This past Monday, students in Grades 3-8 participated in the Lenten Season Reconciliation Service with eight priests from our four parishes offering the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

As you know, the sacrament of Reconciliation (also called Penance or Confession) was instituted by Jesus Christ in his love and mercy to offer us forgiveness for the times we have sinned and turned away from God. In Reconciliation, we acknowledge our sins before God and the Church; we express our sorrow in a meaningful way by confessing our sins to a priest; we are assigned a penance to complete as reparation for our sins; and we receive the forgiveness of Christ and his Church as we resolve to do better in the future. It is enlightening to see our students participate in such an incredible sacrament.

Additionally, Deacon Leonel Yoque, a representative of the Maryknoll priests and brothers, visited St. Serra on Monday to present 8th-grade student Riley S. with her award for placing second in the Division I Maryknoll Student Essay Contest. Riley’s essay is a powerful reflection on how the knowledge that Christ died in reparation for our sins and thereby procured for us eternal life helped her heal during a time of intense pain and sadness.

I often talk about the importance of our school’s Catholic Identity, and my message usually focuses on the ways in which our students and staff embody Catholic values by actively working to address the needs of others and generously sharing the many gifts they have been given. But on Monday, watching students receive the sacrament of Reconciliation and listening to Deacon Yoque pray with the 8th-grade students, I was reminded that our imperfection is also part of our Catholic Identity. We are Catholic not just when we are strong, not just when we are in a position to help others, not just when we are at our best. We are Catholic when we are weak and powerless and sinful as well. Christ paid the price for our sins because we are not capable of doing it ourselves. To accept the gift of redemption and acknowledge the enormity of the love that lies behind it–in other words, to be Catholic–we must acknowledge that it is a gift given to a broken, sinful people. It is both humbling and thrilling.