Page 10 - The Gonzaga Record 1989
P. 10
homily and also in the Headmaster's summer letter to the parents. If this
quality is not 'in the atmosphere' then the process is failing in some
radical way. In a world often not remarkable for its compassion, partly
because of the pressure of competition, of the obsession to succeed at all
costs or simply of the wear and tear of life, it seems the urgent
responsibility of the adults in the young people's lives to model this
quality constantly.
Compassion on a daily basis has to do with being courteous as against
being insensitive, with being tolerant and understanding of weakness as
against being self-righteous and uncaring, with being alert to others'
needs and viewpoints as against being arrogant and self-preoccupied,
with being increasingly aware that humble appreciation of gifts given is
a sign of real maturity whereas a cocky sense of superiority is in reality
a dismal sign of retarded development. Compassion is a quality which
reflects the compassion of Christ and its frequent manifestation is an
acid test of the success of our education.
St John of the Cross wrote that 'in the evening of our lives we will be
judged on love~ In our competitive and sometimes ruthless world, a
school forgets that at its peril.
Peter Sexton SJ
8
quality is not 'in the atmosphere' then the process is failing in some
radical way. In a world often not remarkable for its compassion, partly
because of the pressure of competition, of the obsession to succeed at all
costs or simply of the wear and tear of life, it seems the urgent
responsibility of the adults in the young people's lives to model this
quality constantly.
Compassion on a daily basis has to do with being courteous as against
being insensitive, with being tolerant and understanding of weakness as
against being self-righteous and uncaring, with being alert to others'
needs and viewpoints as against being arrogant and self-preoccupied,
with being increasingly aware that humble appreciation of gifts given is
a sign of real maturity whereas a cocky sense of superiority is in reality
a dismal sign of retarded development. Compassion is a quality which
reflects the compassion of Christ and its frequent manifestation is an
acid test of the success of our education.
St John of the Cross wrote that 'in the evening of our lives we will be
judged on love~ In our competitive and sometimes ruthless world, a
school forgets that at its peril.
Peter Sexton SJ
8
