“Let the Way You Live Be That of the Gospel”

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Thursday, 27 September 2018)

Good Morning La Salle and De La Salle!

Let us remember we are in the holy presence of a loving God…

 

100 degrees F, 80% humidity, long pants, complete exhaustion, baby in my arms, in Kingston, Jamaica… I turn to my left and they they were. Three LSA students. Shocked at their presence, I quickly go over and learn they are on a mission trip with a RI parish. My heart was beating with joy I could not explain. A piece of home was standing next to me 1,700 miles away.

Mustard Seed Communities, Kingston, Jamaica is where I live each summer. This is my home away from home. Never would I imagine to unexpectedly run in to Lasallians… LSA Providence students nonetheless!

I question myself… How small is this world really? I guess the saying “Lasallians are everywhere” proved to be true.

Here I was, standing with 3 young people who have given up a week of their summer to be fully present with children/adults with disabilities, kids with HIV/AIDS and teenage mothers. Leaving the comfort of their homes to serve in a new culture, with new people, in a developing world. God was truly present in each of these young Lasallians.

Let Us Pray…

In the words of De La Salle, “Let the way you live be that of the Gospel.” Lord, remind us that wherever we go, we will find you. Instill in us the mission of De La Salle, that as we live out our lives as Lasallians, we may serve the least among us.

 

St. John Baptist de La Salle… Pray for Us.

Live Jesus in our Hearts… FOREVER.

Katie Haidemenos–Campus Minister

Life Changes

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Tuesday, 25 September 2018)

Good morning La Salle and De La Salle!

Let us remember that we are in the presence of God.

Life changes.

Perhaps you are familiar with the song of that same title by country singer Thomas Rhett.

Our freshmen and sixth graders know this well as they are navigating their first semester in high school and middle school. Life changes. Our seniors also know this as they can look back to the person they were when they entered high school and reflect on how much they have grown in four years of high school while preparing for their next chapter.  Life changes. From the little changes to the big ones, life is constantly changing. I can attest to this statement myself as my family welcomed a beautiful little boy to our family just over a month ago.  Life changes.

We have all experienced many changes in our lives, from losing a loved one to welcoming a new one to the world.  Even when change is a beautiful thing, it can also bring along new stresses and new challenges.

One thing that doesn’t change, however, is the love of God in Christ Jesus. Sacred Scripture reminds us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. How comforting to know that no matter what is changing around us, or no matter what changes we ourselves may be going through, Jesus and His abundant love for us are always the same. Jesus is constantly working through our family, our friends, our coaches and teachers and deans, to demonstrate that love and support. And that love will carry us through.

Let us pray,

Jesus, thank you for being our Constant Love and Our Faithful Friend. As life changes take place around us and even within us, help us to turn to You and trust in you through it all.

Saint John Baptist de La Salle…pray for us.

Live Jesus in our hearts…Forever.

Anthony Russo–Campus Minister

Ignite Our Hearts of Peace

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Friday morning, 21 September 2018–United Nations International Day of Peace and the first day of the International Lasallian Days of Prayer for Peace)

Let us remember we are in the holy presence of a loving God.

Today on September 21st we celebrate Saint Matthew the Apostle and evangelist and we begin our month long journey of International Lasallian Days for Peace. It seems only appropriate that we should “ignite our hearts of peace” on the same day that we celebrate Saint Matthew each year. Our community is particularly blessed this morning to be able to gather together and share in the Eucharist after hearing today’s gospel. Saint Matthew followed Jesus Christ as soon as he was called. Today we are called by Jesus Christ to wage peace in this same way—with a sense of urgency and immediacy. Not simply to be peaceful but to ignite our hearts of peace in order to combat seemingly endless war and violence that surrounds our earth. This work will not be easy and Saint John Baptist de La Salle writes in his reflection on Saint Matthew that you should not expect any other rewards when you wage peace well than to suffer persecution, injuries, insults, and curses.  In addition, people will accuse you falsely of all sorts of evil. Rejoice when this happens, and leap for joy, because a great reward will be reserved for you in heaven, for it was in this way that they persecuted the Prophets before you. Be convinced that such persecutions will draw on you the grace of God in abundance and his blessings on your works of Peace.

Let Us Pray,

Lord, God, we pray for all Lasallians near and far, that we may experience peace in our own lives, and that we may be beacons of peace for those around us and around the world.

Saint John Baptist de La Salle… Pray for us.

Live Jesus in our hearts… Forever.

Mark Carty–Social Studies Teacher

What Does The Cross Mean For Me?

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Friday morning, 14 September 2018)

Good morning La Salle! Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, a day when we commemorate God’s saving act through His Son’s death and resurrection. Take a look at the crucifix on the wall of your classroom. Pretty innocuous, right? The mere fact that I can direct you to simply turn around to spot the nearest Crucifix tells us something of the ubiquity of this symbol of the Catholic faith. But this was not always the case. In fact, it took centuries for the Cross to take hold as the symbol of the Christian faith. No doubt this was due, at least in part, to the fact that crucifixions of Christians and others were still taking place – a form of capital punishment so horrific, so inhumane that the Romans themselves would rarely use it on their own citizens.

But if the cross itself has become somewhat less shocking through the centuries, what it represents is as scandalous as ever: That is, simply put, the willingness to suffer for others. The willingness to suffer discomfort, hurt, embarrassment, even pain, in order to relieve the suffering of our neighbor. Scandalous because, in a culture where we are often taught to put ourselves first, the Cross reminds us of Jesus’ admonition to love our neighbors as ourselves. Scandalous because, in a culture where conquering one’s enemies is what’s celebrated, the Cross reminds us that we must love even our enemies and forgive those who persecute us.

