Bishop's Schedule: Bishop Robert C. Morlino Thursday, Feb. 21, 2008 1:00 p.m. -- Preside at Mass and visit with students, faculty, and staff of St. Mary School, Platteville 6:30 p.m. -- Speak at Diocesan Catechetical Workshop, St. Mary Parish, Platteville Friday, Feb. 22, 2008 1:00 p.m. -- Visit with students, faculty, and staff and preside at Stations of the Cross, All Saints School, Berlin 6:30 p.m. -- Speak at Diocesan Catechetical Workshop, St. John the Baptist Parish, Montello Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008 1:00 p.m. -- Preside at Mass and visit with students, faculty, and staff of St. John Vianney School, Janesville 6:30 p.m. -- Speak at Diocesan Catechetical Workshop, St. John Vianney Parish, Janesville Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2008 11:00 a.m. -- Meet with Diocesan Finance Council 7:00 p.m. -- Preside and preach at Sacrament of Confirmation, St. Luke Parish, Plain Thursday, Feb. 28, 2008 11:00 a.m. -- Attend Presbyteral Council meeting, Bishop O'Connor Center, Madison

Lent and Catholic schools - directing us to heaven

		Under the Gospel Book + Bishop Robert C. Morlino

(printable version)
(en Español)

Dear Friends,

Last week my column was taken from my reflections on the First Sunday of Lent, themes which are, indeed, at the very forefront of my mind. This week I would like to consider another topic which has been very much on my mind in recent weeks and days - our Catholic schools. In the coming weeks I plan to visit a few of our Catholic schools around the diocese and though I cannot visit them all at present - we will see if the weather even allows me to carry out the visits I currently have planned - the thoughts I express here are very much along the lines of what I am thinking about and what I have expressed already, recently in Cross Plains for instance.

As I mentioned last week, right here at the beginning of our Lenten journey, the Church gives us the story of Jesus, who himself has just completed 40 days of intense prayer and fasting, being tempted by the devil. Now, you would think that after 40 days of prayer and serious fasting Satan would know that Jesus had been hardened against temptation and impervious to his lies, and yet, here Satan comes with an onslaught of temptation for the Son of God.

In the same way, we might think that after praying and fasting for 40 days that life would get easier, that it would be easier to be holy. We would all hope that after praying and fasting for 40 days that our spiritual life would get easy. But, we see from the very life of Jesus that it was after the 40 days of prayer and fasting that the temptation, rather than disappearing, came on with a vengeance. It was after the 40 days of prayer and fasting that the strongest temptations arrived.

And what are those temptations which Satan uses? They come down to faith: "Place your stock in this world, command the stones to become bread. You're so hungry after fasting for 40 days, just go have a snack and make this bread. Take hold of this world." Second, "throw yourself down from the heights and let the angels save you. Impress everybody so that you will be a power figure in this world." Or, "I'll give you the whole world," the devil says, "if you fall down and worship me." The whole point for Satan is to really get Jesus, to really get each of us, immersed in the things of this world. That is the temptation.

And if Jesus, in His human nature, became buried in the things of this world, as Satan wanted, He would forget his mission from the Father, which was to lead us back to heaven. By becoming consumed by this world, He would forget heaven.

Never forget the mission: to get to heaven

And that's what Lent is all about, this fasting and prayer and almsgiving - generosity of our time, talent, and treasure in an extraordinary way for 40 days. It's about never forgetting the mission we have received from the Father - to get to heaven and lead other people to heaven. And when we refrain from food and drink, and when we pray more, and when we give from our treasure to those in need, we are saying that how things go in this world is not the end of the matter. We are saying, "my job is to get to heaven and to lead other people there." That is what Lent is all about and that's what the Scriptures are all about and that, my dear friends, is what Catholic schools are all about.

Catholic schools exist to get people to heaven! Catholic schools exist so our young people are saved. That is why we as a Catholic Church are in the "school business." Sure, we want to do "readin', writin' and 'rithmatic," as the saying goes. We want to do those things, and more, extremely well. We want our young people to learn and to excel so that they do well in high school, so that they do well in college, so that they have successful jobs and lives. We care about all of that, but we wouldn't be in the school business at all if, first, we did not want our young people to be saints and to go to heaven.

