Vision: Mother Theodore Catholic Academies (MTCA) students will flourish spiritually and academically.
Mission: MTCA lives the mission of the Catholic Church by teaching, serving, and forming students in the heart of Indianapolis.
Wishing you a blessed Advent
December 2022
St. Philip Neri students find joy in our Catholic faith
From St. Philip Neri Principal Kelly England
As a Catholic school, helping our students grow in their faith is central to our existence. We start and end each day in prayer. We gather as a school community for Mass and Eucharistic Adoration on Fridays. We help prepare students to receive the sacraments. We promote service. But the question remained: What else could we do?
This year, we decided to try something new. We added Tuesday afternoon prayer to the weekly schedule. Similar to Mass on Fridays, this is a time when we gather as a school over in the church, with the goal of giving our students experience with different forms of prayer. The first prayer we focused on was the Rosary.
I’ll be honest. The first time we prayed the Rosary as a school was rough. Kindergartners and 1st graders were falling asleep. Older students were squirmy. The pacing was off, and we just couldn’t get the hang of letting the leader say the first half of the prayer and then everyone joining in on the second half. And let’s not even talk about the Glory Be! It was clear that we needed practice. And what happened as we practiced was nothing short of magical.
We started by purchasing a Rosary Guide for all students in grades 2-8, so that they could follow along and become more familiar with the words to the prayers. The teachers helped teach the students how to use their fingers to keep track of the Hail Marys, or by having students use beads and string to make their own rosaries. We decided to pray the Rosary at least once every 2 to 3 weeks (every week during October, the month of the Rosary). And it was beautiful.
It didn’t take long for participation to increase. We then started to see participation in our weekly Mass increase as well. Students have been more engaged during prayer and Mass. On any given Tuesday you can look around the church and see students gripping their rosary beads carefully as they recite the prayers. Our youngest students are often so eager to participate that I have to motion to them to slow down as they pray. And the looks on their faces are simply priceless. It just took a little practice to find the joy in prayer!
If you are ever in need of little extra joy in your day, please join us for a Rosary!
Central Catholic students participate in
vocation events
On November 14, the Serra Club of Indianapolis sponsored half day pilgrimages for 8th grade boys to visit Bishop Simon Bruté College Seminary and 8th grade girls to visit Our Lady of Grace Monastery. The purpose of these trips is to give young people a sense of the unique vocation that priests, brothers, and sisters offer to God and the Church.
Six students (3 boys and 3 girls) from Central Catholic attended these visits. All were interested in learning more about priesthood and religious life.
Can You Spare Some Time?
Volunteer opportunities abound at Holy Angels providing treats for an upcoming event, or perhaps an ongoing opportunity such as tutoring or helping in the library. Your time would be so greatly appreciated. You can sign up through SignUpGenius. If you have any questions, you can email Mary Kate at mveselik@holyangelscatholicschool.org.
School Happenings
Central Catholic
Central Catholic PreK students learned about different Thanksgiving traditions in preparation for the holiday.
St. Philip Neri
St. Philip Neri enjoyed the last of the nice fall weather by spending some time outside and enjoying the fresh air.
Holy Angels
In honor of Native American Heritage Month in November, Holy Angels students did special projects in art class.
Holy Cross Central
Holy Cross has received an Advancing Racial Equity Collection Development Grant from Indiana Humanities to offer more diverse books in their library.
Make a BIG impact with your year-end giving
A gift at year’s end not only has a significant impact on Archdiocesan ministries, parishes, schools and agencies, but it also offers you a 2022 tax deduction.
Some reminders for year-end giving:
You may make a donation to the Mother Theodore Catholic Academies (MTCA) through the Institute of Quality Education (IQE) for a 50% state tax credit.
If you plan to write a check to benefit the Mother Theodore Catholic Academies, please be sure to mail it to us so that it is post-marked by December 31, 2022, to offer tax savings.
We encourage donors who plan to give a gift of stock or from their IRA or DAF to initiate these gifts in early December to ensure the gift is settled or received by year’s end. Gifts of these types can take a while to process.
As a reminder, the Office of Stewardship and Development and the Catholic Community Foundation can accept, process and transfer gifts for all Archdiocesan ministries, parishes, schools and agencies as well as donating through IQE. To make sure we have the necessary information to designate the gift according to your intention, we ask that you complete our Stock, IRA, or DAF forms found here.
For questions or assistance, please contact us at ccf@archindy.org or call
317-236-1482.
Amazon Smile donations resulted in $143 for MTCA/NDAA between October 1 and December 31, 2021.
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Central Catholic
Holy Cross
Holy Angels
St. Philip Neri
For more information
- To inquire about donating to MTCA, please contact Valerie Bendel at vbendel@archindy.org or call 317-236-1426.
- To inquire about the strategic direction of our schools, please contact Executive Director, Ronda Swartz at rswartz@archindy.org or call 317 236-7322.
