Below is an excerpt from a Christmas commentary authored by Archbishop Charles Chaput: For believers, the Christmas season doesn’t end this week. It begins. So much of modern life at this time of year – its noise, its urgency, its relentless emphasis on shopping and the fatigue that always follows – can seem beyond the control of individuals. These things can easily distract us from the real reason most Americans, even today, celebrate “the holidays,” the birth of Jesus Christ. That humble birth is not a legend or seasonal fairy tale. It’s a matter of historical record with real conseque...
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One of the most cherished traditions of Advent is the annual Christmas Pageant. Amidst the chaos and consumption of the secular holidays, the Christmas pageant helps families remember the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas pageants illustrate how Catholic education forms the whole person, enabling students to remain cognizant of the real reason for the season: the birth of the Christ-Child and the great mystery of the Incarnation. Popular culture tends to draw our minds away from the true origins of Christmas. We venerate the real sequence of events that inspire such a revered and lasting tr...
Read MoreLast evening, November 28th, the St. Thomas Aquinas chapter inducted six new students into the National Honor Society. It was a delightful and inspiring ceremony for all of the attendees. In attendance were the current members, faculty, and parents, as well as Deacon Jim Rock, the featured speaker for the evening. The National Honor Society (NHS) is the nation's premier organizations established to recognize outstanding high schoolstudents. More than just an honor roll, NHS serves to honor those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of Scholarship, Leadership, Se...
Read MoreThe following column will now appear regularly on the MRA website, beneath the Parent Portal. Dear Families, What is Advent? Advent comes from the Latin word meaning “coming”, and the Advent season is the four weeks leading up to Christmas when we prepare for the coming of our Lord and Savior. This Sunday marks the first Sunday in Advent when the western liturgical year begins. It is a tradition for many to have an advent wreath on the dinner table, and to light the first of four candles, lighting an additional candle on the remaining three Sundays. The Christmas season does not actually...
Read MoreWe are pleased to announce that the annual Mount Royal Academy Christmas Pageant will be held at the LaSalette Shrine. The details are below. Date: Saturday, December 8, 2012 Time: 5:15pm at LaSalette Shrine in Enfield, NH for Grade Levels: All students in Grades 1 - 12 and their families. Members of the 7-12 Choir and the 1st - 6th grade students will be performing. All students are to wear their school uniforms. Mrs. Wesoja would like the students to arrive 1/2 hour before the start of the pageant so they can practice. All families are invited to attend! See you there! This event i...
Read MoreEach month we focus on a specific virtue as an entire school. This month - fittingly enough - students and teachers have been discussing gratitude. The virtue of the month program is critical for the moral formation of our students. It is what makes Mount Royal such a special place. Although Americans traditionally celebrate Thanksgiving once a year, it is valuable to consistently reflect on what we are thankful for. The Mount Royal school community certainly has a lot to be thankful for: a renovated campus, two new buildings, over 100 students have been added to the school in four year...
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A staple tradition at Mount Royal has always been the celebration of All Saints day. Instead of emphasizing the unsettling and inhuman aspects of Halloween, we embrace the goodness and virtue of the saints. Rather than focusing on characters created by the culture that spook and shock us, we lift up those saints whose Christian lifestyles point to the inherent attractiveness of the good. By celebrating All Saints day, we are also reminded of St. Paul's numerous references to the "holy ones" - living saints if you will - indicating that all the baptized share a universal call to holiness. Saint...
Read MoreSpirit Week 2012 was celebrated between October 9th and 12th. It gave the student body an opportunity to celebrate the mission of Mount Royal Academy in a variety of ways. Students were relieved to forgo the regular dress code for the entire week, and responded very passionately by dressing according to special themes chosen by the Student Government. Here is a recap of how students demonstrated school spirit each day of the week: Tuesday was sportswear day, giving students the opportunity to represent their favorite professional team or athlete; on Wednesday students came to school featuring...
Read MoreOn Friday October 5th the Mount Royal school community renewed one of its most enduring traditions. Ever since its origins, MRA has made a special pilgrimage to honor the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Every October 7th students forgo most of their regularly scheduled academic activities, which is exciting for them of course, but also prompts the question: why make such a sacrifice for an old and seemingly insignificant tradition? Traditions affirm the meaningfulness of life, and on occasion traditions can show us the providential hand of God directing our lives back to Him. Our...
Read MorePearce Will Share His Conversion Story: From The Hell of Hatred to the Well of Mercy Mount Royal Academy’s visiting scholar Joseph Pearce will be giving a lecture at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church, in New London, NH, on Saturday, October 6. The lecture, led by the renowned biographer of Catholic literary figures such as G.K. Chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Hilaire Belloc, is open to the public and begins at 6:30 p.m. Pearce will share his conversion story “From the Hell of Hatred to the Well of Mercy” in which he relates his own personal conversion story. Hear Pearce tell the story of his...
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