Pope Francis’s daily meditation on February 23, 2017 was titled “Do not delay conversation.” Pope Francis reflected on the “sin” of professing to be Christian yet living a life that does not follow God’s word. The Pope refers to the law of the Lord as being a means of finding strength and explains how, for the lord, sin is the same as destruction. The Pope then continued to define sin: “saying one thing and doing another; it is a double life” this double life “comes from following your heart’s desires, the capital sins which are the wounds of the original sin”. This meditation is concluded with the Pope asking each of us to think about whether there is a double life within us and not to delay this conversation with ourselves and explore the depth of our hearts to acknowledge that sin destroys. This reading connects greatly to the discussion around what makes Catholic schools separate from Secular ones. If a school is only Catholic in name, yet does not follow a Catholic way of life or is rooted in all of its practices then the faculty members and students of the school are all living a double life. This meditation calls upon us, as the Catholic community, not to stray away from this conversation with ourselves. As teachers we constantly reflect on every lesson and analyze how we can improve, as Catholics we must do the same and show our students how to as well. We all sin, but it is the denial of these sins and the continuation of them that destroys us. The daily meditation on March 2, 2017 that pop Francis delivered was titled, “The Christian’s Compass.” This meditation reflects on how our Christian compass is to follow Christ crucified and not some abstract God, and is a strong reminder during Lent. Pop Francis explained that “the Liturgy of the Word makes us reflect on three realities that lie before us as conditions for this conversion: the reality of man — the reality of life; the reality of God; and the reality of the journey”. These “are realities of the human experience, all three, but which the Church, and we too, have before us for this conversion.” In the reality of man you are faced with a choice between good and evil, it is the reality of freedom. This is an essential element in a Catholic worldview and especially for Catholic education as it is always a choice not only which school to attend, but which faith to follow. The second reality of God, that we must not see Jesus Christ and God as separate but rather as one. During the season of Lent it is very important for teachers to take on the position of religious guidance, as many students do not attend mass or are unaware of what the Lenten season truly means. It is important to implement a concrete God as a school-wide initiative. The third reality is the reality of the journey. This journey is the reason we have become Catholic educators, we pick up our crosses and follow on Jesus’ path and lead the way for our students to follow. This mirrors the Catholic school which serves as a road stop on this journey to show our students how they continue on the path God has carved out for them, and we as teachers are their temporary guides. These realities all work together to construct our realities as Catholics and point us in the right direction. The morning meditation of Pope Francis on February 28, 2017 is called “Everything and Nothing.” This reflection is on the joy of sacrifice in responding to Jesus’ call to follow him. These reflections came days before Lent and the relationship between “God and riches” This is extremely important as a future educator. Our students are coming from different economic backgrounds and all have different relationships themselves with money. It is important to come back to Scripture and remind students that wealth comes in many different forms, the least gratifying is the wealth of money. This reading also draws a comparison between the educator and Christ to say that “The Lord does not know how to give less than everything; when he gives something, he gives himself, which is everything.” This is why teaching is a vocation, I give it everything that I have into it. This reflects the Catholic school as a whole because it is important for the community to build a space in which each student has the same opportunities as the other regardless of economic background. I have witnessed beautiful donations from parents, the church, staff members, all to help students buy prom dresses, attend graduation, attend class trips, participate in paid school lunches; the selflessness is a beautiful thing to witness and a reminder that wealth comes from our relationship with God and with others.
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