Send Your Spirit To Inspire Us

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

Great time for great new beginnings. Motivational quote.

Beginning. The word beginning is defined in the dictionary at the point in time or space where something starts. And here we are, at the beginning of a new school year. This week, I’ve asked my students to think about one word. A word that they can live up to. A word that they can focus on being more of or doing more of. Your peers have chosen words like happiness, compassion, motivation, inspiration and kindness. Let’s take this new year as a chance to feel happy. To show more compassion to others. To motivate ourselves and our classmates. To inspire each other and to be inspired by each other. To be more kind.

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Let us pray….

We find ourselves at the beginning of another day, not knowing what it will bring.

Please help us to be ready for whatever it may be.

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If we are to stand up, help us to stand bravely.

If we are to sit still, help us to sit quietly.

If we are to speak our opinions, help us to do it respectfully.

 

Please free our thinking and feelings from all forms of self-centeredness, dishonesty, and deception.

We need this freedom today and everyday to make choices according to your desires.

Send your Spirit to inspire us in times of doubt and indecision so that, together, we can walk along your path.

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St. John Baptist de La Salle – Pray for us

Live Jesus in our hearts – Forever

 

 

 

Prayer shared over the public address system:  Mrs. Morgan Kane, Math Teacher

Share in That Joy That Transcends All Understanding

Good morning La Salle and De La Salle.

Let us Remember that we are in the Holy Presence of God.

This summer my family and I took a trip to Walt Disney World, you know, the quote-unquote happiest place on Earth. Well, we certainly had a blast and created memories that will last a lifetime, but I can also say that there were times when we looked around and saw many people (including ourselves at times) who did not seem to get the “Happiest Place on Earth” memo. Sure the unrelenting heat and the crowds, all with children in tow are certainly factors that can impact one’s level of joy, but ultimately no circumstances can diminish our joy unless we allow them to. It comes down to a choice, we can choose to focus on the negative, or we can choose joy. 

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As we approach the end of our first full week here at the Academy, things really are in full swing. Sports seasons are underway and the classrooms are abuzz with activities. It can be a bit overwhelming especially for the newest members of our community. Our 6th and 9th graders are transitioning to the middle and high school routine, our transfer students are navigating their way through a new environment, and our new staff and teachers are adjusting to a new vocation or a new community. Our seniors are tackling the college application process and some of us find ourselves in new roles.  Our administration, teachers, and staff are tirelessly working to ensure a smooth start to our new school year. At times, the busyness and overwhelm can leave us feeling exhausted and even threaten to minimize our joy. Fortunately we are blessed every day with the reminder that we are always in the Presence of God, The Source of all Joy. In John’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that He wants to share His joy with us until our hearts are overflowing. God wants the very best for all His beloved children, each and every one of us. He is the Source of all joy, and if we open our hearts to Him, we can share in that joy that transcends all understanding.

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As we gather together as a community today for our Opening of School Liturgy, let us pray for a joyful year at La Salle.  Let us strive to shine the light and joy of Jesus to one another by encouraging, respecting, and supporting one another. And let us pray in a special way that all the new members of our community find a home here at La Salle and the joy of being a part of the Lasallian family. And let’s choose to make 612 Academy Avenue the happiest place on earth.

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Saint John Baptist De La Salle…Pray for us.

Live Jesus in Our Hearts…Forever.

Prayer Shared Over the Public Address System:  Mr. Anthony Russo, Religion Teacher

PROVIDER

Prayer 9/5/2019

I hope all the boards in the classroom are displaying an image I captured at the Port of
Galilee, Rhode Island.

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I have been meaning to speak this prayer for almost two years now.
This morning presented a clear opportunity because of today’s gospel.
I suppose that is an example of Kairos.

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

Luke writes at the start of chapter 5
That Jesus:
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon said in reply,
“Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets.”
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.

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They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
“Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made, seized him,
and all those with him,
Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching people.”
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.

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I have great love for this Gospel. Mostly because I love boats and being on
the water with all my heart. One of my favorite things about living in
Rhode Island is that I believe we are especially well equipped to
understanding the teachings of Jesus. He spent so much time on the water,
at the beach, on boats and around fishermen. And he used tangible
experiences from these people lives to help teach us all how to live.
Considering we are all returning from a summer break I ask the community
to take just a moment to think about what if anything you have learned
about others and what you have learned about yourselves while being on
the coast over the past few months. Think about your favorite beach day,
spending time with friends and family out on the water, a perfect day of
fishing or a delicious seafood meal. Were you able to catch any sunsets
where you were struck by the presence of God?

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I also love this gospel because we encounter that exact moment when
Simon Peter is converted to being a true follower of Jesus Christ. Luke says
that Simon Peter and those with him were “seized.”
For all in our community who struggle with their faith and spiritual life,
take relief that if you open your hearts and minds to those around you, at
any given moment you too could have a transformational experience that
will alter forever the way you journey on this earth. It will likely be at the
moment you are most in need and are least expecting the Grace of God.

