The Guardian October...The Guardian Omnia in xcellentia John Paul the Great Academy is a small...
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The Guardian Omnia in Excellentia John Paul the Great Academy is a small, independent Catholic, school that provides a rigorous classical education in liberal arts and sciences and promotes the sacred traditions of the Roman Catholic Church. October 2018 Dear Guardians, As we enter into the second quarter, I am reminded of the fleeting nature of time. It seems as though the school year started only yesterday. In the all too brief time between the start of school and now, there has been much behind the scenes progress. New math manipulatives have been acquired, new science texts have arrived for lower school, drainage has been improved through the generosity of a wonderful donor, the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist graced our campus with a visit, and we have grown in relationship. Nevertheless, as time flies by, one worries and wants to ensure that the school’s most important tasks are being accomplished. As I reflected on this, I had to ask what it means to be a school. Schola, from which we derive the modern word “school,” has had a number of meanings throughout history. In the original Greek, it held the meaning of leisure, as well as conversation. At times it has also held the meaning of “guild” or “association,” which can be seen in the schola cantorum/school of songs, or the Palatine Scholae/the Palatine Schools, which was the elite imperial guard unit for the Emperor Constantine in the late Byzantine empire. These varied meanings drawn together seem to indicate that a school is an association of common purpose in leisure, which begs the question, what is leisure? In the modern world, we often mistakenly understand leisure as idleness, or not doing anything. Instead, leisure activities are actually those activities that encourage us to be more human. Ultimately, the highest form of leisure is worship. As Catholics we recognize all that we do can be approached with a spirit of worship, and thus leisure. Offering our day, our works, to God sets our life in this mode. From this understanding, leisure requires a recognition of the sacramental nature of our lives and that each of us is called to live as a gift to the world and to God. John Paul the Great Academy is truly an association of common purpose in leisure merely by doing what every Catholic school should do, urging the students to recognize their personhood in God as a gift and their Divine call to holiness and relationship with an ever-loving God. There is always much work to be done, but if we fail in this, then we have failed. As we enter into pilgrimage week, we invite the upper school students in a special way to enter more fully into the pursuit of God in their own lives and a recognition of the gift God seeks to give to the world in them. So please pray for our young people on pilgrimage, for their protection, and that they would be drawn further into the heart of God through deeper conversion and realization of the sacramentality of their own lives. Mr. Rea Calendar Oct 1-5 Pilgrimage Week (7th-12th grade) Oct 5 First Academic Quarter Ends Oct 8-12 NO SCHOOL, Fall Break Oct 15 NO SCHOOL, Faculty Development Lower School Parent Teacher Conferences Oct 18 Totus Tuus Thursday Lunch Orders Due Oct 21 Family Fall Fest Oct 22 JPII Feast Day Oct 24 Mandatory Parent Meeting PSAT/MNSQT for 10/11th Grade Oct 31 Trunk or Treat PTO Hamburger Drive NO Lower School Mass Nov 1 All Saints Day All School Mass Day Nov 2 All Souls Day NO Upper School Mass Nov 10 Collarnary Cookoff Nov 18 Lunch Orders Due Nov 19-23 NO SCHOOL, Thanksgiving Break From the Headmaster Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist get to know our students.
Transcript of The Guardian October...The Guardian Omnia in xcellentia John Paul the Great Academy is a small...
The GuardianOmnia in Excellentia
John Paul the Great Academy is a small, independent Catholic, school that provides a rigorous classical
education in liberal arts and sciences and promotes the sacred traditions of the Roman Catholic Church.
October 2018
Dear Guardians,
As we enter into the second quarter, I am reminded of the fleeting nature of time. It seems as though the school year started only yesterday. In the all too brief time between the start of school and now, there has been much behind the scenes progress. New math manipulatives have been acquired, new science texts have arrived for lower school, drainage has been improved through the generosity of a wonderful donor, the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist graced our campus with a visit, and we have grown in relationship. Nevertheless, as time flies by, one worries and wants to ensure that the school’s most important tasks are being accomplished. As I reflected on this, I had to ask what it means to be a school.
Schola, from which we derive the modern word “school,” has had a number of meanings throughout history. In the original Greek, it held the meaning of leisure, as well as conversation. At times it has also held the meaning of “guild” or “association,” which can be seen in the schola cantorum/school of songs, or the Palatine Scholae/the Palatine Schools, which was the elite imperial guard unit for the Emperor Constantine in the late Byzantine empire.
These varied meanings drawn together seem to indicate that a school is an association of common purpose in leisure, which begs the question, what is leisure? In the modern world, we often mistakenly understand leisure as idleness, or not doing anything. Instead, leisure activities are actually those activities that encourage us to be more human. Ultimately, the highest form of leisure is worship. As Catholics we recognize all that we do can be approached with a spirit of worship, and thus leisure. Offering our day, our works, to God sets our life in this mode. From this understanding, leisure requires a recognition of the sacramental nature of our lives and that each of us is called to live as a gift to the world and to God.
