St.

Augustine Academy
130 South Wells Road Ventura California 93004 805-672-0411 Fax 805-672-2365 e-mail StAugAcad@juno.com www.SaintAugustineAcademy.com

March 1, 2013
Board of Governors President Thomas Q. Ellis Secretary Robert R. Orellana, Esq. Treasurer Michael C. Collins Members Abel Montiel Jeff Schuberg Michael F. McLean, Ph.D. Louise Warnert

St. David of Wales

Dear Families:
I write during the last moments of Pope Benedicts reign we just gathered in the Hall this Thursday morning to watch his helicopter lift off from the Vatican and take him to Castelgondolfo. A strange mix of emotions accompany this day. I think mostly on the profound singularity of this Holy Father how much unlike John Paul II he is, and yet, how alike. Benedict limited private audience access basically to heads-of-state; a drastic change from the open-door-Pope, John Paul II. The act of resigning is also a historical and profound departure from tradition. Yet, these stark contrasts serve a beautiful purpose. Pope Benedicts actions have been a perfect bridge between the Papacy of John Paul II and the Popes who follow Benedict. John Paul II enjoyed the second longest pontificate in history. Over the course of 30+ years, much of the world understood the papacy only through the man who held it. What was the office, and what was the man? Pope Benedict has cleared that up for us by doing things so differently while showing those things which are truly proper to the office namely being the spiritual head of all Christendom and a visible symbol of unity in the Church. One area, in particular, that both of these Popes led us to was to a deep and abiding devotion to the saving Mercy of God. A reflection by the Belgian Carmelite, Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, illustrates the teachings of these two great Popes. It is profoundly important to really come to know and trust in the Divine Mercy without His Mercy, we have no chance. Lets all re-commit to embrace Jesus in his image, so appropriate for today, as given us by Sr. Faustina The Divine MercyJesus, I Trust In Thee: There is no limit to Gods mercy. He never rejects us because of our sins, He never grows weary of our infidelities, never refuses to forgive us. He is always ready to forgive our offenses and to repay our ingratitude with graces. He never reproaches us for our offenses, even when we fall again immediately after being forgiven. He is never angered by our repeated failures or weakness in the practice of virtue, but always stretches out His hand to us, wanting to help us. When men condemn us, God shows mercy to us; He absolves us and sends us away justified, as Jesus did with the woman taken in adultery. Go, and now sin no more(Jn.8:11). By His words and example, Jesus has shown us the inexhaustible depths of Gods mercy. Let us think of the prodigal son, the lost sheep, Magdalene, and the good thief. But He has also said to us: Be ye therefore merciful, as Your Father also is merciful (Lk.6:36). How far does our mercy go? How much compassion do we have for the faults of others? The measure of our mercy toward our neighbor will be the measure of Gods mercy toward us, for Jesus said, With what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again (Mt. 7:2) God does not require us to be sinless but that He may shower upon us the fullness of His mercy, but He does require us to be merciful to our neighbor, and moreover, to be humble. In fact to be sinners is not enough to attract divine mercy; we must also humbly acknowledge our sins and turn to God with complete confidence. What pleases God, said St. Therese of Lisieux, is to see me love my littleness and poverty; it is the blind hope I have in His mercy. This is my sole treasure. This is the treasure which supplies for all our miseries, weaknesses, relapses and infidelities, because by means of this humility and confidence we shall obtain the divine Mercy. And with this at our disposal, how can our wretchedness discourage us?

Headmaster Michael J. Van Hecke, M.Ed. Vice President of Development J. Peter Slaga

Board of Advisors Mr. John W. Blewett Wanderer Forum Foundation Hon. Jeremiah Denton Former U.S. Senator Mr. Nicholas J. Healy, Jr. President Ave Maria University Dr. Ronald P. McArthur Co-founder Thomas Aquinas College Mr. Roy S. Rohter, S.F.O. Founder St. Augustine Academy Fr. Michael Scanlan, T.O.R. Chancellor Franciscan University Mr. James Stenson Educator and Author

Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene (1952)

ANNOUNCEMENTS Mar 8th End of 3rd Quarter Movie Night 7PM. th Mar 10 Daylight Savings time Spring forward! Mar 13th National Latin Exams Grades 8-12. th Mar 15 Report Cards Home in blue envelope. Mar 16th School Play Cyrano de Bergerac. St. Sebastian School Hall, Santa Paula. DIRECTORY NOTICE: Please change the e-mail address for the LOPEZ family. Here is the new address: jalopez10@hughes.net (note: the 10 is the number TEN) COLLEGE NEWS Congratulations to KATE LOUGHMAN on being accepted to CalState Channel Islands. And to CARLOS MCGINITY for his acceptances to both Cal Maritime and Ave Maria University. Kudos to Carlos for gaining a $10,000 scholarship to Ave Maria, as well.

Science and Faith. Mrs. Tong and Mr. Zepeda have been granted a fellowship from The Templeton Fund to the The Steno Learning Program in Faith and Science in Alabama this summer. We are excited that our faculty has been chosen to participate in this advancement of our science and theology program. Also, an interesting note from Mrs. Alvas sister, a doctor in Portland: Science meets faith, AGAIN! We had our Catholic Medical Association meeting this month and they mentioned that pediatric psychiatrists have noticed that children who have an "evening review" of their day are more self -controlled and emotionally secure. An "evening review" is the parent going over the child's day with them and talking about the good and the bad. For younger children the review is done almost completely by the parent, for older children they can be guided through it. Sounds a lot like a daily examination of conscience, doesn't it? The Holy Spirit is so smart!
STUDENT COUNCIL NOTES: MOVIE NIGHT Friday, March 8th always fun, FINDING NEMO! (See flyer)
HIGH SCHOOL BOYS PLAYOFFS CONTINUE! Sunday, 11:45 AM. The Crusaders doubled up their opponent, winning 54 to 27 last night in a thriller of a game. The Saints had a fun game, too, but ultimately came up short.

MIDDLE SCHOOL PLAYOFFS MARCH 11th and 12th at St. Bonaventure Gymnasium Girls: Make-up game Tuesday, Mar. 5th v Sacred Heart (HOME) 3:30 PM Ora Pro Nobis: We pray for our Holy Mother Church in this time of transition bless the Pope and the Cardinals. Let us remember to pray for one another. For Marilyn Bose, Richard and Elizabeth Seeleys grandmother, who is in the hospital. We pray for the soul of Eileen Ivers, mother to Mrs. Coughlin and Mrs. Hoonhout, who passed away this week. For Bridgid Finleys uncle and cousin who are both undergoing cancer treatments. [Mike Farrell and Erin Mansoor] Special prayers for Michele Loughman as she begins new treatments this next week. For Molly Rosecrance. For Tom McGrath. For David Browitt, Fr. Jim, OFM, from St. Paschal, Barbara Lunde and Mary Artner. For Mr. Pat Ramirez, Mr. Joseph Kern, and Kim Levy. Let us pray for the health of Rosie Grimm, Angel Castillo and Noah. Finally, remember to pray for our country, our soldiers, and, for all priests and religious, especially our Archbishop Jose Gomez. We pray for our Emeritus Pope, Benedict in a special way DURING his transition to his monastic call and for the coming conclave.
IS COLLEGE WORTH IT? After 12 years of school, young people wonder whether they should keep on goingwell, If you are able , yes!!!! a. High school graduate average salary = $42, 042 b. Some college, no degree average salary = $48,993 c. Associates degree average salary = $52, 322

d. Bachelors degree or more average salary =$88,641

Source: The 2010 Statistical Abstract of the U.S. Web site at http://www.census.gov. Table 687