And

My kids love the word and.

Can we have ice cream and candy? Can we stay up late and watch a movie? Can we go out to eat and get dessert? 

My five-year old son has a particular affinity for it. His imagination creates combinations of characters and settings and plot twists and props and dialogue and more plot twists to string playtime out for what seems like hours. “And then…and then…and then…” 

If I’m honest with myself, I love the word and too. 

And opens up possibilities. It creates connections between and among things, people, and places. 

The word and includes. It builds bridges. It invites. It imagines. It elevates. It increases. 

And acknowledges. It affirms. 

Put simply, within our ministries as transformational Catholic school leaders we need to strive for more ands and fewer buts, periods, eithers, neithers, or ors. 

I think this is especially true when it comes to our understanding of purpose. Organizationally, our shared purpose functions as our mission, the group’s main goal. Purpose serves as a key ingredient in a recipe for success. We also recognize purpose as a vital disposition of Catholic school leaders.

Purpose involves planning. Purpose requires intentionality. Purpose provides conviction. 

And, this isn’t necessarily enough. We need purpose and vision. We need purpose and persistence. We need purpose and pliability. When it comes to purpose, we need and.

In a study of what makes strong organizational cultures, John Kotter and James Heskett (1992) found that groups needed both a strong sense of purpose and a willingness to adapt. Having just one and not the other leads to either stubbornly refusing to evolve or aimlessly following the ever-changing winds of popular trends. 

Purpose and pliability allowed Catholic schools to shift from in-person to virtual learning practically overnight in March of 2020. Purpose and pliability enabled many Catholic schools to reopen and remain open throughout the majority of the past two school years.  

We did this because we needed to keep kids safe and we needed to preference in-person instruction. With purpose and pliability, we have found ways to continue with our ministries and compassionately acknowledge that the pandemic continues to affect our world, especially those suffering from poverty and/or vulnerability. 

With focus and flexibility, we innovate, invent, and inspire, discovering methods to more authentically combine relevance and orthodoxy, charity and justice, the mind and the heart, college/career readiness and heaven. 

Being purposeful and pliable liberates us to hold fast to the most essential aspects of who we are as individuals and institutions while simultaneously embracing opportunities to more fully become who we were created to be: changing the mascot; reimagining discipline to create disciples; recalibrating the standards and methods by which we assess our students, schools, and selves; pursuing radical inclusivity and aggressive collaboration; promoting participation through subsidiarity; and seeking new partnerships, funding strategies, and organizational models.

Purposeful and pliable. Intentional and innovative. Committed and called. 

This is the posture and work of a disciple with hope to bring, living with one foot firmly planted in the purpose of Jesus Christ and the other one raised, pliably ready to take the next step in faith to wherever He will lead. 

Reference:

Kotter, J. P., & Heskett, J. L. (1992). Corporate Culture and Performance. New York: Free Press.

Stewards of the Mission

Newsflash: "The National Catholic Educational Association said nationwide enrollment increased by 62,000 to about 1.68 million students, marking the first increase in two decades and the largest jump it has recorded in at least five decades" (Henao, 2022).

This spark of hope must inspire Catholic school leaders, teachers, families, students, and stakeholders everywhere to ensure that this trend continues. As stewards who stand on the shoulders of the apostles that came before us, we must tend to this growth and cultivate it. Like the stewards in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), we need to take what we've been given, put it to use, and offer the Lord and our world a return on His investment.

"Sunflower Plant Shoot" by sameold2010 is licensed under CC BY 2.0

In order to turn this blip into a wave of evangelization and integral formation, we must (re)focus on our mission - Christ's mission.

“Thus, the (Catholic) school does not have a mission; the mission has schools” (Nuzzi and Hunt, 2012, p. 4). This quote should serve as an anchor for all that happens within Catholic schools, helping those who minister there understand they advance the work of Jesus. 

When our mission in Catholic schools aligns with the salvific mission of Christ, every decision - whether focused on academics, extracurricular activities, admissions, budgeting and/or funding - should be filtered through the lens of whether or not a particular action advances Christ’s mandate to “(g)o, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). 

