Campus Ministry

As a Roman Catholic high school, Saints Peter and Paul is called to be a faith community. Under the direction of a full-time Campus Minister, the Saints Peter and Paul community offers students of all denominations the opportunity for four years of retreat, prayer/liturgy experiences, and service to others. It is the mission of the Campus Ministry Office and Theology Department to respond to this vocation by creating opportunities for the students, parents, faculty, and staff to build and experience community. As we enter into this endeavor we will be guided by two principles:

God is central in every aspect of building a faith community
All members of the school have essential roles in the process of building a faith community

Teaching Theology, nurturing spirituality, and promoting service are the three dimensions that will be integrated into life at Saints Peter and Paul High School to create and foster this community.

Spiritual Theme for 2011-2012:

“Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through to look out Christ’s compassion to the world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he is to bless men now with.”

St. Teresa of Avila

Inspired by the Race to NoWhere discussions of last year, we spent a great deal of time examining the role of stress and expectations in our community – for ourselves, our students and our families. Domestic and international events, economic challenges, and the sense of loss and pain that many in our community struggle to cope with certainly reinforces the reality of life’s stresses and challenges our capacity to deal with and respond to effectively. Stress is a natural part of our life experience. The challenge lies not only in how we handle our stress, but how we impact the lives of others, and in our own small way, perhaps alleviate their burdens in difficult times.

Understanding our personal and spiritual need to be there for others, our community will be embracing the calling of “Being Christ for One Another” as our yearly theme. In a world often filled with hatred, anger, disrespect, and despair, St. Francis called us to bring love, forgiveness, faith, hope, joy, and understanding. Ours must be a community in which the love of Christ permeates all that we say and do. This is a fundamental tenet of our faith – we are called to be Christ for others. In good times and bad, we are called by the Master Teacher to emulate Him – in thought, word, and deed. Being Christ for others requires an all encompassing mindset with full knowledge and understanding that what we think, say, and do can lift up or tear down, empower or discourage, create harmony or discord. Each of us is called, every minute of every day, to be Christ to all we encounter – our family, friends, and colleagues; those whom we know, and those who are strangers along the journey; those who are easy to love and those that challenge the depth of our compassion and understanding.

Nuns in library As we enter this new school year, let us be ever grateful for the blessings that have been bestowed upon us, especially during those times of self-doubt or pain. As St. Teresa has challenged us, may we be empowered by Christ, in this time and place, to be his hands, feet, eyes, and heart to others. Through the simplicity of a smile, a random act of kindness, the civility of our discourse, being a good listener, or just being present for others, may we be Christ to all those whom we may encounter.

SSPP Family Day Tradition

Understanding the challenges and stresses placed upon our families, the high school remains committed to dedicating time to foster family relationships. Saints Peter and Paul High School will be fostering a number of activities aimed at providing time for families for reflection, prayer, fun, or simply being present with each other.

As part of that commitment to family, there is a designated Family Day each quarter. On those days, the school will close at 3:00 with no scheduled extracurricular activities, meetings, games, etc. Families will be provided an activity idea (game, exercise, etc.), a recipe for a meal together, and a spiritual reflection. We encourage families to use those family days to take a step back from the daily frenzied pace and to spend quality time together.

The following dates have been designated Family Days for this school year. September 21st, December 1st, February 9th, and May 30th.

Liturgy, Prayer, and Retreats
The celebration of the Holy Mass and daily prayer are the central focus of the Saints Peter and Paul High School faith community. Through liturgical planning, Choir/Music, Eucharistic Ministry, and Lectors, students are provided a broad avenue for involvement in the spiritual life of the school.

Liturgy & Prayer Service Calendar ~ 2011-2012 [pdf]

All students of Saints Peter and Paul High School are afforded the opportunity for reflective spiritual growth through a four-year retreat program. The juniors and seniors are offered the opportunity for overnight retreat experiences while freshmen and sophomores attend day retreats.

2011-2012 Retreat Calendar
Freshmen Retreat “Building Community”	September 22, 2011
DeSpiritus Retreat “Leadership in Christ”	September 29-30, 2011
Senior Retreat “Faith Alive”	November 10-11, 2011
Sophomore Retreat “Self, Others & God”	February 16, 2012
Junior Retreat “Leadership”	March 22-23, 2012

Service Opportunities
As a part of their integrated Catholic school faith and educational experience, each student is asked to complete at least ten (10) hours of community service each semester that they are a student at Saints Peter and Paul High School. Upon graduation, students will have completed at least 80 of hours of service to others. Please find the following documents that will provide essential information about our Christian Service Program, the service organization listing, and the appropriate documents that students will need to have to participate in the program. These will also be posted to the school's website (under Campus Ministry) and on EDLINE.

Please read over the materials that are presented in the Christian Service Program, discuss as a family how your child can best utilize his or her talents, time and energy for the betterment of your school, parish and local community. The Christian Service Program is a living faith experience that is interwoven into all that we do and stand for at Saints Peter and Paul High School. Above all, it is who we are, and who we are called to be as members of a Christian community. If there is anything that we can do to assist you in this spiritual journey, please feel free to contact us.

CHARITY OF THE MONTH
Saints Peter and Paul High School embraces charitable service as key component of the Gospel values that our school stands for. Our school community sponsors a Change for Charity program, through which we identify and support a Charity of the Month, financially, through goods or services, and through the active participation of our students. Check out the following charities for the year. If interested in supporting, please contact the Campus Ministry Office at 410-822-2275, x158.

Month	Charity	Sponsoring Club
September	Special Olympics	Key Club
October	Mercy Hospital Breast Cancer	Key Club
	Run for Ryan Support	High School/Cross Country
November	Hospice/St. Vincent De Paul	DeSpiritus/Ice Hockey
December	Brighter Christmas Fund	SGA
January	Choices	Pro-Life Group
February	Cold Weather Shelter	DeSpiritus
March	St. Jude’s Hospital	NHS
April	TBD
May	TBD	Junior Class

Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding the Campus Ministry program at Saints Peter and Paul High School or any of its activities, please contact Mrs. Vicki Ewing Cappa '77 by email at vcappa@ssppeaston.org or at 410-822-2275 x158.