WHAT IS A CLASSICAL EDUCATION IN SIMPLE WORDS?

We are here today with Richard Greco, Jr., founder of The Montfort Academy, an award-winning classical high school in Mt. Vernon, NY.  The Montfort Academy is one of the 50 best Catholic high schools in America, ranked by the Newman Society, and brings a classical education to a diverse group of students from Mt. Vernon, Yonkers, the Bronx, and the surrounding area.  By all accounts, The Montfort Academy is a very special place, with a sense of joy in learning rarely seen in a school.

Richard Greco, Jr. is not only an educator but also an entrepreneur and public servant.  He is the Chief Executive Officer of the merchant bank Filangieri Capital Partners, and he previously served as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, a Presidential appointment requiring confirmation by the United States Senate.

Why did you start a high school?

Richard Greco, Jr: I started The Montfort Academy out of a deep love for God and His created world.  We, as humans, have an in-born desire to learn about the world, and the more we learn about the world, the closer we can grow to the world’s creator, namely God.  The aim of any education is to help in the formation of the whole person—not just one who will get into the best college, not just one who will go on to be a successful doctor or lawyer or businessman, not just one who will learn for the sake of learning—but a complete person well-balanced in mind, body, and soul.  Someone who has the drive to succeed in the world and who wants to go to the best colleges and become a successful professional, yes, but someone who also thinks daily about drawing closer and closer to Jesus and His Blessed Mother, about virtue, and right and wrong, ethics, and living well for the next world.  That’s what I found lacking in education today, and I wanted to bring it back at least to the New York area. 

The Montfort Academy is a classical high school.  What is classical education?

Richard Greco, Jr: A lot of people think of “old-fashioned” when they think of classical.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  You see, the classical education is one based on the set of all of human knowledge—not just the distant past but also the present.  As Columbia University professor Mortimer Adler called it, the classical education is really a Great Conversation, the collective wisdom down through the ages of all the great philosophers, scientists, history makers, experimenters, theologians, and entrepreneurs.  It starts with Aristotle and Plato and ends in the current day with people like Steve Jobs and Pope Francis.  We draw upon the best that men and women have said, done, or thought in the world.  And we prepare our students well for a future in the modern world.

What are the hallmarks of a classical education?

Richard Greco, Jr: There are many.  First, we read from the original texts.  So, in our classrooms we use only a select few textbooks.  Our teachers spent hours collecting original speeches, original scientific papers, original books and historical texts.  This ensures an unbiased reading, a rigorous interpretation, and a robust debate in class.  We offer Latin and Greek, civics, chivalry for boys, and Christian womanhood, and related literature in their original, for example, because studies continue to show the links between professional success and a thorough grounding in Latin and Greek and other classical subjects. 

What about Science and Math

Richard Greco, Jr: Another hallmark of a classical education, at least at The Montfort Academy, is our focus on science, mathematics, and technology--the elements of STEM Education.  Our science curriculum begins with Astronomy, the most basic and original of sciences that produced giants like Galileo as well as the scientific method of observation, hypothesis, experimentation, and conclusion.  Our students conduct astronomical observations in both the daytime and the night time, and we have established an excellent relationship with The Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, NY.  The Hudson River Museum just inaugurated their recently refurbished planetarium, now capable of projecting tens of millions of stars and astronomical objects.  After Astronomy, our students study Chemistry, Biology, and Physics.  http://www.hrm.org.  

We also emphasize the traditional sequence of algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus and have room for independent study for those students who enter high school already with Algebra.

As for technology, we strongly believe that technology is a tool, not a teacher.  Teaching requires a live human being who conducts and educates.  The word education comes from the Latin educare, which means, “to lead forth, to bring out.”  Technology cannot lead, but it can be used to lead.

What is the Socratic method of teaching?

Richard Greco, Jr: Another hallmark of classical education is that we use the Socratic method of teaching.  Simply put, it’s the best teaching method ever invented.  And, it happens to be the oldest and most proven method.  It goes back to ancient Greece and was used for thousands of years, really until recently, when it fell out of favor for more experimental methods based on memorization and standardized testing. 

