I was recently dispatched to China by our Headmaster in order to meet directly with prospective international students with a strong interest in coming to the United States of America for secondary education.
As I have been interviewing students, speaking with other educators, and attempting to absorb the astonishing sights of the Chinese culture, my reflection at the end of the day has always led me to this question: Why is God calling Mount Royal to welcome Chinese students to our school community?
My observations have only reinforced my awareness of the distinct charism of our school community and educational mission. We are an inclusive community, and our doors are therefore open to all people, especially youth who - as children of God - need the proper moral, intellectual, and spiritual formation to help them discover the real source of human excellence: the very Love that is unconditionally extended to every human being as a result of God's total gift of self on the cross.
Our primary goal in traveling to China is to carry out the work of evangelization. Missionaries of Christ are no longer missionaries in the sense that world used to think of them. Anyone who carries a deep love for Christ and man in his heart is a missionary.
The Mount Royal community has lavishly received this love in ways unlike ever before: new and reliable benefactors are combining to ensure the future of the school; rapid growth in student enrollment over the past three years; campus expansions that have already enhanced the impact of community events; and the continued presence of our Lord in the Most Holy Eucharist, giving us the opportunity to silently and perpetually adore Him. Mount Royal is becoming a missionary institution, capitalizing on the shrinking nature of the globalized community, and answering the call to new evangelization. However, instead of bringing Christ to others by going out to new and foreign places, we are welcoming people from those foreign places into our school community, as they are immersed into an authentically Catholic culture that responds to the natural desire of man to go outside of himself, encounter God, and seek fulfillment through Him.
As I gaze intently on these prospective students, the desire to be loved burns brightly in their eyes. You can sense how much they need the love that Jesus has offered our school community. I can sense how much our families and educators are willing to support and embrace the gifts of each potential international student.
Please pray that God will allow our school to become a true missionary institution by sending more international students to our community, so that our students may carry the love of Christ into the world, without leaving the security of caring and generous support from parents and educators striving to help God shape saints.