WHAT MAKES A DISTINGUISHED PASTOR?

I find it ironic (I don’t think anything is ironic with God) that I came across this article during

the same time we recogni:ed Fr. luke for Pastors’ Appreciation Day last week.

After working in education with the diocese for over 25 years, I have come to appreciate great

leadership. I have been blessed to be under the auspice of some great pastors with a zeal for

their schools and SPX is currently blessed to have a pastor with this kind of zeal.

The article was lengthy so the editor will do his best to shorten the examples. In short, nine men

were recogni:ed as “Distinguished Pastors” over a period from 2009-2012 from the NCEA. Here

are some key qualities that are critical for success in their parish schools. I think after you

read this article you will recogni:e these qualities in our Pastor at St. Pius X.

ENGAGES AND INSPIRED VISION
As the school’s pastoral leader, these priests have a vision of Catholic education in the life of the

parish and they are highly active in promoting this vision from the pulpit and the community at

large (Boy, does that hit home). Pastors noted that students from the parish school become the

most active parishioners when they become adults. (Wemember that point from a couple of

articles ago..?)***The editor would also like to add that the Distinguished Pastor is focused on

the good of the whole not [ust his parish. Father Luke is part of a strategic planning group that

was organized to insure the successful future of all the South Bay Catholic schools. We have

already met earlier this month planning for next year.

PRESENCE

Distinguished Pastors are highly present in their school. They are visible to students and

parents and involved in their lives.  You will find them in a myriad of ways as they

involve themselves on their school campuses.  A Distinguished Pastor also reali:es the

importance of being involved in the school boards and councils. They find the time (an

 

oxymoron) to provide direction, inspiration or to be a sounding board for the members. They

recognize the importance of supporting the leadership of the school.

STRAINED RELATIONSHIPS

Sadly, much of the research on the relationships between pastorsand principals shows a

 

strained partnership. The article cited that the main reason for this is a pastor that maintains

 

too tight of control over the school or the opposite, is entirely absent.  The success of the

 

Distinguished Pastor is based on the principle of working collaboratively with

the principal, serving as an advisor to the school administration. Catholic elementary schools

function strongly when based on a free and open exchange of thoughts, ideas and opinions. This

under girds a trusting relationship

This is an enterprise built on trust.
 

UNIQUE LEADERSHIP

Distinguished Pastors have developed over time, an approach to leadership that has allowed

 

them to avoid many of the pitfalls that are prevalent in many parishes. They

respect the position of the educators they hire and understand their role as the spiritual advisor

of the school. That is not to say they don’t give advice to their principals (They are the boss) but

respect the position of the principal to run the

school.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The article cited many recommendations by these Distinguished Pastors, but the following caption best struck a cord from the principal about our

 

Distinguished Pastor: “ The time demands on today’s priests are high but these men commit their

 

formal and informal presence to the activities of the school. Their presence and vision is directly

 

connected to the spiritual health of the school. Building the Kingdom through the mission of the

 

school drives these pastors’ thought processes. Having a passion for the importance of Catholic

 

education and vocally promoting it appears critical for pastors of successful schools.

THANK YOU FATHER LUKE, FOR BEING OUR DISTINGUISHED PASTOR...

 

 

The Best Advice I Have Ever Received…

It seems the Good Lord blesses me with timely articles,

advice from my wife, mentors and peers, excerpts from

good books, sappy commercials that give me a runny

nose and watery eyes (my wife has long stopped buying

into my explanation that I have extensive allergies when

I see a sad commercial) and most importantly, a great

Homily with accompanying Holy Scripture to keep me

grounded. A strong ego can serve a person well but it

can also be a major detriment. In my case, God reminds

on a very regular basis that He is in charge and He

doesn’t need my opinions or suggestions to help Him

run the universe.

One of the journals I subscribe to is

Momentum. The

National Catholic Educational Association produces the

journal. It consistently has excellent articles from a

variety of contributing writers.

I hope the following excerpts from an article written by

Barbra Keebler,

taken from the April/May edition, will

be as applicable to you as it has been for me as we run,

jog, walk and sometimes crawl down this trail called

life.

This spring more than 278,000 students will graduate

from our nation’s almost 7000 Catholic elementary and

secondary schools. With the wonderful liturgies and

pomp and circumstances will come a tradition as old as

the ceremony itself: imparting of advice from the keynote

speaker, valedictorian, or student council president.

