Crusader Chronicle
St. Ignatius of Antioch Elementary School
A Prayer for Epiphany
Lord God of heaven and earth,
you revealed your only begotten Son to every nation
by the guidance of a star.
Bless our home and all who inhabit it.
Fill us with the light of Christ
That our concern for others may reflect your love.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Discovery
On this feast of the Epiphany, I share with you this reflection, written by Fr. Dick McCasslin of Creighton University:
Today, St Matthew gives us the story of the visit of the magi to the newborn Savior. Who were these magi, sometimes called kings?
Scholars would agree that in ancient times, in what is known to us as the Middle East, the magi — from which come the words “magician” and “magic”— were astrologers. These were men who studied the skies, and found meaning in the movement of the stars and the planets. They were known as wise men, were influential in determining courses of action, and frequently would have been very wealthy and respected in all levels of society. Their lives were full.
When a new star appeared in the night sky, there was doubtless much interest on the part of all the astrologers and there were surely more than three. Why did only three choose to see it as a sign and a call to set out on a journey?
One can imagine the other astrologers saying to these three, “Why are you setting out on this foolish endeavor? Why would you possibly leave everything, when here you are comfortable, well known, have status and success and all that is part of the good life? Why?”
And perhaps the three could only offer this sense that there was within their hearts a hunger, a need, a drive for the “more”. And somehow this star represented a call that was heavenly. It was a stirring within them that gave them the incentive and the courage to leave behind what had given their lives meaning, gave them the strength to set out on a road that risked everything. Even with the conveniences their wealth offered, it would be a long and painful and even, possibly, dangerous journey. What kept them going was the call, the star that traveled before them. With this in sight they endured the inconveniences and hardship of leaving behind all the good things they had known. Even for those who were wealthy a long journey would have filled with discomfort and weariness, and discouragement. The trip was hard.
The trip took them to a country place called Bethlehem. Near that small village the heavenly sign stopped again and there in a little house, they found a newborn child in the arms of his mother. Clearly the woman and her husband were poor folks. This child had been born, not in a palace, but in a stable. There must have been a moment when the magi asked themselves, “It is for this poor child that we have left everything and made the journey? After all we have been through, this is what we find? Isn’t this the greatest disappointment of them all?”
But suddenly something happened within them, as if the sign from heaven had entered into their hearts and minds and they knew they truly had found what they were looking for. In what seemed so little, so poor, so insignificant, they discovered ‘the more”. The heavenly call gave them new minds and new hearts.
And kneeling down, they adored Him. And they gave him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. Whatever significance the ages have given to these gifts, we know they gave the best they had.
Having spent a few days as part of this simple scene, the Gospel says that the magi went back by a different road. And when they once again returned home, what they had seen and experienced, the more, made it happen that their lives were never again the same.
Epiphany means “discovery”. And that makes the story of the magi our story. Like them, attentive to our own call and hunger for the “more” and faithful to the struggles that are part of our life journey, we too come to find the wisdom and the power of God in the poverty, vulnerability and beauty of God become human in a little child. We, too, can never be the same again.
And this is the story of conversion, of our search, sometimes in the midst of plenty, and the call we have to find our own star to travel by a different road and finally never to be the same again.
School News!
Handbag Bingo
Planning for 2023-2024 Registration
We are already planning for registration and class numbers for the 2023-2024 school year.
If you are a current family and are planning to register a new child from your family for the
2023-2024 school year, please contact Mrs. Crozier at hcrozier@sischool.org as soon as possible.
Winter Uniforms
St. Ignatius School Family Directory
Online School Store Fundraiser
Thank you to all the families who have already participated in our SchoolStore fundraiser!
Many of our teachers have received generous gift certificates from their students. If your family has not registered, there is still time, prizes are still available. Click the link below if you want to participate:
https://www.schoolstore.net/cgi/SetSchool?secheck=1&SchoolID=0000120009
School Store News
Important Drop Off and Pick Up Reminders
If you need to pick up your son or daughter prior to regular dismissal time, please be sure to pick up no later than 2:15 pm, in order to keep all of our dismissals flowing smoothly.
Car drop off begins at 8 am. If you do not see a school staff member in the drop off area, please do not drop off your child or children and leave them outside the doors under the blue canopy; please wait until a staff member comes out and opens the doors.
For car drop off, please stay in the drop off line and do not drive around the car in front of you. Wait until the car in front of you pulls forward before you pull forward.
For car drop off, please do your best to make sure your child is ready to exit the car when you pull up and stop. Especially if you are the first car in line, please drive away once your child is out of the car and your car door is closed. This will help with the flow of traffic in the car drop off line.
For car pick up, please wait until the school staff member gives the signal for your line of cars to pull out and drive out of the parking lot before starting to drive away.
For Pre-K drop off and pick up, please follow the procedures, leaving the lanes with cones at the ends empty for parents to drive out once they have walked their Pre-K students to the Pre-K building. Please take extra care as you are driving, parking, and leaving after Pre-K drop off and pick up.
If you have someone dropping off or picking up your child that has not dropped off or picked up at St. Ignatius before, please inform them of the procedures so that there will be no issues.
CARES - Before and After School Care
Home and School Update
Home and School Weekly Update:
The Home and School Association is thankful for all the parent support for all our recent events. Please mark your calendars for our upcoming events!
