This month we will be learning about the theological virtue of Charity. This virtue summarizes what it means to live our faith--we are called to love God with our whole heart, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as our self. 

We are challenged to find joy each day by treating each other with the kindness, love and care that Jesus had for all those he met. This month we see Charity in action through the lives of St. Gertrude, St. Vincent de Paul and Bls. Laura Vicuna, who dedicated themselves to loving God through loving their neighbors.

Our saints this month are St. Gertrude the Great, St. Vincent de Paul and  Blessed Laura Vicuna. 

   HOPE

      (September)

As we approach the end of another school year, it is fitting that our students learn about the virtue of diligence. Diligence, one of the seven heavenly virtues, calls us to do our best in all that we do and to work until the job is finished.
 

This month our students examined the lives of St. Andre Bessette, St, Francis de Sales and St. Catherine of Siena. St. Andre, a Canadian Saint, brought healing to others through his devotion to St. Joseph. He was humble and willing to serve God in a way that was helpful and caring. St. Andre was ill throughout his life, but stayed dedicated to helping others in spite of his own hardships. 

We also look to the example of St. Francis de Sales, a Bishop and Doctor of the Church, who desired to serve God from an early age in spite of his family’s opposition. St. Francis insisted that every Christian was called to holiness, to becoming more like Christ, regardless of their career or station in life. His call to “Be who you are and be that well,” reminds us that God wants us to find our gifts and talents and use them to be our very best self.

St. Catherine of Siena is the third saint whose life we look to as an example of diligence. St. Catherine composed over 400 letters to Church and world leaders calling them to use the power and gifts they were given for God. She dictated these letters and her prayers because she could not read or write, yet her words were so profound that she was named a Doctor of the Church. In her writings, St. Catherine speaks of two feet and two wings----the feet that we must walk on and the wings with which we fly, referring to the love of God and love of neighbor.
 

“Perform faithfully what God requires of you each moment, and leave the thought of everything else to Him. I assure you that to live in this way will bring you great peace.”

~~St. Jane Frances de Chantal 

Obedience

"On each occasion I say: 'Lord, thy will be done! It's not what this or that one wants, but what You want me to do.' This is my fortress, this is my firm rock, this is my sure support."
--St. John Chrysostom

In April we will be learning about the virtue of Obedience in our classroom guidance lessons. This is a virtue that reminds us to follow God with our whole hearts and to see obedience to God’s will as a gift that transforms our lives rather than a burden that weighs us down.

On Good Friday, we are reminded again of the greatest example of Obedience to God’s will  in Jesus' willingness to obey God no matter the cost. This month as we study the Virtue of Obedience we are called to look for opportunities in our lives where we can also say yes to God's will for us and ask God to change our hearts so that we can live more fully in His love.
 
Our St. Joseph students will study the examples of the Blessed Mother, who said "yes" to God in spite of the pain and worry that this brought. Her saying yes to God's Will also brought her great joy as the Mother of Jesus. We will also look at the examples of St. Juan Diego and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, who were known for being compassionate, prayerful and resourceful.

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control.”

This month at St. Joseph School we learn about the Virtue of Temperance. Lent is a wonderful time to practice this virtue which asks us to balance our lives. In practicing temperance we strive to enjoy the many gifts and talents we are given from God and to use them in the ways in which God intended.

Temperance is a virtue which challenges us to ask ourselves if we are spending our time and energy on those things which will bring us closer to God. Our students will learn about the lives of St. Teresa of Avila, a Spanish Mystic who overcame physical ailments and devoted herself to prayer;  St. Camillus de Lellis, an Italian priest who founded a religious order dedicated to the care ot the sick; and the Venerable Matt Talbot, whose spiritual life centered him in joy and service to others and helped him to overcome addiction.

"May today there be peace within. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us."

~St. Teresa of Avila
 

 

Cheerfulness
(February)

 

A single sunbeam is enough to drive away many shadows

~Francis of Assisi

 

This month we will be talking about the Virtue of Cheerfulness, or looking on the bright side. When talking about this Virtue we might conclude that February is an easy month for practicing cheerfulness because our celebration of St. Valentine's Day is filled with treats and happy reminders of our loved ones. Some of our 2nd grade students are likely to feel cheerful toward the end of this month as they are walking out of church after their first confession.