The Socratic method is one based simply on questions and answers.  It sharpens students’ analytical abilities and rhetorical skills.  Done properly, it allows a skilled teacher to reach all students at the same time, no matter their ability or level of achievement.  The Socratic method gives the teacher to call equally upon the best student in the class to challenge him or her, while asking lesser skilled students level-appropriate questions and involving them equally in the conversation.  The teacher is almost an orchestra conductor who hears that the strings need to be a little louder, or the percussion needs to be a little slower.  The skilled Socratic teacher conducts a classroom like an orchestra, playing each student’s own strengths and weaknesses, involving them to create something beautiful.

Talk more about that—it is very interesting.

Richard Greco, Jr:  Sure.  No student in a Socratic classroom feels left out.  The strong students feel challenged by the right questions to them, while the week students feel involved with the right questions addressed to them; and all students consequently are part of a whole dynamic lesson and are pulled upward.  The Socratic method is also simultaneously a testing method.  The teacher is always aware of the students level of comprehension by the dynamic interaction and is able to offer correction and guidance right on the spot.  So, written testing at Montfort is actually kept to a minimum.  We rely a lot on oral examination and classroom participation.  We believe that this is true, lasting learning.

What are some of the other hallmarks of a classical education?

Richard Greco, Jr: Debate & rhetoric.  One of the most important skills anyone can acquire in life is the ability to communicate.  Right from Freshman year, Montfort students take a course in grammar.  This is not just learning the difference between verbs and nouns and sentence structure.  This is learning the ability to compose grammatically correct and powerfully persuasive paragraphs.  A year of logic follows where students learn the differences between logical truths and logical fallacies.  With a lot of practice, they master logical construction of arguments, preparing them for the next year of rhetoric and debate.  And through the Socratic methodology in the classroom

What about College Admissions?

Richard Greco, Jr: College admissions is also a hallmark of classical education.  At Montfort we have a 100% college admissions rate, and our average SAT score the 87th percentile, far above the national average.  To put that into other words and another perspective, because the SAT is graded on a bell curve, that means Montfort seniors score a full 37 percentage points above the 50% national average.  Our students go on to the best colleges and universities anywhere in the world.  We aim for our students to be accepted at Ivy League schools and military academies, but we are equally excited and rejoice when our students are accepted at their first and second choices, no matter which colleges they may be.  Keep in mind that Montfort is not just for "smart" kids.  It's for anyone who wants a good solid education that will prepare them for college and prepare them for Heaven.

What else distinguishes Montfort?

Richard Greco, Jr: Montfort has a unique sense of holiness and innocence, but it is also a very fun and joyful place.  There is no bullying to speak of.  Money, privilege, class distinctions, racial distinctions, even religious distinctions are simply not issues at Montfort.  Everyone is part of a single Montfort family.  And it is a safe environment for kids to grow up in.  We work hard at it.

You must have a unique faculty, too, to help create this environment.

Richard Greco, Jr: You have hit at the most important element of a classical education—the teachers.  From the very beginning, we have been blessed with some of the most devoted teachers, who view teaching as a vocation and not simply a job.  In fact, they can earn more money in other Catholic schools and in the public school system.  But they know that Montfort keeps tuition low so the all students can attend regardless of socio-economic status. 

I mentioned before that education comes from the Latin “educare” which means to lead forth.  Our teachers are indeed leaders of all works of life.  Our teachers are former military officers, a Grammy award winning musician, a Cambridge educated mathematician, a guidance counselor with decades of experience in the public schools, and many, many wonderful other teachers.  Our Distinguished Speakers have included a United States Senator, a Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs, and a former NYC Police Commissioner.

But even more importantly, our teachers are followers.  They are followers of Christ, or to use another word, Disciples.  Jesus was called Rabbi, or Teacher, and his followers were called Disciples.  And then they were called forth to preach the Good News or the Gospel.  In much the same way, our teachers feel a calling to be both Disciple and Teacher, and in a sense, teaching at The Montfort Academy is the perfect union of Teaching and Discipleship.  Even our non-Catholic teachers feel a sense that the Catholic Church has contributed so much to our Western civilization, and they respect it and rejoice in it with us.

You could be doing much more with your time, why do spend so much time with Montfort.  

