Faith and Service
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Catholic Faith Formation
Catholic spirituality is personal and communal. For that reason, we aim to nurture the student’s personal relationship with Christ, sacramental life within the Church and moral responsibility in the public arena. Our goal is that the RCCSS Graduate will be a disciple who will bring the light of Christ into the world. Most important of all, we envision a cooperative effort with parents in the spiritual formation of their children since the family is the primary school of the gospel.
In the Catholic tradition, faith formation seeks the total formation of the human person. Our curriculum offers families the four elements of a well rounded faith life – doctrine, Christian community, liturgical celebration, and service. The spiritual formation includes: theological study, prayer, liturgical celebration, retreats, sacrificial giving, service projects, growth in Christian virtues, development of healthy relationships, etc. A short description of the different elements of the program is given below.
Prayer and Liturgy
The school day begins with a common prayer, and the teachers are encouraged to begin each class with prayer. The teachers and students participate in communal liturgies every week at the Cathedral. Usually, this is the celebration of the Holy Eucharist (Mass). Other types of communal prayer include the Sacrament of Reconciliation (confessions), Rosary, Lectio Divina, Stations of the Cross, Taize prayer, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and prayer services to mark special events (e.g. Veteran’s Day, Native American Day, etc.).
Mass is celebrated at 8:15 AM Monday in the STM chapel, with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament following Mass until noon. Parents are invited to pray during these hours, and the students are welcome to join this prayer during lunch break.
School Retreats
Annual retreats are coordinated for the RCCSS staff, and for each of the classes in middle school and high school. The retreats are normally a one-day event at a retreat house or other location. Participation in retreats is mandatory for staff and students since spiritual formation is the most important core value for our school system.
Service Projects
One goal of Catholic Education is to instill a spirit of service in students. Recent studies have shown that adults who attended Catholic school have a higher level of civic engagement. They are more generous, more aware of social justice issues, more discerning in moral issues, more responsive to the poor, etc. Our patrons saints Elizabeth Seton and Thomas More excelled in these attributes, and through our service curriculum we nurture in students the attitude of serving more.
Life In Christ
LIFE IN CHRIST is an acronym for: Living and Integrating Faith and Education In Chastity, Healthy Relationships, Intimacy, Sexuality and Theology.
We are developing a program for K-12 that is more than chastity education. St. Paul says, we “live in Christ,” and He lives in us. Church teaching about human sexuality invites us to imitate the selfless and sacrificial love of Christ. In order to contextualize the beauty of the human sexuality lived in this light; we chose the name “Life in Christ.” The goal is to help students develop healthy relationships, grow in Christian virtues, learn about the beauty of human sexuality, and develop an informed theological understanding on this topic.
Sacrificial Giving Programs
Throughout the year the RCCSS takes up collections in order to assist the poor on local, national and international levels.
Student Fellowship
Society of Savio (Middle School), Apostles of Life, Fellowship of Christian Athletes.