My dear friends and young people, it is my honor to be with you to celebrate Catholic Schools Week and to join the juniors to bless your class rings. A special thanks to Dr. [Jeremiah] Russell, your faculty, and staff for the hard work they are doing to form faithful disciples of Church and successful members of society. Here at St. John Paul II High School, we cannot but take into account the steadfast faith and bold witness of your patron – this man from Poland who, after family hardship and loss followed by turmoil in civil society, stepped into the shoes of Peter. He boldly invited all, especially young people, to open the doors of your heart to Christ. He was passionate about life – all life. Only in Christ do we find hope for today. Afterall, Christ is not merely an idea, or an aspiration for the future once I figure out how to become good. No, a real encounter with Christ has the potential to change who we are, like what happened to St. Paul. For him everything changed – his beliefs and actions became more mature, more expansive. For him, for St. John Paul, and for us, Christ is always today and right now. We live today what we have met in Christ.

My friends, Christianity itself is an event that has to be grappled with because it generates the new man and the new woman, especially for those who have put on Christ in baptism. It is there that we have a shot at what we can truly become. In that sense, it is to fulfill the dream that God has for each of you because as we heard at Mass this past Sunday in the reading from the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you!” Yes, God knew you! And He has a dream and a plan for you. It is as much His intention that you be here, as it is God’s intention that I be here in Alabama in this phase of my life’s journey. Surprises will come – they always do! We must remain open and wide-eyed to be amazed at the astonishing things God is doing when we least expect it.

Today’s great event is called the “Presentation of the Lord in the Temple.” Forty days after He was born, Jesus’ parents presented Him to the Lord. He was their first born, the first fruits, if you will. His parents were practicing Jewish believers, fulfilling the prescriptions of the law. They went to the temple on the Sabbath and on the major occasions of one’s life. Those in the Temple on that day were waiting, as they were in the habit of doing, for “the One” who would fulfill God’s promise to Israel: the Messiah.

Jesus is called a “light of revelation to the Gentiles” and the “glory of Your people Israel” by Simeon, a righteous and devout man waiting for the consolation of Israel.

Expectations ran high with each person who came through the door. Is this “the One”

It is the same Simeon also who, in a prophetic word, noted that Jesus would be “destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted.” A sign of contradiction! Those who follow Him, too, become “signs of contradiction!” As the letter to Diognetus (ca. 130 AD) spells out, we, as Christians, live like everyone else in the world and participate in life. Yet, we live differently because this is not our homeland but a way station on the journey to where we truly belong. And so, a follower of Jesus Christ, is one who has eyes fixed on Him who will fulfill our deepest longings through His love and lead us to where we truly belong. He is the light we follow today on this Presentation of the Lord or Candlemas celebration.

During this Catholic Schools Week, we also give thanks for the impact of our schools – for faith, for excellence, and for service. If we didn’t have Catholic schools, we would be impoverished. We would be remiss, not fulfilling God’s plan, if we didn’t have them. It is part of our mission to “teach” not only the things of Heaven, but to understand the reality in which we find ourselves in all of its glorious wonder, beauty, and majesty. For, it is the product of the finger of God creating a masterpiece right before our eyes. I thank you for being an integral part of this mission here at St. John Paul II Catholic High School.

Today we bless class rings – another sign, a sign of fidelity and eternity. We are faithful to the core mission of this school and all it represents for our formation in life and faith. It is a mission that looks beyond the horizon at what will become for us something real (i.e., our ultimate return to Christ). The message today is that the ring is a reminder of your relationship to St. John Paul II Catholic High School and your formation here. It is a further reminder of the hope that is in store for your future. You are something more than what the world tells you. You have infinite worth and value as represented by the circle of the ring – without beginning and without end.  Wear these rings with pride. Through them you demonstrate to whom you belong – to St. John Paul II Catholic High School whose patron belonged to Christ and who invites us to open the doors of our hearts wide to receive Him. Be not afraid to say, “Yes”! May God bless you on this great adventure in life.