Richard Greco, Jr:  You are very kind, but I cannot think of anything else to be doing than to help The Montfort Academy.  Much has been done over the past 14 years, but much more work that lies ahead as we grow and expand.  We are thrilled to be in Mt. Vernon at the Parish of Sts. Peter and Paul.  Fr. Lauri has been a wonderful supportive partner for us.  And we thank him.  Together we aim to make Montfort the finest classical curriculum Catholic school in the New York area.

THE MONTFORT ACADEMY

8th COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY

JUNE 8, 2013

KATONAH, NEW YORK

CHARLIE, THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTRODUCTION.  CONGRATULATIONS ON DELIVERING A GREAT SPEECH.  WE ARE GOING TO MISS YOU.

WHAT AN HONOR IT IS FOR ME TO BE HERE WITH YOU TODAY AND SHARE THE SPECIAL MOMENT OF YOUR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION.  OVER FOUR YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL YOU HAVE GROWN FROM BOYS AND GIRLS INTO YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN. YOUR MINDS HAVE EXPANDED AND YOUR SOULS HAVE BLOSSOMED.  THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE A PART OF THIS DAY, BUT I ESPECIALLY THANK YOUR PARENTS FOR CHOOSING THE MONTFORT ACADEMY AND MAKING THE SACRIFICES NECESSARY TO SEND YOU HERE. 

WHEN YOUR PARENTS CHOSE TO SEND YOU TO MONTFORT, THEY MUST HAVE HAD IN MIND THE WORDS OUR LORD ASKED IN THE GOSPEL OF ST. MATTHEW:  “WHICH OF YOU, IF YOUR SON ASKS FOR BREAD, WILL GIVE HIM A STONE?”  MY SINCERE HOPE IS THAT AT THE MONTFORT ACADEMY WE HAVE GIVEN YOU A WORLD CLASS EDUCATION IN ACADEMICS, GOOD HABITS OF MIND, BODY, AND SOUL THAT WILL BE YOUR FOUNDATION FOR MANY YEARS TO COME, AND OF COURSE, GOOD FRIENDSHIPS.

I MUST ADMIT THAT CHOOSING A SUBJECT FOR TODAY’S GRADUATION CEREMONY WAS DIFFICULT. TWENTY-FOUR WORDS UTTERED BY ARISTOTLE TWO THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED YEARS AGO WEIGHED HEAVILY IN MY MIND.  HE SAID, “ALL THOSE WHO HAVE MEDITATED ON THE ART OF GOVERNING MANKING HAVE BEEN CONVINCED THAT THE FATE OF EMPLIRES DEPENDS ON THE EDUCATION OF YOUTH.”  COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED, KNOWING THAT I SHOULD COMMENT ON NOTHING SHORT OF THE FATE OF EMPIRES AND THE FUTURE OF CIVILIZATION, I ASKED A FRIEND FOR ADVICE.  HE RESONDED WITH A STORY:

BISHOP JONES WAS INVITED TO SPEAK AT A BIG CONVENTION DURING WORLD WAR II.  THE INVITATION HE RECEIVED FROM CONVENTION ORGANIZERS SIMPLY SAID, “YOUR EXCELLENCY, WE WOULD LIKE YOU TO ADDRESS OUR CONVENTION ON THE SUBJECT, “THE WORLD, THE WAR, AND THE CHURCH.  YOU WILL HAVE 10 MINUTES.”  BISHOP JONES GAVE THE INVITATION SOME CONSIDERATION AND DECIDED THAT HE WOULD ACCEPT THE INVITATION, BUT THE MAGNITUDE OF THE SUBJECT “THE WORLD, THE WAR, AND THE CHURCH” BOTHERED HIM.   SO HE WROTE BACK, “DEAR GENETLEMEN, I WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS YOUR CONVENTION, AND I ACCEPT YOUR KIND INVITATION.  BUT, I DON’T WANT TO BE RESTRICTED OR LIMITED IN MY COMMENTS BY ANY SUCH NARROW SUBJECT AS THE WORLD, THE WAR, AND THE CHURCH.  I WILL BE GLAD TO COME AND SPEAK AT THE CONVENTION IF YOU WILL ADD TO THE SUBJECT, “THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS.”