Ensuring that all members of a Catholic school’s personnel, including its business officers, understand and actively support the school’s true purpose is essential to its operations. Having clarity of mission from a financial perspective allows for innovative approaches to tuition models, sharing resources such as counselors and fine and performing arts teachers across schools, centralizing purchasing, and seeking business partnerships and funding strategies. As Catholic schools strive to offer even stronger academic and faith-based programming, compensate teachers and staff members more competitively, update facilities and technology, and also keep tuition from prohibiting families from choosing Catholic education for their children, business personnel who are committed to Christ’s mission and inspired by the Holy Spirit will find ways to creatively sustain and enhance our schools.

These Holy Spirit-infused entrepreneurs need to help our schools and Church tend this enrollment growth - concentrated mostly in Kindergarten and PreK - so that it can blossom for years to come.   

This mission-minded approach is the heart of stewardship. Church personnel such as clerics, parish and diocesan staff, and parishioners of Catholic churches need to see Catholic schools as treasures of the Church worthy of cultivation, celebration, and commitment. 

More fully recognizing Catholic schools as an integral arm of the mission of the Catholic Church could bolster financial support from parishes and dioceses to Catholic schools. Instead of subsidies, these monies could be seen as investments in the future of our Church, and the building up of the Kingdom of God on earth. 

Stewarding our Catholic schools, and in turn the mission of Christ, also demands appropriate checks and balances to responsibly use the resources entrusted to us. Catholic school leaders play an important role in partnering with business officers toward this end. While Catholic school leaders do not need to be an expert in financial matters, they need to actively participate in overseeing the finances of the school. From checking the payroll of the school periodically to looking at balance sheets and profit and loss statements at least quarterly to empowering a team of people to know how to perform various business related tasks, the school leader must assist the business officer in the school’s stewardship efforts to “(receive) God’s gifts gratefully, (cherish) and tend them in a responsible and accountable manner, (share) them in justice and love with others, and (return) them with increase to the Lord” (USCCB, 2002, p. 9).

A seed has been planted, has taken root, and is starting to burst forth from the soil into the light of day.

May our efforts to steward the mission of Christ allow this new life to blossom and produce a bountiful, wonderful, and beautiful harvest for today, tomorrow, and into eternity.

References:

Henao, L. A. (2022, February 14). Enrollment in US Catholic schools rebounds after sharp drop. AP NEWS. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-religion-education-united-states-8bea1bef885e2d4180a2f5dca5110c9a  

Nuzzi, R., & Hunt, T. (Eds). (2012). At the Heart of the Church: Selected documents of Catholic education. Notre Dame, IN: Alliance for Catholic Education Press.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2002). Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response: A pastoral letter on stewardship (10th anniversary ed.).

Speak Life

Words carry power. 

I could have written that sentence in the following way: "Words are important." Whereas this conveys a similar message, the English teacher in me would offer two critiques. One, use the active instead of the passive voice. Two, why do words have importance? Use the answer to that question as a substitute for important. 

Words carry power. 

Therefore, speak life. Write hope. Script love. Construct joy. Convey truth. Message compassion. Inscribe empathy. 

God spoke the world into existence (Genesis 1). Jesus's words healed, forgave, transformed, and resurrected. John's Gospel refers to Jesus Himself as the Word that brought forth all things (John 1:1-5). 

God made us in His image and likeness. Therefore, our words also create. They create life, hope, love, joy, truth, compassion, and empathy. 

They also, unfortunately, create "unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly" (Mark 7:21-22). 

Words carry the power to create or destroy, to heal or hurt, to educate or fool, to love or hate. The stories that we tell ourselves and others, the ones that we listen to and repeat create our world. 

Think about the words you proclaimed to yourself the last time you made a mistake. 

"I'm so stupid/lazy/forgetful/bad," or "I'll never be able to do it" works on us and our world so much differently than something like, "I know what not to do now," or "I'll get it right next time when I try it this way," or "I can do hard things" or "I just can't do it yet."

Levi Lusko, founder and lead pastor of a Christian church in Montana, encourages us to be our own best coaches and cheerleaders as opposed to our own worst critics. 

Speak life to yourself because words carry power. 