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Let us Pray

Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will
through all spiritual wisdom and understanding
strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might,
for all endurance and patience,
with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share
in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.

Saint John Baptist de La Salle…
Pray for Us.
Live Jesus in Our Hearts…
Forever!

Prayer offered by faculty member:  Mark Carty, Social Studies teacher

Recognizing God’s Holy Presence

(Prayer offered on the Public Address system for the entire La Salle Academy educational community on Tuesday, 3 September 2019)

Good morning La Salle and De La Salle.

Let us remember that we are in the Holy Presence of God:

I’m a little embarrassed to admit this out loud, but last Friday morning, while driving to Lasalle Academy for our first day of school, I felt… well, I felt “lonely.” I felt a strange sensation of absence, in my mind and heart. You see, for the past 15 years, I’ve always driven to school with one of my four children who were Lasalle students in grades 7-12, depending on the school year. And each daughter or son brought a different perspective to the car-ride in to school each morning.

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Fifteen years ago, in August 2004, Christina (my oldest daughter) and I started Lasalle Academy together. Mr. Kavanagh and Br. Michael had hired me in late August that year to teach religion. Christina was intending to go to Classical High School in Providence, but Mr. Aldrich was able to find Christina a spot in the freshman class at the last minute, when a student dropped out of La Salle after one day of freshman orientation.  It was great to have a 14-year old daughter (my personal insider) to compare notes with each day, as we shared our struggles and triumphs as student and teacher, in a school that was new for both of us.

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My second daughter, Marianna who is 4 years younger, drove me nuts on the ride in. She is the most style-conscious of my children. She soon realized that dad’s 7-passenger white GMC Safari maxi-van, with the large V8 engine and extra towing capacity (imagine in your mind the big white electrician or plumber’s cargo van, but without the writing on the side) couldn’t compete with the fancy cars that her friends came to school in. After a month, she made me drop her off at the iron gate by the tennis courts, so none of her friends would see her arriving with her dad in the ugly white “cargo van”. A month later, I was dropping her off farther away from the school property at Subway and by Thanksgiving, she was abandoning ship at Lasalle Bakery. She simply didn’t want to be seen driving in with me. It wasn’t long after, that we traded in our white GMC Safari for a grey Honda Odyssey. Merry Christmas Mari.

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At least my daughters got out the front door of our house by 7:20am. My sons, John and James, were impossible to wake up in the morning. John would always forget something at home-usually his sneakers and gym clothes on gym day, and we’d have to turn around and retrieve whatever he forgot. And then there was my youngest son.  For four years, James would never want to talk to me because he was so moody. We tried listening to Sports talk-radio on the way in, but typically Toucher and Rich, and Greg Hill would start veering off onto inappropriate topics, so the morning news on NPR at 89.7 FM would win out. Sorry James. Our four years of morning misery finally ended last June with his graduation from La Salle Academy. He’s a freshman at Providence College and he’s no longer by my side each morning.

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Anyways, this got me thinking this past Friday. Who or what will fill the void in the front passenger seat, now that all of my children are out of high school? Well, I’ve decided that this year, I’m going to invite God to drive in to school we me every morning. And maybe before I even turn on the motor, I’ll say to myself, “Let me remember that I am in the holy presence of God.” And then I’ll sit in silence in my driveway-with no radio on, just me and God.

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And that got me to thinking about what we teachers do, 5 or 6 times each day, at the beginning of every class. What does that mean, to recognize that we are in God’s holy presence? Over 300 years ago, John Baptist De La Salle taught the Christian Brothers to take the following approach, every time they heard these words:

“I will be conscious that I live in the holy presence of a God who is inviting me into a deeper personal relationship.”

This presence then, is a relational presence. As if God were next to me in the front seat, interested in my every thought. Secondly, De La Salle believed that,

“God, in his presence, is inviting me 

to be transformed into God’s holiness.”

In other words, God promises to change me for the better, to make me holier during the school day. And this miracle happens everyday because you– you my students, you my fellow teachers and you the La Salle staff, will help me to see God’s presence through the Eyes of Faith. And because God is riding shot-gun, giving me direction in my life, I know that any delays, obstacles, or side streets on the journey of life, are a part of God’s divine plan, God’s Providence. So even though you can’t see God, rest assured God is there. God wants to be present in your life. And unlike my daughter, I know that God won’t bail on me when we reach Lasalle Bakery.

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Let us pray: 

Loving God, we thank you for your loving presence every hour of every day. Help us to see you with the Eyes of Faith; give us the courage to enter more deeply into a personal relationship with you this school year. Help us to recognize the indwelling of your Holy Spirit in each person we meet here in our school community. Jesus our brother, promise us that you will always be by our side. May we recognize your presence whenever you carry us home, even when we are unable to recognize your footprints at our side.

 

St. John Baptist de La Salle, PRAY FOR US

Live Jesus in our Hearts, FOREVER!

Prayer offered by:  David Martinez, Religion Teacher