From this I thought that more good council could be

gathered from the NCEA St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Award

honorees and keynote speakers over the years. Here is a

sampling of their wisdom.

Dr. Mary C. McDonald

: Former Superintendent of

Catholic Schools, Diocese of Memphis, “Right is right,

even if nobody does it; and wrong is still wrong, even if

everybody does it, so do what is right.”

James Martin, S.J.:

Editor-at-large, American

magazine, “Jim,” he said, “You don’t have to be

someone else to be holy. Just be you. That’s the person

God called into the Jesuits in the first place.

Pleasant T. Rowland:

Founder, Rowland Reading

Foundation and American Girl Collection, “Be gentle,

be generous, to yourself and others. What a different

world it would be if we all heeded this advice.”

Charles Geschke:

Co-founder, Adobe Systems,

“Chuck, it’s important to us that you pursue your

dreams. We will figure out how to make it work.”

Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh CSC:

President Emeritus

University of Notre Dame, “ In the middle of problems,

say, come Holy Spirit and a solution will come to mind

almost immediately.”

Thomas Moran:

Chairman, President and Chief

Executive Officer of Mutual America, “Do as much as

you can, for as many as you can, for as long as you can.”

Tom and Gayle Benson:

Owner, New Orleans Saints,

Patrons of Catholic Schools, “We must rely on the

Scripture, the teachings of the church and calling what is

right in the human spirit. These foundations are constant

reminders of what is right.”

Have any advice that you would like to share that has helped

you? Send me an email at PrincipalSPX@saintpiusx.org.

April 15, 2013

The Patriot          April 15, 2013          

We are trying something new! Mr. Saavedra is going to post his award winning articles on his very own Blog. Who ever thought we would be comfortable with words like “Blog”, “Google”, “Wiki” and other very interesting tech terms. Anyway, here we go…!

 Last weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a John Maxwell leadership conference. If you don’t know who John Maxwell is, he is considered by many to be the number one leadership developer in the world. He has sold over 18 million books and has several that are the New York Times best sellers’ list. I try to attend one his conferences every year to listen to him and buy his latest book.

One of the topics he spent some time on, was the aspect of creating/surrounding one’s self with accountable, positive people.  I found it interesting that on Thursday before I left, I read the following article from a Catholic newsletter (Partners in Faith) I subscribe too. After reading the article, I couldn’t think of a better group of people to surround your children with then the folks from your parish and parish school (St. Pius X). I am certainly not advocating that families who attend Mass together on a weekly basis and the children attend a Catholic school don’t experience life challenges, but as the article points out, your children have a much greater chance of success in life due to the positive association of parish/school life.

Catholic Parents already know the importance of taking our families to Mass each week. Research from the last ten years proves us right; it’s one of the most important things we can do for our children. When families are embedded in their faith, children get:

Social support. The Catholic parish (including the parish school) provides support for parents by providing a positive message to their children consistent with the one they are getting at home. It also provides an environment for positive peer interaction for your son or daughter.

Academic success.  Teachers rated youngsters who attend religious services at least one a week are higher in self-control (I guess it has nothing to do with the large, thick wood paddle of perdition hanging in my office), social skills, and in attitudes toward learning than those from non-religious families.

Greater well-being. Children in a faith practicing environment experience better mental health, hope and optimism: less loneliness, less depression, and fewer suicides.

Better behavior. Coming from a faith-based family results in less risky behavior. Studies show fewer out-of-wedlock births, less premarital sex, less drug and alcohol abuse, good work habits and higher aspirations to succeed in the children.

Sacred purpose. Catholic parents also know there’s more at stake than getting their children into college. They want to get their children into Heaven and they can’t do that alone.

 

Bonita Optimist Club

 

Every year the Optimist Club of Bonita honors students from various schools in the Bonita/Chula Vista area with the Optimist Student Recognition Award.

The students who are chosen demonstrate qualities and attributes that are shared by good citizens of our community.

This award program is part of the Optimist Club International Youth Appreciation Week and youth activities sponsored by the Optimist Club of Bonita.

St. Pius X is proud to announce that Karina Curumilla was chosen as this year’s recipient of the Optimist Student Recognition Award.

Karina, along with her family, Ms. Russell and Mr. Saavedra attended a special award’s ceremony last Tuesday evening where Karina was recognized.