And so for hundreds and hundreds of years, around the world, and, God willing, for hundreds and thousands more, we will have our Catholic schools, which exist for the mission of telling young people that life, in the first place, is all about going to heaven. It's not about getting just the right job, making "x" amount of dollars. It's not about having two or three homes, and a boat, and maybe even a plane. That is not what life is all about. It is ultimately about going to heaven.

Catholic schools, those around the world and those in our diocese, are more important than ever. It is no secret I went to a government school for my education from kindergarten through eighth grade. I did not go to a Catholic school in my youth, but it was a government school in a small town where everybody was Catholic. On our elementary school faculty of 12, 11 were Catholic and one was Protestant - and that was about the proportion in our town. Everyday after the Pledge of Allegiance in that government school, the teacher said a prayer. The Catholic teachers often said the "Our Father," the Protestant teacher usually read Psalm 23, "the Lord is my Shepherd . . ."

Faith, off limits in public schools today

On Friday nights, whether it was football or basketball season, before the game, there was a school Mass in one of the local churches. No one forced you to go; it was after school, but most people showed up with their parents for Mass before the game. And that was a government school. But way back in the 1950s the government understood that in their schools their job was not to force religion on anyone, but also not to stop anyone from practicing their religion. In government schools, at that time, religion was not enforced, but it was never impeded either.

Now in our current day, if our young people go to government schools, there is no prayer, there is no mention of God, there is no mention of Christmas. In our current day, the government has decided in its schools that the best way to be fair to every religion is to suppress every religious expression - in the name of fairness. So faith is off limits in the government schools. Yet there are several other topics which are not off limits. Our government schools are allowed to teach children that there is no "correct" meaning for the word "family." Through the education of our government schools we are told that "family" can mean almost anything. In our government schools we are not allowed to raise questions regarding the sacredness of the life of the most innocent - the pre-born. Yet, many of our students are encouraged to perform research with cells and tissue cut from the pre-born.

Catholic schools are more important than ever, because the very truth that young people need in order to be saints is, by and large, forbidden in the government schools. It didn't used to be that way, but almost universally it is today. And that is why Catholic schools are more important than ever. We must have places where our young people are free to be saints. They're not forced to be saints, but they are free to be saints, they are invited to be saints, and made to know that we want them to be saints.

Continue to support Catholic schools

So I thank you all, all of you who support our Catholic schools for providing the opportunity for our children to be invited, never to be forced, but to be invited to be saints, to be encouraged to be saints, for the sake of what is really important. Thank you for every dollar, for every bit of effort, for every hour of volunteering, for every bit of love that has been poured into our Catholic schools by so many of you throughout the years. Please, let us not forget the importance of our Catholic schools and, please, let us not ever tire of making the effort to sustain our Catholic schools.

So let us remember, as we consider the great hope that can be found in our Catholic schools and in all our children, that Lent is a time of hope. Lent is a time of hope for heaven, a time of hope for salvation. Lent is a time to get our priorities straight, if they're a little bit fuzzy. And all of us have trouble keeping our priorities in proper order, from time to time.

I urge you to take full advantage of this Lenten season, and to take full advantage of this consideration of our Catholic schools and to enter into a deep examination of conscience, something which I have done as well, asking, "Where in my priorities is the salvation of myself and others? How often do I think about heaven? How often do I forget about salvation? How often do I forget about heaven? How often do I think, 'I just want to get through this winter?'"

Lent and Catholic schools are all about directing us towards heaven, which is our highest goal. And so, as we consider our Lenten sacrifices, let us consider what sacrifices we are making to sustain our Catholic schools and Catholic education. No sacrifice can be too great to ensure that our young people are given the opportunity and the invitation to be great saints. No sacrifice is too great to give them the opportunity to experience the true joy and happiness which comes with salvation and a life in Christ.

Thank you for all the sacrifices you have already made, thank you for those sacrifices you will make now and in the future, and thank you for taking the time to read this.

Praised be Jesus Christ!