You have a God-given right to choose a school

As a Carmelite priest, I want to remind you of the duties of parents and how we at St Therese Church and school can help you carry out those duties in these challenging times.  Parents are the primary educators of their children. (CCC 2223)  The souls of your children have been entrusted to you.  Therefore, you have a most important mission.  The right and the duty of parents to educate their children are primordial and inalienable. (CCC 2221)

Perhaps there was a time when families could trust that schools would educate their children without harming their souls and that society would respect family values.  This is not the case at all.  Families must be ever so vigilant because the reality is that there are ideologies, policies and agendas that are meant to directly harm the precious souls that have been entrusted to you, to us. 

Parents should teach children to avoid the compromising and degrading influences which threaten human societies. (CCC 2224)  Where do we find these compromising and degrading influences?  I ask myself the same question.  For one minute, think how you could get to the souls of children and influence their minds, hearts, and souls!  Which one institution would you infiltrate with compromising and degrading influences?  It doesn’t take more than one minute to figure out that this is easily accomplished through schools, particularly public schools and sadly, many private schools.  The souls of our children are at risk!  We have an obligation to guard, protect, nourish, and properly form their souls.  Parents, get your children out of the public schools now.  Every minute they remain in a school where comprising and degrading influences exist, their souls, minds, and hearts are being poisoned.  This kind of evil influence must be drowned with an abundance of good, with an abundance of the Good, the True, and the Beautiful that exists at Saint Therese Carmelite School. 

As those first responsible for the education of their children, parents have the right to choose a school for them which corresponds to their own convictions. (CCC 2229)  Catholic parents have a right to choose a school that is faithful to the Magisterium, a school that will not teach or promote false ideologies, a school that cares and fights for the souls of its students.  Parents, it is your right to choose a school that educates children without harming their minds, their hearts, or their souls with educational ideologies, materials, or classes.  Please exercise that right before it’s too late.

You have a God-given right to choose a school which corresponds to your convictions.  Does such a school exist?  It sure does.  Thanks to my predecessor and thanks to the parishioners of our church, our school is a Carmelite Catholic classical school dedicated to forming students in faith, academics, and virtue.  At Saint Therese Carmelite School, we have Carmelite friars teaching in the classroom.  All, 100 %, of teachers and staff are practicing Catholics.  We do not use any of the educational theories which harm children’s minds and souls.  Our school relies on classical education, which has been tried and tested for hundreds of years, to educate our students.  We seek to incorporate within our students the wisdom of two thousand years of Catholic thought, history, culture, and the arts so that they might understand themselves and their world in the light of that Truth, and acquire the character to live happy and integrated lives in the service of God and others.

The right to choose a school which corresponds to your own convictions is fundamental. As far as possible parents have the duty of choosing schools that will best help them in their task as Christian educators. (CCC 2229)  “But, but, but you say.  Catholic schools are expensive. I can’t afford to send my children.”  You can’t afford not to send them.  The cost to repair years of damage will be greater than the cost to properly educate them.  “The school is too far you say.”  Pick your battles.  So many families report praying the rosary on the way to school, listening to a Catholic podcast, singing hymns of praise, and simply having great conversations with their children.  In my experience as a priest, I can tell you that you cannot outdo in generosity.  You have been faithful to God in having the children he has blessed you with.  He will help you provide an education for your children.  Come talk to me.  Go speak to our principal. 

Parents, do not endanger the souls of your children by enrolling them in public schools or in private schools which do not align with sound Catholic morals and convictions.  The Carmelite friars remain committed to ensure that our school is faithful to the Truth, faithful to the Magisterium, faithful to God.  The students at Saint Therese Carmelite School count on the daily prayers and sacrifices of the friars, the nuns, the sisters, and church parishioners.  The friars and the school administration are committed to excellence in Catholic education, to forming men and women of strong character, and to educating Saints!  If your child is not enrolled in our school, come talk to me or go see our principal to get your child enrolled now!  With God, all things are possible.