THE STORY, EVEN THOUGH HUMOROUS, OFFERED LITTLE FOCUS FOR MY TALK.

BUT AS I BEGAN TO REFLECT SOME MORE, I THOUGHT, YES, LIKE BISHOP JONES, I WILL ALSO SPEAK ABOUT THE WORLD, THE WAR, THE CHURCH, AND THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS.  FOR WHAT ELSE DO WE STRIVE TO TEACH AT THE MONTFORT ACADEMY THAN ALL OF GOD’S HOLY CREATION?

WHERE WOULD I BEGIN, AND WHERE WOULD I END?  I THOUGHT SOME MORE, AND THE ANSWER BECAME CLEAR.  THERE IS ONLY ONE PLACE, ONE MOMENT IN TIME, WHERE THE WORLD, THE WAR, THE CHURCH, THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS CAME TOGETHER.  MEL GIBSON REPRESENTED IT SO BRILLIANTLY IN THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST AS THE CAMERA ZOOMED FROM THE EYE OF GOD THOUSANDS OF MILES ABOVE THE EARTH IN HEAVEN TO A TINY SPECK ON THE GROUND BELOW:  A PIECE OF WOOD WITH A MAN HANGING ON IT.  YOU SEE, THE WORLD, THE WAR, THE CHURCH, THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS, ALL CAME TOGETHER, ON THEIR KNEES, AT THE CROSS.

ARCHBISHOP FULTON SHEEN ONCE SAID TO TELEVISION AUDIENCES IN THE 1950S, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS LIVING WITHOUT THE CROSS.  THE QUESTION HE POSED IS, “WHAT KIND OF CROSS?”  HE SAID, WE ARE FREE ONLY TO CHOOSE BETWEEN TWO CROSSES.  WILL IT BE THE CROSS OF CHRIST, WHICH REDEEMS US FROM OUR SINS AND EARNS US SALVATION, OR WILL IT BE THE DOUBLE CROSS OF THE DEVIL, WHICH DELIVERS DOUBT AND DESPAIR.  STUDENTS OF THE MONTFORT ACADEMY, AS YOUR TEACHERS AND PARENTS CAN ATTEST, AND AS PERHAPS YOU HAVE ALREADY FIGURED OUT, YOUR LIVES IN THIS WORLD WILL BE A CONSTANT WAR BETWEEN CROSSES AND DOUBLE CROSSES.  AND IT OUR HOPE THAT THE MONTFORT EDUCATION AND THE MONTFORT EXPERIENCE HAVE EQUIPPED YOU WITH THE TOOLS TO MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE BETWEEN THE TWO.  FOR AS ARISTOTLE SAYS, NOTHING SHORT OF THE FATE OF EMPIRES, NOTHING SHORT OF THE FUTURE OF CIVILIZATION, NOTHING SHORT OF ETERNAL LIFE IS AT STAKE.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE MONTFORT ACADEMY’S EDUCATION THAT MAKES THIS STRUGGLE BETWEEN THE CROSS AND THE DOUBLE CROSS WELL-INFORMED, LIGHTER, AND EASIER TO BEAR? 

IS IT THE CLASSICAL CURRICULUM? 

IN GREAT PART YES?

