WELCOME BACK TO another school year!
Across our 37 Catholic schools, serving over 16,500 students, teachers spent the last few weeks unpacking classrooms while principals greeted nervous preschoolers and confident seniors alike. It is such a blessing to have our families settling back into the rhythm of uniforms, backpacks and morning drop-off lines. It truly is one of my favorite
seasons in Catholic education — full of hope, and full of possibility.
This year, that possibility has a name. Our theme for our Catholic schools this year is “There’s More: Living the Magis,” chosen to align with the Diocese of Orange’s 50th Jubilee. Last month, thousands of us filled the Honda Center to celebrate five decades of faith in our diocese, and I was moved to see our school communities there witnessing to the difference Catholic education makes in Orange County. That event captured something essential: after 50 years our schools are not resting on what has already been built. There is more.
The word “Magis” comes from the Ignatian tradition and simply means “the more” or “the greater.” It is not about doing more for the sake of busyness, but about asking, in every decision, what will bring the greater glory of God — ad majorem Dei gloriam. For our schools, living the Magis looks like this: More than the minimum — in the classroom, where our teachers pursue excellence not for reward or ranking, but as an offering.
More than the requirement — in service, where students learn that service hours are not obligations to fulfill but responses to real human need. More than what’s expected — in how we treat one another, choosing the generous interpretation of a classmate’s bad day, a kind word to a struggling colleague or the extra patience with a child still learning.
More than a school — a community that forms not simply high-achieving graduates, but young people who instinctively ask, “What is the greater good here?” I truly believe that last question is the heart of why Catholic education matters in Orange County today. Our world does not lack access to information or opportunity. It lacks, sometimes, for people willing to ask what the greater good requires of them, and then to act on the answer. Forming those people — young disciples who see that their gifts are meant for something beyond themselves — that is the quiet, daily work happening in our classrooms and hallways, and on our playgrounds and fields this year.
You will see this theme woven through our diocese in the months ahead. On Sept. 11, our educators gathered for our annual Educator Convocation at Santa Margarita Catholic High School, where Sr. John Dominic Rasmussen, O.P., spoke on Living the Magis. In November, our pastors and principals will come together to reflect on our shared mission across parish and school life. Throughout the year, school leaders will gather in small faith sharing groups to reflect on the question: How is God calling me to lead my school community closer to Him?
None of this work belongs to schools alone. It belongs to every parish, every family and every parishioner who has ever donated to a tuition assistance fund, attended a school fundraiser, mentored a young teacher or simply prayed for our students. As we begin this Jubilee school year, I ask you to hold our schools in prayer, and to consider where, in your own life, God might be inviting you toward the Magis — the more.
Thank you for your continued partnership in the mission of Catholic education in the Diocese of Orange. There truly is more in store for us this year. AMDG!