A Message from Mr. Watson, Head of School

One of the under appreciated beauties of our Catholic Faith is the liberality with which it sprinkles holy days throughout the year. For the most part, our modern world of “total work” (Joseph Pieper’s term) does not receive these invitations to leisure and contemplation; they fall on hardened soil.
 
Traditionally, English-speaking schools were scheduled around the great feasts of Christmas and Lent. Hence, in some quarters of the UK, students and teachers still refer to the fall semester as “Michaelmas Term,” and the spring semester as “Lent Term.”
 
On this count the Academy also remains delightfully out of step with our secular age. Each year in the spring, our families can count on a generous and very Catholic Easter Break that lasts from Holy Thursday through Divine Mercy Sunday. What a light at the end of the Lenten tunnel!
 
But there is one area of the school calendar where we have yet to harmonize with the life of the Church as we might. During Advent, we will sometimes tell students something like, “Remember, it’s not Christmas yet! It’s Advent—but don’t worry, we Catholics get twelve days of Christmas!” After which we promptly pull them back to campus on the 5th or 6th day of Christmas!
 
As we continue to build a genuinely Catholic culture at The Atonement Catholic Academy, we need to take our holy days seriously. Therefore, you will notice that the 2022-2023 academic calendar published today makes allowance for the whole of the Christmas season, adding an extra week to the break. Thus we will return the Monday after the Baptism of the Lord.
 
This is cause for celebration! What new Christmas traditions will your family start?
 
In order not to extend the school year too far into June, this adjustment to our calendar also means that we will not be observing a “spring break” next year. Similar to a true Christmas Break, this will open possibilities for a fuller observance of Lent—and for greater anticipation of the Resurrection at Easter!
 
Time passes and we return to sources of strength we unthinkingly set aside. I look forward to 2022-2023: A Tale of Fides et Ratio in two parts—Christmas Term and Paschal Term!
 
Let us continue to pray for one another. Our Lady of The Atonement—Pray For Us!
 
Your servant,
 
Matthew David Watson
Head of School