FOR WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING LATIN UNLESS YOU CAN LEARN FROM LATIN A BETTER UNDERSTANDING, A MORE COMPLETE FEELING, OF THE MIGHTY ACTIVITIES IN ALL THEIR HEIGHTS AND ALL THEIR DEPTHS THAT MADE ROME BOTH GLORIOUS AND DESPICABLE?  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING ITALIAN UNLESS THROUGH WIDER CULTURAL OUTLOOK THAT LANGUAGE BRINGS, YOU GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD AND AN APPRECIATION OF THAT RENAISSANCE GRACE WHICH IS THE BASIS OF GOOD MANNERS, CIVIL LIVING, AND HUMAN CREATIVITY AND INVENTION?  WHAT IS THE USE OF SUDYING LITERATURE WIHTOUT EXPERIENCING INTIMATELY AND APPLYING FOR YOURSELF THE STRUGGLES, SUFFERINGS, FAILURES, AND SUCCESSES OF ITS CHARACTERS, LIKE AGAMEMNON, BEOTHIUS, BRUTUS, JEAN VALJEAN, ST. THOMAS MORE, AND FRODO, THE INNOCENT HOBBIT WHO WAS CALLED TO DESTROY EVIL, BUT WITHOUT BEING SEDUCED BY EVIL.  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING HISTORY WITHOUT DISCOVERING THAT EVEN SIMPLE TRUTHS LIKE FREEDOM OF RELIGION, GOVERNMENT BY THE PEOPLE AND FOR THE PEOPLE, AND THE SANCTITY OF LIFE ARE WORTH DEFENDING AND CAN CONQUER, OFTEN SWIFTLY AND WITHOUT BLOODSHED, THE HATE AND EVIL THAT BAD PEOPLE AND NATIONS ARE CAPABLE OF?  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING ECONOMICS AND BEING AWED—EVEN SEDUCED—BY THE GREAT TRIUMPHS OF THE FREE MARKET, PRIVATE ENTERPRISE AND THE VAST WEALTH OF THE MODERN WORLD BUT YET FAIL TO UNDERSTAND THAT WITH MATERIAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL SUCCESS COMES A GREATER NEED TO STAY CLOSE TO GOD AND A GREATER RESPONSIBILITY TO YOUR NEIGHBOR?  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING POLITICS WITHOUT LINKING IT TO PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION, WHICH HAVE BEEN POLITICS MOST POWERFUL INFLUENCES THROUGHOUT HISTORY AND SHOULD NEVER BE SEPARATED FROM IT.  FOR UNLESS WE UNDERSTAND DIVINELY GIVEN RIGHTS AND PHILOSOPHICAL FUNDAMENTALS OF HOW MEN RELATE TO EACH OTHER AND TO GOD, POLITICS CAN BECOME BARBARIC AND DESPOTIC.  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING ASTRONOMY, BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY, AND PHYSICS WITHOUT SEEING THE BEAUTY, ORDER, AND GOODNESS IN THE MANY SYSTEMS OF CREATION—SYSTEMS THAT SURELY—EVEN TO THE MOST SECULAR-ORIENTED OF MINDS—CAN ONLY BE A REFLECTION OF THE DIVINE CREATOR AND PROOF OF HIS EXISTENCE.  SYSTEMS THAT ALLOW MAN TO HARNESS AND PRODUCE ENERGY AND HEAL THE HUMAN BODY. WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING MATHEMATICS WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING THAT IT PERFECTLY DESCRIBES THE BEAUTIFUL AND RATIONAL ORDER IN THE WORLD AND THAT FORMULAS AND UNCHANGING RELATIONSHIPS ARE ACTUALLY THE SILENT LANGUAGE AND SIGNATURE THAT GOD USES TO REVEAL THE ORDER AND STRUCTURE OF HIS CREATION?  AND THAT THIS BEAUTIFUL LANGUAGE CAN BE APPLIED ON EARTH TO CREATE GREAT BRIDGES, BUILDINGS, COMPUTERS, POWER PLANTS, TRAINS, AND SPACE SHIPS.  WHAT IS THE USE OF PRACTICING AND MASTERING RHETORIC UNLESS YOU USE IT WITH COURAGE AND CONFIDENCE TO DEFEND WHAT IS GOOD, WHAT IS TRUE, AND WHAT IS BEUATIFUL, CUTTING THROUGH THE ARGUMENTS OF THOSE WHO ARE EITHER MISLED OR WISH TO MISLEAD, BRINGING THE LIGHT OF WISDOM TO THEM?  WHAT IS THE USE OF STUDYING RELIGION AND THE GREAT SAINTS THROUGHOUT THE AGES UNLESS YOU SEIZE THEIR LIVES AND THEIR CROSSES AND THEIR VICTORIES FOR YOUR OWN AND IMITATE THEM?—LIKE ST. AUGUSTINE, WHO CONSTANTLY STRUGGLED BETWEEN THE CROSS AND THE DOUBLE CROSS, OR ST. MARIA GORETTI WHO FOUGHT TO PRESERVE HER PURITY, OR ST. FRANCIS WHO WAS ABLE TO COME FACE-TO-FACE WITH THE POOR, THE SICK, THE UGLY, THE PEOPLE WHOM HIS FELLOW MAN HAD DEEMED THE LEAST OF HUMANITY, BUT WHOM FRANCIS CAME TO UNDERSTAND WERE THE FACES OF CHRIST, THE GREATEST GIFTS OF HUMANITY, AND SAW IN THEM GOD-CHOSEN CHANNELS OF PEACE AND LOVE WHO COULD HELP US OVERCOME HATE, PREJUDICE, AND GREED, SO THAT WE CAN KNOW GOD BETTER, TO LOVE, AND TO HAVE JOY.  WHAT IS THE USE OF ANY STUDY, OR ANY PURSUIT, IF NOT TO LEARN HOW TO TAKE YOUR CROSS GRACEFULLY AND JOYFULLY AND REJECT THE DOUBLE CROSS.  FOR THAT IS THE AIM OF YOUR MONTFORT EDUCATION—TO KNOW THE BEST THAT HAS BEEN SAID AND THOUGHT AND ONE IN THE WORLD AND TO ADOPT IT AS YOUR OWN IN ORDER TO BETTER LOVE GOD AND BETTER LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR—TO GROW CLOSER TO GOD AND TO EMBRACE OUR NEIGHBOR COMPASSIONATELY—NO MATTER HOW POOR OR UGLY OR SICK OR DEFORMED HE MAY BE, AND ULTIMATELY ACHIEVE HEAVEN.  THAT IS OUR LIFELONG PURSUIT, AND YOUR EDUCATION HERE AT MONTFORT IS THE FOUNDATION ON WHICH TO PERSEVERE IN THIS PURSUIT.