We are all learning during this pandemic that the cheerful words we share with each other can make such a positive impact on those around us. Our St. Joseph students show they care by their kind words, smiles and cheerful greetings even when these gifts are delivered from behind masks. They are quick to understand how their own cheerfulness brings joy to family members, classmates and the entire school community.

 

We learn about the cheerfulness this month of our three saints;  St. John Bosco, St. Philip Neri and Bl. Miguel Pro, whose lives remind us that God’s love for us is something we can smile about again and again. 

 

"Peace begins with a smile". ~~Mother Teresa

 

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Fidelity
(January)

 

“Holiness consists simply in doing God's will, and being just what God wants us to be.”
~St. Therese of Lisieux
 

    As we begin the new year with resolutions and hopes for a better year, St. Joseph students will learn about the virtue of Fidelity. This virtue, modeled by God, is about keeping our promises and commitments to God and each other. We will study the examples of saints who were faithful to God in seemingly ordinary lives.  Our saints this month: St. Cecilia, Bls. Luigi & Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi, and St. Gianna Molla showed their fidelity to God even when struggles of daily life were overwhelming.

 

    This month our saints also remind us of the opportunities we have for holiness in our own families and our daily lives. Bls. Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi were the first husband and wife to be beatified together as husband and wife. The Italian couple shared their intense love for God and each other with their children through praying the rosary every day with their children and through opening their home to World War II refugees. St. Cecilia was forced to marry a pagan, but prayed intently even throughout their marriage ceremony for his conversion. Her prayers were answered and they were later both martyred for their faith. St. Gianna, an Italian medical doctor, also shows us how to be faithful to God in our ordinary lives by being faithful even when facing tremendous pain and suffering. As we learn about his virtue of Fidelity, this month we will try to think about the promises we make and how we can be true to them by completing the tasks and work we have each day.

 

“God’s Providence is in all things, it’s always present."

~St. Gianna Molla

 

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Patience

"Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset."

— St. Francis de Sales

This month our students will learn about and have many opportunities to practice our virtue of the month--patience. It is a fitting virtue for Advent, a time of waiting and watchfulness, as we are reminded to make room for Jesus in our lives. It is also a time of year when the busyness of Christmas preparations can test our patience. Our saints this month: St. Monica, St. Isaac Jogues and St. Rita of Cascia provide beautiful examples of waiting patiently for God’s love to touch the lives of those around them even when others would have long given up. In their stories, we are reminded that Jesus is waiting for us to slow down, put our focus and our trust in Him.
 

Humility

“Always humble yourself lovingly before God and man, because God speaks to those who are truly humble of heart, and enriches them with His gifts.”
~St. Pio of Pietrelcina

One definition of the virtue of Humility is accepting our limitations and also embracing our God-given talents. We are called this month to try to do better in the way we treat each other and welcome each other into our lives. Living with Humility means we also offer ourselves and each other grace for the times we fall short. When we look at our lives and recognize our many blessings, we realize that our faith calls us to grow into these gifts, sharing them with our school community and our world.

In November, we will be inspired by the humble examples of St. John the Baptist, who called people to penance and baptism; St. Pio of Pietrelcina,whose piety and care for the suffering led him to holiness; and St. Therese of Lisieux, whose “little way” inspires us to look for everyday ways to serve God.

Studiousness

The Virtue of Gratitude calls us to look for the good, the many gifts of God in our lives. We began 2020 learning about this virtue and about the lives of three saints who embodied this virtue. In guidance classes our students wrote about the gifts of friendship and love that they shared with family during Christmas break. We created Gratitude Books and journals, and played gratitude bingo. Our middle school students reflected on challenges or struggles that they have overcome and they wrote about those people in their lives who helped them during these rough times. They also reflected on the ways we can grow through the tough times in our lives and how we can see God in all of our days--the victorious ones as well as the challenging ones.

In Kindergarten through 2nd grade, we learned about St. Francis of Assisi's love and appreciation for all of God's creation, even to the smallest insect. St. Julie Billiart's story of faith and her desire to teach about God's love despite being paralyzed by a mysterious illness gave an example of gratitude for grades 3-5. St. Julie founded the Congregation of Notre Dame de Namur whose sisters have been dedicated to teaching since the 1800s. St. Josemaria Escriva, a Spanish priest who founded the Opus Dei organization provided the saintly example for the 6-8 classes. His work with the poor and sick led St. Josemaria to seek ways to help others live their faith. Opus Dei became his way of helping both laypeople and priests to see that everyone is called to holiness.
God Bless,
Mrs. Henry

