are afforded an opportunity to do so this Saturday, September 30th.  

Please join us for our first parish-sponsored Family Fun Night from 5:30-7:30 in the parking lot. Food and fun are are the menu, along with the opportunity to meet up with old friends and make some new ones.  All school families are invited - whether you belong to our parish or not; whether you're Catholic or not.  Let's start playing together in a bigger way this year.  Understanding that we're a parish school isn't enough to keep us strong.  We have to walk the talk.

I hope to see you on Saturday night!

We, who are many, are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.
Romans 12:5


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