The morning was bright and sunlit as yellow school buses pulled into the parking lot at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Lexington Park, Maryland. The steady splash of the fountain at the center of the drive blended with the calls of geese overhead as students stepped off the buses, their laughter and conversation rising briefly before settling into quieter tones as they made their way inside for Mass.
Students from Catholic schools across St. Mary’s County gathered Jan. 22 for a countywide Mass to celebrate the beginning of Catholic Schools Week. The liturgy brought together students, faculty, and staff from Little Flower School in Great Mills, St. John’s School in Hollywood, Mother Catherine Academy in Mechanicsville, St. Michael’s School in Ridge, and Father Andrew White, S.J. School in Leonardtown.
The Mass was organized by Father Andrew White School and celebrated by Washington Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar. Music was provided by the choir from St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Leonardtown.
At the start of the liturgy, Father Christian Huebner, administrator of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, welcomed the students, educators, and clergy, along with Bishop Menjivar. Priests from across the St. Mary’s County deanery concelebrated the Mass, reflecting the countywide scope of the gathering.
Centered on the theme “In His Hands,” the Mass on the day before the annual March for Life invited students to reflect on the dignity of human life and their responsibility to care for one another.
In his homily, Bishop Menjivar focused on life as a gift from God and on the inherent dignity of every human person.
“Today, we gather as a school community to give thanks for one of the greatest gifts that we have received, that God has given to all of us: the gift of life,” Bishop Menjivar said. Quoting the Gospel of John, he reminded students that Christ came so that all “may have life and have it in abundance.”
The bishop emphasized that life is never a mistake or an accident, even when it is fragile or marked by difficulty. He encouraged students to begin each day with gratitude for both natural life and spiritual life, describing each as a gift freely and lovingly given by God.
Reflecting on the first reading from the Book of Jeremiah, Bishop Menjivar explained that when God says, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,” God is also saying, "I loved you.” He told students that their worth is not measured by grades, talents, or achievements, but by the simple truth that they are created and loved by God.
“You are good. You are beautiful,” he said, pointing to the Genesis account of creation in which God declares what He has made to be good. Even ordinary phrases like “Nice to meet you,” he added, reflect the joy of recognizing another person’s existence.
Bishop Menjivar reminded students that through Baptism they are already children of God. He emphasized the Church’s teaching that every human person possesses dignity from the moment of conception until natural death, regardless of illness, weakness, or circumstance.
Turning to the Gospel, the bishop noted that Jesus places a child at the center of his disciples, teaching that welcoming the smallest and most vulnerable is the same as welcoming Christ himself. True greatness, he said, is found not in power or popularity, but in care for others.
That message resonated with students in attendance, including Dakota Hancock, an eighth grader at Little Flower School in Great Mills, who said her faith helps her through moments of anxiety or discouragement.
“When I feel down or anxious, I usually pray to God to help me,” Dakota said. “I ask Him to bring me peace and to remind me that He’s with me. Knowing that He’s with me helps me calm down.”
After Communion, the hymn “You Say” by Lauren Daigle offered a quieter moment of reflection, its lyrics underscoring the themes of identity and trust echoed in the homily.
Bishop Menjivar concluded by urging students to help create environments where life can flourish through kindness, inclusion, and compassion at home, at school, and in their communities.
“When you choose to stand up for those who are looked down upon, when you include someone who feels left out, when you speak kindly instead of harshly, you are defending human life and human dignity with concrete actions,” he said.
Related story:
Catholic Schools Week to be celebrated Jan. 25-31
https://www.cathstan.org/local/catholic-schools-week-to-be-celebrated-jan-25-31
