All Good Summers must come to an end….

I had a very lovely dinner with my PSR (Parish School of Religion), family yesterday evening.  We started with a meal, done by our resident local chef, hosted by our Knights of Columbus, followed by our much needed kick-off meeting packed with new information regarding curriculum and child protection procedures. Only four teachers couldn’t make it – that’s pretty much record attendance :)  So I am very pleased that we were able to bond, meet the new teachers, and discuss highlights all in a most pleasant atmosphere.

This means our Sunday school season is about to begin, the weekend following Labor Day weekend. 

I am so grateful we have some new teachers and returning teachers that are very committed.  We need that – all programs need that.  After 22 years of teaching 2nd grade at the parish level, it doesn’t get easier, in fact, I’m beginning to look for my replacement.  I would gladly help in the background, and still direct the program, overseeing the Child Protection Policy, sacrament preparation, ordering of curriculum, and  step out of the 2nd grade position.  I’m leaving it to prayer and God’s plan.  I just know that there is someone God is placing the desire and vocation within,  to step into this position, and they will make themselves known, soon.

In the meantime, my own school season at home is about to be underway, beginning this next week with our high school son beginning his on line Geometry course (Jacob’s Geometry, Euclidean).  I am just thrilled about his doing this with a Mother of Divine Grace teacher in a cyber classroom, because while I did do it with my previous two students solo, I love that the classical part, the Euclidean part can be brought out more.  Yes, Jacob’s Geometry is Euclid’s Elements brought to lay people, so to speak.  It does teach geometry, but with more focus on how to think  (through the proofs), rather than just getting the answer.  How to think well, training the mind, and teaching the student “how to learn” is key to classical education.

We need more people in our society that can think well.  It has become more clear to me as I age, that the shallow stripped down education of the culture definitely is trumping everything in its path, including sanctity of life, human dignity, politics, health care issues, the Christian faith in general, and the Catholic faith most particularly.  Catholics are faced with difficult times in that they stand for the tough issues, the issues that have morphed into politically correct issues.  Those issues you have to be accepting of, tolerant of, “you’re a Christian!…love your brother!”, these kinds of dysfunctional accusations pour forth when a Christian stands their faith ground on moral issues – and society doesn’t like it.  Society doesn’t get his way…resulting in attacks on Christians.

There is a lot wrong with this picture.  It will take another post for another day.  But please pray, pray, pray, for those being martyred for their Christian faith beliefs,  and offer your own personal persecutions endured here in the USA, for those Christians, those Catholic Iraqis (Chaldeans – original Roman Catholic Communicants in Iraq), and others being martyred in that region of the world.  May the hatred end.  May the people be protected.