This past week an elementary school in the Ottawa area became a national news story when they chose to replace their traditional Christmas concert with a non-denominational February fest. I did a quick review of some of the 451 comments already posted and to say the least, it is an extremely controversial topic.
Last Friday, I attended the first Christmas concert of the season hosted by St. Patrick Fine Arts Elementary. The title, “Christmas on the Brain”, would suggest that the school went with a more non-denominational theme. However, from the opening prayer led by the school principal to the final rap, the theme was certainly all about Christ. In our schools, Christmas is about Christ.
We are blessed to have the opportunity to proclaim our faith in public. It is what makes Catholic Education unique and distinct. During this month of December, our schools will be organizing many Advent and Christmas celebrations. They will all involve Christ because it is what we do and who we are. Catholic Education is ALL about Christ.
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Public centers strive to be inclusive of all beliefs, and with Canada’s population becoming increasingly non-Christian in its large urban areas, we will likely see more decisions like the one in Ottawa. Having taught in a public system, I know how difficult it is to reconcile children of various religions (including those with no religion at all). But Christ himself urges us to love without judgement, and to live our faith by example.
Yes, our concerts (when we volunteer to give up some of our personal time for this extra-curricular activity) are Christ-centered. And Chris is so right: we ARE blessed to have the freedom to express our faith in public!
Merry CHRISTmas!