But lest we get caught up in society at large, perhaps we should take a look closer to home. What does the Cross mean for me, for you? It might mean taking the time to listen to a friend or colleague having a difficult day, even though we may feel we have burdens enough of our own. It may mean going to visit an elderly parent or grandparent on a Friday afternoon after a long, first full week of school. It may mean not going along with a group of friends when they put someone down, even though this might make me look bad. Or worse yet, offering a smile or a hello to a classmate whose friendship gains me nothing in the eyes of others. It might just mean holding the door as I pass through the auditorium, even though I am already running late to my next class. Whatever it means for us today, there is a Crucifix on the wall to remind us that a sacrifice still greater has already been made. And when we fail to love as we ought, the Cross is again there to remind us that forgiveness is as simple as turning back to a Father who awaits us with open arms.

Let us pray, from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians (Phil. 2:6-8):

Brothers and sisters:

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,

did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.

Rather, he emptied himself,

taking the form of a slave,

coming in human likeness;

and found human in appearance,

he humbled himself,

becoming obedient to death,

even death on a cross.

 

St. John Baptist de La Salle…Pray for us!

Live Jesus in our hearts…Forever!

Brian Bennett–Religion Teacher

“Dive Into” the New School Year

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Wednesday morning, 5 September 2018)

Welcome to the new school year at La Salle Academy, Everyone.

Let us remember that we are in the Holy Presence of a Loving God.

I don’t know how you feel about the beach, but I love the beach, especially Matunuck Beach where the waves crash in on sand and rocks changing everyday due to the action of the waves.  Sometimes it’s almost all sand; most times the beach is lots of rocks with bits of sand leading to the line where the waves break.

My parents started going to Roy Carpenter’s Beach in Matunuck back in the 1930’s when they would literally camp in tents within a hundred yards of the water.  Next, people started bringing in small trailers and eventually built small houses – 20 feet by 20 feet in most cases.  Water still comes from a shallow well attached to each house via a pump and black plastic pipe and restrooms are outhouses with flush toilets.

Growing up, we went to the beach on the weekend after school got out in June and we stayed there until Labor Day, when we headed back to Providence for the Wednesday start of school.   That’s why today is such a day of remembering for me.  When we headed to the beach in June, all seven of us children had to bring ten books each from the Providence Public Library.  We traveled in what in those days was called a “Beach Wagon.”   Today that would be just a little bigger than a Subaru Outback; Volkswagen Golf SportWagen; – but in my family the car had to be a FORD and it had to be at least 8 years old before we purchased it.

Now that you have the general background for my beach experience, here is what I would like to share with you.  Swimming at Roy Carpenter’s Beach was all about playing a game with the waves.  We called it MUCKLE.  The name of the game has been handed down through generations of kids.  And it involves DIVING IN and rolling with the waves as they break and attempting not to be thrown onto the sand or the rocks, just slipping under the waves as they break and letting the undertow pull you into the breaking wave.

I was never afraid of the water. I grew up with these waves and we loved it when the water was rough enough for the lifeguards to put up the “red flags” on the lifeguard chairs, which meant you had to swim between the lifeguard chairs so they could keep tabs on everybody.

Well, a couple of years ago we were at the beach and the water was quite rough and getting rougher.  We heard that the lifeguards were considering closing the beach, which meant they would be putting up the “black flags” on the lifeguard chairs.  One of my brothers, my nephew, and I decided it would be a good idea to run to the water and DIVE IN before the lifeguards closed the beach.  Never wanting to miss the big waves, that’s exactly what we did.  I can tell you today that this was not a good decision!  Not only were the waves 8 – 12 feet high but the undertow was wickedly strong.  After just a few minutes we knew we had to attempt to get out, hopefully without getting MUCKLED. We  all did get out, as the “black flags” were waving in the strong wind.  I’ll never forget the feeling that day in my heart. I knew it was going to be a real challenge to get out of the water, to the safety of our towels.  How foolish we were to DIVE IN without really checking out how bad the water really was.

This reminds me of a story about a man, we’ll call him John, whose house was in a very bad flood zone and the water was rising quite quickly.  He moved to the 2nd floor and then onto the roof and waited.  The firemen came by in a rescue boat and offered to take him off the roof and he said, “No thank you, God will provide. I’m not worried”.

A bit later another small rescue boat came by him and offered him safety.  He again said, “No thank you, God will provide. I’m not worried”.  Finally, a helicopter hovered above him and through a megaphone they offered to lift him to safety.  Again he said, “No thank you, God will provide.”

Well sure enough, the water continued to rise and the man drowned.  When he arrived at the gates of Heaven he yelled past St. Peter, and said, “Lord, Lord, why did you not save me?  I trusted you and you failed me.”

The Lord then said, “John, I sent two rescue boats and a rescue helicopter to save you and you turned down each one when you had the chance to be saved.  I tried to help you but you wouldn’t listen”.

 

Now, as we begin a new school year at La Salle Academy, let’s all DIVE IN as students, as teachers, as secretaries, as staff—in academics, or participation in the theater, clubs, athletics, and so forth.   Let’s be willing to listen to those who are working with us and pay attention to the voice that is in the background prodding us as we make conscious decisions regarding our daily activities in the months to come.

Ask for help when you need it.  Take people up on the offer of help when appropriate.

Let us Pray – Serenity Prayer

God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference—
living one day at a time;
enjoying one moment at a time.

St. John Baptist de La Salle – Pray for us

Live Jesus in our Hearts – Forever

Donald Kavanagh–Principal