Family of Faith

This spring, the Lower School celebrated a special Mass marking the baptism of five Lower School students (and one little brother!) into the Catholic Church. Fr. John led the celebration for the Santillan and Hutchins families— Cuahatli, Aram, Noe, and David Santillan, and Lillian and Maeve Hutchins—who have this year, with the approval of their families, asked to join the Church.

Lower School campus minister Amanda Eckert called the event “a big grace” for the Lower School. “I think it shows the power of the sacramental preparation we go through with our students. We talk to them about it all the time, and we can see that our students really want to be part of these sacraments.”

In addition to baptism, Aram and Cuahatli, in 4 th grade and 6 th grade respectively, also received their first communion. The other three students were in 2 nd grade, the year students receive their First Penance and their First Communion, so they only had to wait a few months to receive the Eucharist. The students were given a special gift to remember the day. “Father John gave us a little silver charm with Mary on it,” Lily Hutchins recalled, “and that made me feel special.” All of the students said they felt happier after they were baptized and started their journey as Catholics who walk with Jesus.

Steve Rummelsburg, 2017-18 writer-in-residence at HSP, wrote about the event this way, “It is perhaps the most joyful of all Catholic things to see new souls come to the Body of Christ. As Jesus tells us in Luke 15:7, ‘I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.’”