Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:10] Speaker B: Welcome back to a new edition of our diocesan podcast, Big City Catholics, with Bishop Robert Brennan, the Diocesan Bishop of Brooklyn and Queens. Today, Bishop is on site at Divine Wisdom Catholic Academy, one of our wonderful schools located in Douglaston, Queensland, at the parish of St. Anastasia. Before we listen into this special edition, let us open with prayer. In the name of the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen. A Student's Prayer by St. Thomas Aquinas. Come, Holy Spirit, Divine Creator, true source of light and fountain of wisdom. Pour forth your brilliance upon my dense intellect. Dissipate the darkness which covers me, that of sin and of ignorance. Grant me a penetrating mind to understand, a retentive memory, method and ease in learning, the lucidity to comprehend and the abundant grace in expressing myself guide the beginning of my work, direct its progress, and bring it to successful completion. This I ask through Jesus Christ, true God and true man, living and reigning with you in the Father forever and ever. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Now let's listen in to our special edition podcast.
[00:01:29] Speaker C: Bishop Brennan, thank you for joining us today. It's a privilege to have the opportunity to speak with you. Allow me for a moment to introduce myself to our listeners. I'm Bob Sherling, chair of the Board of Trustees here at Divine Wisdom Catholic Academy, and I'll be guiding today's discussion. I'm joined by Miriam Benici, our principal, who is also part of this special institution, and the discussion today. So, Bishop Brennan, again, thank you for joining us.
[00:01:53] Speaker A: I'm glad to be here. I was here for Catholic Schools Week and heard about the podcast and couldn't resist.
[00:01:58] Speaker C: Great, great. Well, this is our seventh podcast. What a great way to round out this year's podcast. With you joining us, let's talk about reaching families through the media, which is fitting since we're doing a podcast here today at the academy. We use platforms like our podcast, Instagram, and Facebook to keep current families informed and engaged, while also giving prospective families a window into our vibrant school community and mission. You also host the Big City Catholics Podcast, which has become a meaningful way to reach people across the diocese. From your perspective, Bishop, how can tools like these support Catholic education and strengthen communication within our school communities?
[00:02:35] Speaker A: On one level, at least for me, the Big City Catholic Podcast started with an experience I had during COVID in Columbus. In Columbus, we had an independent Catholic radio station, and during the time of COVID I was on daily. It was my way of communicating with the people of the diocese because There were no other simple ways to communicate. And then as that wound down, we moved in from daily to weekly to a weekly faith discussion. So you take that experience and you bring it here to Brooklyn and Queens, and the podcast becomes a great way to simply to talk to the people of the diocese. There are other podcasts that, you know, are very learned and break open particular areas of study. This, for me, is a communication tool, and I think that's where it works well with our schools as well. To tell the story, we have some of the traditional media, like newspaper and television, but sometimes the television, you have little clips. You get seven seconds or a minute or two to talk about some weighty issues. Here, you can have something of a discussion, an exchange, back and forth.
[00:03:40] Speaker C: There's nothing I like more, Bishop, in the morning, than to see the day's Instagram post from the academy. Whether it's kids in a classroom, whether it's outside, whatever it might be, there's always something going on here about student life that's being captured through that mechanism.
[00:03:54] Speaker A: I'm so glad for our communications office. We're posting all the times, and I think Instagram's another great way of telling the story. It's a visual way. You know, you can tell a story, but when you can see the smiles, when you can see the action, it really brings it home.
[00:04:10] Speaker C: Great. Thank you, Bishop. Let's talk about faith and culture in school life, if we could. Our community includes families from diverse backgrounds. Each day, we have students share their culture during morning announcements and monthly celebrations. When you visit Catholic schools in the diocese, how do you see this rich diversity reflected in the daily life of the schools you visit?
[00:04:28] Speaker A: Just as each school has its own diversity within it, there's a diversity of the way we celebrate diversity. So in every school, it's very, very different. And so it depends on the makeup of the student body. What's common, though, is the unity. And that, I think, is the beauty of our Catholic schools. We have a lot to celebrate. We have a lot to bring in different ethnic communities, different experiences. But when we're here, we're one and we're one engaged in learning, one engaged in knowing Jesus Christ. And we make use of those diverse experiences to different expressions. Take the Blessed Mother Mary. It's so great to hear people celebrating the different titles and the different feast days of Mary and the ways that they do it through music, through culture, through food, even, you know, it's great.
[00:05:16] Speaker C: Well, you must have a lot of experience with this diversity in your role as chair of the U.S. conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church Any thoughts about how we can continue to reflect that diversity in our school community? And what are some of the themes like unity that you mentioned that would really drive that?