FROM THE MICROCOSM OF THE MOLECULE TO THE BREATHLESS AND INCOMPREHENSIBLE DIMENSIONS OF THE GALAXIES, AND EVERYTHNG IN BETWEEN FROM YOUR INDIVIDUL AFFAIRS, TO YOUR FAMILIES, TO YOUR STUDY AND EVENTUALLY YOUR WORK, AS MONTFORT GRADUATES YOU CAN VIEW THE WORLD WITH A BACKDROP OF IDEAL PERFECTION, BUT KNOW THE REALITY OF MAN’S IMPERFECTION AND EXERCISE THE VIRTUES PRACTICED BY MANY WHO CAME BEFORE YOU TO CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN THE TWO.

BUT IT’S NOT JUST THE CURRICULUM, ITS FORMULAS, ITS THEORUMS, ITS CHARACTERS, ITS DEBATES, IT’S ALSO THE TEACHERS WHO MAKE THE CURRICULUM COME ALIVE AND WHO SHARE OF THEMSELVES WHOLLY AND WHO STRIVE TO LIVE THEMSELVES THE WAY THEY TEACH YOU TO LIVE.  IN THE YEARS TO COME, WHEN YOUR EDUCATION MAY BE SEEM FAR AWAY, YOU SHOULD STILL PRAY DAILY FOR THESE DEDICATED MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE RESPONDED TO A CALLING BY GOD TO TEACH, TO HELP FORM YOU, AND TO HELP LEAD YOUR BODIES, MINDS, AND SOULS INTO ADULTHOOD.  IN NO SMALL PART YOUR SUCCESS IN THE WORLD AND WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU LEAVE THIS WORLD, IS OWED TO YOUR TEACHERS, ALL OF WHOM COULD HAVE CHOSEN A DIFFERENT PATH AND SACRIFICED LESS ECONOMICALLY.  NEVER FORGET YOUR TEACHERS.  AND PARENTS, REST ASSURED THAT THROUGH THE HARD WORK OF THE TEACHERS THAT SIT BEHIND ME YOU'RE YOUR SONS AND DAUGHTERS HAVE BEEN GIVEN A GLIMPSE OF THE FULLNESS OF TRUTH AND BEAUTY TO THE EXTENT THAT MAN CAN EVER PROVIDE OR BE PROVIDED WITH SUCH A GLIMPSE.    