God also calls us to speak life into the lives of others. St. Paul exhorts us, "Finally, brothers (and sisters), whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Philippians 4:8). 

In a world bent on cancelling, destroying, and defeating, figure out ways to build others up (1 Thessalonians 5:11).  

"In the time of your life, live — so that in that good time there shall be no ugliness or death for yourself or for any life your life touches. Seek goodness everywhere, and when it is found, bring it out of its hiding-place and let it be free and unashamed" (Sayoran, 1939).

Words carry power. 

As such, and in any and every way possible, speak life - bringing the good, pure, noble, just, lovely, joyful out from its hiding place into existence. 

Speak life. 

To yourself. 

To others. 

And to the world, the one which we can create with our words.

Unified Not Uniform

Over the past few weeks, I have had the blessing to speak with transformational Catholic school leaders from across our country about their ministries in Catholic schools. Their individual and collective commitment to the mission of Catholic education inspires me and breathes hope into my ministry to form more of these types of transformational leaders for our Catholic schools. 

It strikes me that while similarities exist across these leaders and their specific school contexts, all of these leaders lead in uniquely specific ways and contexts. 

Considering their efforts as part of the saving mission of Christ, these leaders are unified not uniform. 

Uniform means one form. Unified means that we come with our individual identities and bring them into coordination with others' uniqueness. 

St. Paul writes powerfully about the unification of the many members into the one Body of Christ in his first letter to the Corinthians:

Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it. Some people God has designated in the church to be, first, apostles; second, prophets; third, teachers; then, mighty deeds; then, gifts of healing, assistance, administration, and varieties of tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:27-28)

St. John Paul II affirms this: 

The unity of the Church is not uniformity, but an organic blending of legitimate diversities. It is the reality of many members joined in a single body, the one Body of Christ (cf. 1 Cor 12:12). (2001, #46)

In this way, Catholic schools should consider embracing, enhancing, and celebrating their unique contexts, communities, and charisms. 

For example, two of the school leaders interviewed, Dr. Martine Romero and Mrs. Jessica Patterson, minister at St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic School in Bellevue, WA. Their school community courageously and joyfully embraces a radically inclusive approach to education, allowing for students who may have historically been denied acceptance into Catholic schools - a compelling argument against the Catholic school effect - to participate in a general Catholic education program. And, while their ministry hopefully inspires more school leaders and communities to adopt a similar approach, taking the St. Madeleine tactics off of a shelf and applying them to another school community would be foolish. 

It would be similar to putting a foosball table in the faculty lounge and expecting morale to increase. This may be a signature aspect of another organization's culture but that doesn't mean it will transfer to your unique community. 

Instead, a key takeaway from time spent with another leader and/or community should invite broader and more thematic reflections. For this experience with St. Madeleine Sophie, we should consider questions like these: 

• 

  One of the south tapestries, Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels

  How does my school welcome and embrace students and families? 
• What obstacles stand in the way of students accessing my school and/or flourishing there? 
• In what ways is my school community called to be more radically inclusive by breaking down barriers like finances, prior academic performance and behavior, background, and faith? 
• How might my school shift from inclusivity to belonging, emphasizing the ideals of solidarity, ubuntu - I am because we are, participation, and subsidiarity. 

As we do this, as we celebrate the many and varied ways that each Catholic school community is united in Christ yet diversified in its local ministry, we live out our true Catholicity - aligned to the Church established by Christ - and catholicity - spreading throughout the whole. 

Our ministry and our world don't need another St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic School, despite the amazing work of that entire school community. What we need is for each of our school communities to so what St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic School has done: recognize, embrace, enhance, and celebrate its local contexts, its specific communities, and its unique charisms.

As St. Catherine of Siena stated, "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the whole world on fire." 

If we do this on both the individual and communal levels, becoming the best versions of ourselves so that our Catholic schools can become the best versions of themselves, uniting the various gifts of teachers within a school while also uniting the particular gifts across Catholic school communities, we can and will set the world on fire. 

If we do this, Catholic schools, unified with each other and Christ, can and will change the world.    

Reference: 

• St. John Paul II. (2001). Novo Millennio Ineunte. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_letters/2001/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_20010106_novo-millennio-ineunte.html