Principals and teachers from Catholic schools across The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington gathered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on August 22 for the 2022 Opening of Schools Mass.
Cardinal Wilton Gregory celebrated the Mass along with Auxiliary Bishop Roy E. Campbell Jr. The choir for the Mass included students from Saint Peter's School in Olney, Maryland.
The Parable of the Sower, as recounted in the Gospel of St. Luke was read.
In it, Jesus tells the story of a farmer distributing his seeds, which fall on the path without soil, rocky ground with little soil, thorny soil, and excellent soil. Jesus goes on to explain to his disciples that the soils are people's reactions to the Gospel, the sower is anyone who preaches it, and the seed is the message itself. The good soil represents people who hear the message and live it in their lives. Some people have strong faith and remain dedicated to a Christian lifestyle, even when things are difficult.
During his homily, Cardinal Gregory spoke metaphorically about how young children are afraid of the dark and how it is the duty of Catholic education to illuminate students.
“Our children may be right, that strange things do happen in the darkness, but equally strange things may happen in broad daylight, at least the daylight we most commonly think of when we use that term,” Cardinal Gregory said.
The cardinal went on to say how there is a “more pervasive darkness that covers the eyes and hearts of our society and our world,” listing traits such as skepticism, doubt, and hedonism.
“As Catholic school teachers, you are called as Isaiah reminded us, that we are not to be people who work under those shadows or under those fears, your youngsters depend on you to help them discover the light of Jesus Christ, indeed it is for this very reason that our parents sacrifice to provide a Catholic education for their children,” Cardinal Gregory said.
Following Communion, faculty and staff from the various Catholic schools were recognized for important milestones, including schools marking anniversaries ranging from 25 to 135 years.
Melanie Powell celebrated her 25th anniversary working in the archdiocese. Powell is now the director of counseling at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. She is also an Archbishop Carroll alumna. She started her career in Catholic education at Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Anthony’s Catholic School.
With the pandemic seemingly behind, Powell said she is looking forward to the upcoming school year and the changes it will bring, both professionally and personally.
“Looking forward to welcoming our kids back tomorrow, also it’s been a transition coming back from the pandemic, so I’m just looking forward to an exciting school year and actually, this will be the first time since 2015 that I haven’t had my own children in the building at Archbishop Carroll,” Powell said.
Her youngest child graduated this past May and is headed off to college this Fall.
Melissa Sloan is the principal at Mother of God School in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Two teachers from Mother of God were celebrated for their respective 25th anniversaries working in Catholic schools, including Eileen Lombardi and K.C. Davy.
During the annual Opening of Schools Mass, educators and Catholic schools celebrating milestone anniversaries are honored. Here, Cardinal Wilton Gregory and Kelly Branaman, the Secretary for Catholic Schools and Superintendent of Schools for The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, present a certificate to Michael Thomasian, principal of St. Anthony Catholic School in Northeast Washington, D.C., which this year is celebrating its 100th anniversary. At far left is Father Fred Close, pastor of St. Anthony Parish. (CS Photo by Andrew Biraj)
“We have a much larger enrollment this year, so I’m really excited about welcoming all the new families and faculty to our school and I'm really excited about getting back to some normalcy, getting back to some of the old traditions that we missed throughout COVID,” Sloan said.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington operates 90 Catholic schools, which serve students from preschool through high school. This includes the D.C. metropolitan area, as well as the Maryland counties of Montgomery, Prince George’s, Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary’s.