EVEN THOUGH THE MONTFORT STUDENT MIGHT OCCASIONALLY SAY, OH NO, NOT AGAIN, OR WHAT IS THE USE OF THIS OR THAT, WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS OR THAT ASSIGNMENT, MONTFORT STUDENTS UNDERSTAND THEY ARE ACQUIRING SOLID AND SHARP TOOLS—ACADEMIC AND MORAL—THAT WILL NEVER FAIL THEM, EVEN IN THE MOST CHALLENGING OF TIMES, THE MOST COMPLICATED OF CIRCUMSTANCES, EVEN YEARS AFTER GRADUATION.  THE MONTFORT GRADUATE KNOWS BOTH THE CROSS AND THE GLORY AND LOVE IT MEDIATES AND THE DOUBLE CROSS AND THE DECEPTION THAT IT MEDIATES.  THE MONTFORT GRADUATE WILLINGLY CARRIES THE CROSS AND REJECTS THE TEMPTATION OF THE DOUBLE CROSS AND ITS EMPTINESS AND MOCKERY.  AND SHOULD HE OR SHE FAILS, DOES NOT DESPAIR BUT WITH THE JOY AND HOPE OF OUR FAITH AND WITH HUMILITY AND DETERMINATION PICKS HIMSELF UP AND TRIES AGAIN, OVER AND OVER.

THE MONTFORT MAN KNOWS THAT CHIVALRY IS NOT SOME OUTDATED MEDIEVAL CONCEPT BUT A WAY OF MANLY LIFE—THE ACQUISITION AND PRACTICE OF HABITS OF VIRTUE THAT MAKE FOR ETHICAL BUSINESSMEN, COMPASSIONATE DOCTORS, INTELLECTUALLY HONEST LAWYERS, PURE AND RESPECTFUL BOYFREINDS, LOVING HUSBANDS, AND CARING FATHERS.  THE MONTFORT MAN KNOWS CHIVALRY IS ABOUT LOVE OF GOD AND LOVE OF NEIGHBOR AND THAT TRUE COMPASSION AND LOVE ARE NOT WEAKNESSES BUT STRENGTHS, LEADING TO REAL SUCCESS IN THIS LIFE AND PREPARATION FOR THE NEXT LIFE. 

THE MONTFORT WOMAN KNOWS THAT SHE CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING THAT SHE SETS HER MIND AND HEART TO IN THE PROFESSIONAL WORLD. BUT SHE ALSO KNOWS IN HER HEART AND IN THE DEPTHS OF HER SOUL THAT IF SHE CHOOSES TO BE A DEVOTED WIFE AND STAY-AT-HOME MOTHER THAT SHE IS INTIMATELY CO-PARTICIPATING IN GOD’S CREATION AND FOLLOWING THE EXAMPLE OF OUR BLESSED MOTHER.  SHE KNOWS THAT SHE HAS CHOSEN THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING A WOMAN.

THE MONTFORT GRADUATE KNOWS AND ACCEPTS THAT LIFE IS NOT ABOUT MONEY, OR PRESTIGE, OR EARTHLY PRIZES OR ABOUT THE ACCUMULATION OF MATERIAL POSSESSIONS.  THE MONTFORT GRADUATE KNOWS THAT THE BLIND PURSUIT OF MATERIAL GOODS IS ONLY A TEMPTING DISTRACTION THAT BRINGS US FURTHER AWAY FROM GOD, FURTHER AWAY FROM OUR FAMILIES, FURTHER FROM OUR NEIGHBORS, AND ULTIMATELY FURTHER AWAY FROM HEAVEN. 