“The more difficult the times are the more we must expect and hope everything from the goodness of the good God.” – St. Julie

Honesty

"It’s your obligation to speak the truth, and everyone can either take it or leave it. But truth must be in us."~~~Mother Angelica

Our virtue for February---Honesty---seems easy to understand. Yet as we look into what it means to be honest and trustworthy, our students see that honesty is not just simply a matter of not lying. It is a virtue that calls us to have integrity and to use our truth-telling in ways that are kind and life-giving. We live this virtue when our words match our actions, and our lives reflect God's love for us. In the younger grades we talked about how we are honest when we keep our promises and try our best each day. In grades 3-5, we looked at the ways in which some of the words we say to others can be true, but they are hurtful, unkind or unnecessary. In our middle school, students learned that we grow in our relationships with others when we can be trusted. However, we are also called to use charity and to respect each other's privacy when we share personal information. The truth we share should be good for others to know and it should not be someone else's truth.   

This month we see examples of honesty in the face of persecution in the lives of Saints Jacinta and Francesco Marto, of Fatima; St. Kateri Tekawitha and St. Athanasius. The Marto children, along with their cousin Lucia dos Santos, were jailed and accused of being liars when others learned that the Blessed Mother had appeared to the children at Fatima in 1917. Despite being afraid and alone, they prayed the rosary in jail and soon all of the other prisoners prayed with them. The children refused to deny what they had seen and after they were released from jail they had other visions of the Blessed Mother asking them to pray the rosary for world peace and for sinners.
St. Kateri Tekawitha, the patron saint for the environment, is the first Native American saint. Her face was scarred from the smallpox that she had as a young child and was often seen with a blanket wrapped around her face to hide the scars. Both of her parents died from the disease, so she was raised by an uncle. St. Kateri converted to Catholicism when she was 19 and refused to marry. Her tribe didn’t like her conversion or her decision to devote her life to her faith, so she had to move away.
St. Athanasius, was a Greek Bishop, who lived more than 1,600 years ago. As a defender of the faith, he taught that Jesus was God and fought for this statement of our faith to be included in the Creed that we say at Mass. At the time, St. Athanasius was persecuted for fighting for this belief and he was sent into exile for 17 years. 

God Bless,
Mrs. Henry
 

Mercy

"We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way."~~Saint Francis of Assisi

As we move into the first full week of Lent, our St. Joseph’s students will be learning about the virtue of Mercy and about the ways in which we care for those who suffer. In practicing this virtue we look beyond our needs to the needs of those around us in our families, our school and our world. We help those who suffer through our prayers and our sacrifices. 

Our actions can include prayer for those who suffer far from us, as well as for ourselves and our loved ones. Lent provides us with the perfect opportunities to help others in big and little ways, from giving up activities we enjoy to abstaining from habits that hurt others, such as selfishness and unkind words.

Our kindergarten  students made single-decade rosaries last week as they learned about Mercy. They practiced this virtue both through prayer and sacrifice---they each prayed silently for those who might need their prayers that day and also waited patiently for their turn. 

Our saints this month include, St. John Vianney, St. Faustina, and St. Teresa of Calcutta. As a young man growing up during the French Revolution, St. John Vianney witnessed priests risking their lives to practice the faith. St. John Vianney became a priest himself after battling illness and challenging studies. At his parish in Ars, France he saw many people who were indifferent to practicing their faith or had turned from their faith during the war and he fought to bring them back to their faith. St. John Vianney often spent 11-12 hours a day hearing confessions in the winter months and closer to 16 hours a day hearing confessions in summer.

In grades 3-5, we learn about St. Faustina, a young Polish nun, who had always prayed for the sufferings of those around her and for those in need of God’s mercy. She spread the message of God’s mercy to the world after Jesus appeared to her in a vision and asked her to paint his Divine Mercy image and include the simple, yet powerful prayer, “Jesus, I trust in you.” 

St. Teresa of Calcutta provides our final example of a life focused on the suffering of others. She was an Albanian nun and missionary who dedicated her life to the poorest and most neglected people in India. She founded the Missionaries of Charity, a religious order whose sisters lived in the slums and opened schools for girls and homes for the dying.

God Bless,
Mrs. Henry

 Justice 

"If you want peace, work for justice. If you want justice, defend life. If you want life, embrace the truth – the truth revealed by God." ~~Saint John Paul the Great

"To be saints is not a privilege for the few, but a vocation for everyone."~~~Pope Francis