|
|
|
| Background: This week on the feast of Peter and Paul, the apostles, we turn to Matthew's account of the disciples' response to Jesus query about who he is. Matthew's description expands on Mark's and includes Peter's declaration that Jesus is both the Messiah and the son of the living God. Peter becomes the spokesperson for the group. Like the prophets, the heavenly Father revealed an insight to Peter that no one could have know without divine intervention. Upon Peter, the Rock (Peter means rock), Jesus will build his church. The keys to the kingdom of heaven indicate an intimate connection between the church and the kingdom, though not an identification. |
read the padre |
|
 |
Story: After the committee for the class reunion finished the business of planning their 40th anniversary gathering, the conversation turned to memories of their eight years of grammar school. Their tales - some funny, some sad - recalled the class clown, the class genius, the sport feats, the May Crowning, and the various approaches to discipline practiced by the sisters. This latter topic generated many horror stories. Finally, someone mentioned Sister Anne and everyone smiled. "Sister Anne. She was the one nurtured us in 6th grade," they said. "She gave us a love of learning. She treated us with respect and, for the most part, we responded. Remember the one time the boys decided to clean the erasers on the girls navy blue uniforms? That's probably the only time she was angry with us. And we were chagrin. We didn't want her to be mad at us." Sister Anne's former students didn't think they had changed that much when they entered junior high and were, always being disciplined, some of them even physically. It seemed that they had to write the entire Constitution as a punishment almost every week. Those were not good memories. One of the women who had been in Sister Anne's room decided to track her down and thank her for being the most influential teacher in her life. In her response Sister Anne thanked the former student for writing. She said she would always remember that year of her teaching career. The class had been very special for her also. She expressed gratitude for the student's comments. It's not often that a teacher hears from former students telling her how she was a positive force in their lives. |
|