THE MONTFORT GRADUATE KNOWS THAT HE AND SHE ARE EQUIPPED WITH TRUTH AND BEAUTY AND WISDOM HANDED DOWN THROUGH THE AGES, AND IF PRACTICED DAILY WILL ACHIEVE VIRTUE.  THE MONTFORT GRADUATE ALSO KNOWS THAT IF AT SOME TIME IN THE FUTURE, HE IS CHALLENGED BY THE WAYS OF THE WORLD AND SHOULD ABANDON THIS EDUCATION, REJECT TRADITION, LOOSEN DISCIPLINE, AND COMPROMISE VIRTUE—AND YES THIS HAPPENS TO ALL OF US, SOMETIMES WIHTOUT REALIZING IT BECAUSE THE WAYS OF THE WORLD ARE TRICKY, UNPREDICTABLE, AND MERCILESS,--LET HIM KNOW, LET HER NEVER FORGET, THAT SOMEWHERE IN THE RECESSES OF HIS MIND, IN THE DEPTHS OF HER SOUL, IN THE TRAINING OF HIS BODY, THAT IT AWAITS THERE, ONLY TO BE REDISCOVERED AND EMBRACED AGAIN.

LONG PAUSE

IN 1745, A 13-YEAR OLD BOY NAMED GEORGE WASHINGTON JOTTED DOWN SOME NOTES OF WHAT HE HAD JUST STUDIED IN SCHOOL THAT DAY.  THESE NOTES WOULD BECOME A CLASSIC GUIDEBOOK FOR VIRTUOUS LIVING: GEORGE WASHINGTON’S RULES OF CIVILITY.  THE YOUNG WASHINGTON BASED HIS IDEAS OF A BOOK CALLED IL GALATEO, WRITTEN BY A CATHOLIC PRIEST GIOVANNI DELLA CASA MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED YEARS EARLIER AND THEN ELABORATED ON BY FRENCH JESUITS. 

FIRST AMONG THE YOUNG WASHINGTON’S 110 RULES WAS THIS:  EVERY ACTION DONE IN COMPANY OUGHT TO BE WITH SOME SIGN OF RESPECT TO THOSE THAT ARE PRESENT.  RULE NUMBER 52: “. . . BE MODEST RATHER THAN SEEK ADMIRATION.”  FURTHER ON, “WHEN YOU SPEAK OF GOD, BE SERIOUS AND SPEAK WITH WORDS F REVERENCE.”  FINALLY, LAST AMONG THIS RULES, THE MOST IMPORTANT FOR HIS LIFE, HIS GREATEST PERSONAL CHALLENGE, “ . . .BE VIRTUOUS, . . . NOT SINFUL.”

MORE THAN 50 YEARS LATER, IN 1798, GEORGE WASHINGTON AS AN OLD MAN LIVING IN RETIREMENT IN MT. VERNON HAVING SERVED AS OUR FIRST PRESIDENT.  IT SEEMED VERY POSSIBLE THAT FRANCE MIGHT DECLARE WAR AGAINST THE YOUNG UNITED STATES.  OUR SECOND PRESIDENT, JOHN ADAMS, WROTE WASHINGTON A PLEASE, “SIR, WE MUST HAVE YOUR NAME, IF YOU WILL PERMIT US TO USE IT TO AVERT WAR.  THERE WILL BE MORE EFFICACY IN YOUR GOOD NAME THAN IN MANY AN ARMY.” 

GRADUATES OF THE MONTFORT ACADEMY, YOU ARE RIGHT NOW AT THE BEGINNING OF BUILDING YOUR LIFE’S REPUTATION, YOUR CHARACTER, THAT FOR WHICH YOU WILL BE REMEMBERED AT THE END OF YOUR LIVES AND BY WHICH YOUR LIVES WILL BE JUDGED, THAT BY WHICH YOU WILL MOVE PEOPLE, MOVE NATIONS, AND DETERMINE THE FATE OF EMPIRES. 

THE WORLD, THE WAR, THE CHURCH, THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS.  THE CROSS. VIRTUE, CHARACTER, SALVATION.

MY FINAL WORDS TO YOU, USE YOUR EDUCATION WISELY.  USE THE TOOLS AND LESSONS AND TALENTS THAT HAVE BEEN GIVEN TO YOU.  CHOOSE THE CROSS, REJECT THE DOUBLE CROSS.  LIVE JUSTLY, AND RIGHTLY, WITH HONOR AND HUMILITY AND JOY, AS PEACEMAKERS AMONG MEN, IN THE HOPE OF SALVATION.

ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT, PRAY FOR US.

BLESSED MOTHER, WE ARE YOURS.

CONGRATULATIONS MONTFORT CLASS OF 2013.