Volunteer Clearances
As a friendly reminder, any parent or guardian who would like to volunteer at our school and church events, MUST have up-to-date clearances on file with Jayne Marcinowski, the Safe Environment Coordinator, at the church rectory. She can be reached at hr@stignatius.church. The following link will take you to the Church Safe Environment website where you can follow instructions to obtain clearances.
http://www.stignatius.church/safe.html#more
A big THANK YOU goes to Jen Wiggins and Nicole Kloc for all of their hard work in making our Annual Santa Shop a wonderful experience for our school children. There is so much effort that goes into setting up both an on-line and in-person shop, and we cannot thank Nicole and Jen enough for all of their hard work and dedication in making this run smoothly. Thank you to the parents who helped with organizing the shop this year, it is quite an endeavor each year, and it cannot happen without your help. Thank you for helping to bring this annual tradition to fruition this year.
LUNCH DUTY - REQUESTING ASSISTANCE
We are still in need of some assistance on several dates for lunch duty. Please see the Sign-Up Genius below and add your name where you can help. You will need current clearances in order to assist with Lunch Duty. We appreciate any and all help you can give!
SIS parents: Lunch Duty Jan/Feb (signupgenius.com)
PIZZA FOR LUNCH DAY - THURSDAY JANUARY 12
The Home and School Association is happy to announce that we are offering another PIZZA FOR LUNCH DAY for all St. Ignatius School children from PreK through 8th grade! It will be offered this coming Thursday, January 12. Pizza will be ordered from Villa Rosa and includes 2 slices of pizza for $5. Orders will be accepted until Wednesday, January 11 at 5 PM.
Please use the below link when ordering. If using PAYPAL, please note that there is a new link to use for payment, and this is located within the form.
SIS Pizza Lunch January 2023 (google.com)
Thank you and we appreciate your cooperation in making this another successful event!
FAMILY DINNER
We are happy to announce that we will hold our annual Home and School Family Dinner again this school year on Saturday, January 28 from 6:30 PM to 9 PM in the Church basement. Please mark your calendars! A Google Form for Registration will be sent out later this week; please keep an eye out for this! Finally, we are looking for volunteers to help with this event! If you would have interest in helping with this event, please contact Jillian O'Hara at jillian.ohara1883@gmail.com.
WEEKLY PRETZEL SNACK
We are working with Philly Pretzel Factory to set up weekly pretzels for purchase for the second half of the year. Dates will be finalized soon. Please keep an eye out for a GOOGLE FORM for registration and payment; this is coming within the next week. Thank you.
Upcoming Dates
Tuesday, January 10, is our next Class Mass. Grade 2 will join the St. Ignatius parishioners at the 9:00 am Mass.
Thursday, January 12, is the next Pizza Day for our students. Please see the information in the Home and School Section of this newsletter for more information.
Friday, January 13, will be our next Friday school Mass. We will be honoring our Crusader of the Month students for the month of December at this Mass.
Saturday, January 28, is this year's Family Dinner. Please see the information in the Home and School Section in this newsletter for more information.
Sunday, January 29, through Friday, February 3, is Catholic Schools Week. A more detailed schedule of our events for that week will be coming soon.
Friday, February 3, is the date for this year's Handbag Bingo. Please see the information at the beginning of the School News Section of this newsletter for more information.
Other Important Information
For those of you who need to leave medications at school for your children, please complete the forms from the Health Office. Please bring the medication with the completed forms to the Health Office. See the Health Office Aide or the nurse (Wednesdays only) for more information.
Please check the school website (sischool.org) for updated documents (2022-2023 School Handbook, Responsible Use Policy for Technology, etc.) and for accompanying parent and student signature forms. Please return signed forms as soon as possible. Signature forms are attached here as well.
St. Ignatius of Antioch Parish News
A Special Walking With Purpose Event
Save the Date!
Thursday, February 16, 2023 – 7:00pm
Event: Walking with Purpose LIVE with Lisa Brenninkmeyer
Join us for Walking with Purpose LIVE with Founder and Chief Purpose Officer, Lisa Brennkmeyer as she shares her talk Strong Yet Tender: Building Resilience in an Age of Trauma. Are you tired of feeling untethered and overwhelmed? Most of our families are experiencing anxiety, woundedness, and stress. But that does not need to be your story. Come and see how, through God’s help, you can build resilience in an age of trauma. Every woman is welcome!
Presenter: Lisa Brenninkmeyer, Founder and Chief Purpose Officer, Walking with Purpose
Location: St. Joseph Parish, 340 Manor Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335
More info: Registration opens 6 weeks prior to the event; More details at Save the Date!
Thursday, February 16, 2023 – 7:00pm
Event: Walking with Purpose LIVE with Lisa BrenninkmeyerJoin us for Walking with Purpose LIVE with Founder and Chief Purpose Officer, Lisa Brennkmeyer as she shares her talk Strong Yet Tender: Building Resilience in an Age of Trauma. Are you tired of feeling untethered and overwhelmed? Most of our families are experiencing anxiety, woundedness, and stress. But that does not need to be your story. Come and see how, through God’s help, you can build resilience in an age of trauma. Every woman is welcome!
Presenter: Lisa Brenninkmeyer, Founder and Chief Purpose Officer, Walking with Purpose
Location: St. Joseph Parish, 340 Manor Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335
More info: Registration opens 6 weeks prior to the event; More details at https://walkingwithpurpose.com/event/wwp-live-with-lisa-brenninkmeyer-2/