John Paul the Great Academy is truly an association of common purpose in leisure merely by doing what every Catholic school should do, urging the students to recognize their personhood in God as a gift and their Divine call to holiness and relationship with an ever-loving God. There is always much work to be done, but if we fail in this, then we have failed.
As we enter into pilgrimage week, we invite the upper school students in a special way to enter more fully into the pursuit of God in their own lives and a recognition of the gift God seeks to give to the world in them. So please pray for our young people on pilgrimage, for their protection, and that they would be drawn further into the heart of God through deeper conversion and realization of the sacramentality of their own lives.
Mr. Rea
CalendarOct 1-5 Pilgrimage Week (7th-12th
grade)Oct 5 First Academic Quarter EndsOct 8-12
NO SCHOOL, Fall Break
Oct 15 NO SCHOOL, Faculty DevelopmentLower School Parent Teacher Conferences
Oct 18 Totus Tuus ThursdayLunch Orders Due
Oct 21 Family Fall FestOct 22 JPII Feast DayOct 24 Mandatory Parent Meeting
PSAT/MNSQT for 10/11th Grade
Oct 31 Trunk or TreatPTO Hamburger DriveNO Lower School Mass
Nov 1 All Saints DayAll School Mass Day
Nov 2 All Souls DayNO Upper School Mass
Nov 10 Collarnary CookoffNov 18 Lunch Orders DueNov 19-23
NO SCHOOL, Thanksgiving Break
From the Headmaster
Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist get to know our students.
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John Paul the Great Academy
All Saints DAY The All Saints Day party will be on Thursday, November 1 from 2:15-3:00 p.m. PreK-4th graders will participate in games run by the 5th & 6th graders. Students will be allowed to change into a saint costume after 8:30 a.m. Mass if they would like to. More information with costume ideas will be sent home soon. We are asking each Lower School family to send a bag of candy or treats to be used as prizes for games. We will need parent volunteers to set up, help with games, and clean up. Volunteer by emailing Mrs. Hindelang at [email protected].
Trunk or Treat JPG students and siblings of all ages are invited to join us for fun, family-friendly trick-or-treating on October 31! Families are invited to decorate car trunks, hand out candy, and bring their children for trick-or-treating. Trunk set up can begin as early as 5:00 p.m. We will meet at the Grotto in front of school at 6:00 p.m. for a welcome and prayer. Children will trunk-or-treat until 7:00 p.m. There is NO cost to attend. **No scary costumes or trunks, please!**
Refreshments will be available benefiting:Rome Pilgrimage
AthleticsSpeech & Debate
JPG PTO (Faculty/Staff Fund)
Sunday, October 2110 am - 3 pm
Mass at the Grotto ~ 10:30 am
Dodge-ball • Slingshot Water Balloon Wars • Dunking Booth • Sand Pit • Tennis Soccer •
Snow Cones • Face Painting
1 ticket ($0.50) per game/activity OR$10 wristband for unlimited play
Fall Fest Pumpkin Pre-SaleOrder now to enter the pumpkin painting contest at Trunk-or-Treat. Pumpkins will be available for pick up at Fall Fest. Pre-Order Deadline is Friday, October 5. To access the Pre-Order flyer, visit the Parents Tab at jpgacademy.org
Lower School Parent Teacher Conference Lower School Parent Teacher Conferences will be on Monday, October 15 from 7:45 - 11:00 a.m. and from 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. Please see the weekly reminders for the link to sign up for a time slot.
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Veritas Fides Virtus
@jpgacademy
We now have 11 vacant hours (E) in ourAdoration Chapel. To become a committed adorer or to fill
an hour temporarily contact Maureen Herrera at [email protected]
JPG CrossIf your family would like to take home the JPG Cross after a Wednesday or Friday Mass to pray for our school community for a week contact Sarah McManus [email protected].
Quarterly Parent MeetingThe next mandatory Quarterly Parent Meeting is
Wednesday, October 24 at 6:00 p.m. in the Chapel.
Open House - AdmissionsInvite your family and friends to our upcoming Open Houses to learn more about JPG:• October 25, 2018• November 29, 2018
Pilgrimage Week!Please join us in praying for safe travel, good
weather, and a spiritually fruitful experience for our 7th-12th graders who will be on pilgrimage
the week of October 1.7th Grade • Service days, church visits, & exploring culture in Acadiana8th Grade • Retreat, service days, church visits, & exploring culture in Acadiana9th Grade • Theology of the Body Retreat in Covington, LA10th Grade • Community Service Projects in New Orleans, LA11th Grade • Rome & Assisi12th Grade • Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina
Dominican Sisters VisitSisters Teresa Casey, Mary Edmund, & Maria Francisco of
the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist
enjoyed their visit to Lafayette! They participated in
classes of all grades throughout the week, led a silent
retreat for the Upper School students, and cheered
at a JPG football game. Please continue to pray for
an increase in vocations among our families and
community.
October 2018 Guardian 4
John Paul the Great Academy
@jpgacademy
Homecoming Week
Football & Volleyball Senior Night!Thank you Seniors for your dedication to the pursuit of excellence & being leaders among your peers
