Our Catholic faith

We see our school's first mission as formation in faith.  Within these pages, we seek to define and support that mission. 

Our school's motto is a good entry point for this: "Nolite Timere!"
This Latin phrase means "Be not afraid."  We are leading our students to be not afraid to lead Catholic lives in a society and world that is at times hostile to the Church and its disciples.  These words used repeatedly in scripture, and by Jesus in the New Testament, to assure us that God is with us. Pope John Paul II echoed these words in his visits with the youth in the United States and throughout the world. In a world of confusion and anxiety, the words of the Master and of his Servant, the Pope, ring loud and clear. Young people need not be afraid to embrace truth itself, which is not just an idea, but even more importantly, a Person: Jesus Christ who calls us to the adventure of a holy life.

John Paul II at the open air Mass in Westover Hills, San Antonio, Texas, 13 Sept. 1987

John Paul II frequently added to his appeal of “Nolite Timere!” the following rallying cry: “Aperite plene portas Christo!” “Open wide the doors to Christ!” Young Catholics and Christians are called to embrace the life of the mind with great courage and with right judgment in great trust, reverence and wonder of God’s love. Thus the Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit allow us to go into the world with trust and humility, prepared to see every loss as gain in God’s grace, with well-ordered love of God, neighbor and self, yearning for justice completed in mercy and purity of heart, so that peace might govern our lives, even in the face of persecution and ridicule.

This life of the Beatitudes, watered with the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit is at the heart of the vision and mission of John Paul II Catholic High School, which together with the Church and Christian families, strives to lead students into a knowledge, love and service of the Lord Jesus, through whom alone we come to recognize our human dignity and our divine destiny.

We plan to form small Christian communities within the school to shape this formation in faith, which will lead students to form an interior life of faith (prayer, reflection) and then an exterior life (service, outreach).