[00:05:32] Speaker A: So my two qualifications. Exactly. Two qualifications for cultural diversity in the church, for this committee, those two are Brooklyn and Queens.
That's it. I bring Brooklyn and Queens to the table. Our schools are rooted in human dignity. Our schools are rooted in respect, and our schools are rooted in love. Love for God and love for the children. And so when we see our school administration and our teachers really loving the children, that surpasses all of the cultural diversity that brings it all in and celebrates it. But each child is loved for who they are, and I think that's a great gift in our Catholic schools.
[00:06:13] Speaker C: Miriam, is there a particular example of that diversity and celebrating those different cultures that you particularly enjoy having happen during the course of the year?
[00:06:22] Speaker D: One of the things that I encourage our teachers to always remember that they are the examples of what respect and love and kindness, what it looks like, and for them to model that and for them to help our children be proud of their cultures and their diversity and to bring it into the classroom. And that everyone's lived experience just adds a richness to their classrooms and that whether they're Catholic or not, that it all falls under that umbrella of that we need to love each other and celebrate each other. And it just enriches our school community.
So when kids come and they want to share about their culture, everyone celebrates them. And I think that that's one of the most wonderful things about our community.
[00:07:13] Speaker C: I know I've learned a lot over the course of the last couple of years as we've really focused on that. Thanks, Miriam. Bishop, if we could let's pivot to choosing Catholic education. Many parents make sacrifices to provide their children with a Catholic education, especially here at Divine Wisdom, where we're situated in District 26, one of the top public school districts in the city. What message would you share with those families about the value and lasting impact of the choice of a Catholic education and why it's worth the sacrifice?
[00:07:39] Speaker A: When we speak about Catholic education, we're talking about the education of the whole person, not just individual components of the person. It's not just academic, it is character and the virtues, but it's also, and very importantly, it's also faith. We are rooted in the Catholic faith and the expression of God, who so loved the world that he sent his only son and that God, who loved the world and Sent. His son is present right here, and we seek to know him and love him better. So we do everything. This is not taking anything away from the public schools. And you're right. Here in Douglaston, we have a great district and some wonderful gifts. And I'm sorry, please, to know many teachers in the public school system who are great teachers. What we can offer, though, is an unapologetic expression of who Jesus Christ is and why that makes a difference. So, you know, you learn the simple example I use. Often you learn the sciences just like you would in any school. The deeper you go in the sciences, the closer you get to God. It's unavoidable. And that's not trying to lower the bar on intellectual formation. That's actually showing that intellectual formation leads us on a path.
[00:08:57] Speaker C: Thank you, Bishop. You mentioned talking about developing the whole person, and that's something we really believe here in the academy. And we have programs like the Pope Francis Society, our affiliation with the Lukumi Good Deeds Council, and our student government that gives students opportunities to lead through service. As a school, we remind our students that we are made in God's image. But. But we also want them to be leaders in reflecting that and celebrating that. Why do you think it's important for Catholic schools to form young leaders? And how can we help them follow Jesus through prayer, service, and love?
[00:09:26] Speaker A: How often do you meet, Miriam, I'm sure you have the same experience.
We meet people who are leaders in the community who will say, oh, I'm a graduate of. And name a particular school, both the elementary school and their high school, these Catholic schools. And they often say that formation really set them on that course. Sometimes people will say, it saved my life. It's amazing. Leadership development is so important because I think our young people have an awful lot to give, and I think when we give them the chance, then they can grow, and they're going to be important leaders in our community. And certainly we want leaders who are rooted in the truth of the gospel and who know that they're loved by God and by their educators and their families.
[00:10:12] Speaker D: And these programs here at Divine Wisdom have allowed our kids to really participate and give their thoughts and ideas on, you know, how they can help their school, community and their wider community setting them up for that, continuing that.
[00:10:29] Speaker A: That's exactly right. You know, my visit here was sort of an official visit for Catholic Schools Week. And when I heard podcast, I said, oh, I'm interested. But one of the things that really stood out here at Divine Wisdom were all of these groups and the student ambassadors who were leading me around were so proud of those different groups and articulate in the way they explained it and, you know, their care for creation, their respect for the human person, the good deeds, the international program. I was so impressed by the various different groups that you have and the impact that they have on the kids.
[00:11:04] Speaker C: Well, you'll get to see more of that when you talk to two of our graduating students in part two of this podcast. Let's wrap it up here about governance and partnership. We were one of the original six schools to transition from a parish school to an Academy back in 2009. As members of the Board of Trustees, we work closely with school leadership and our parish leadership, including our pastor and parish staff, to support the mission of Catholic education. In your visit to schools, do you see this model working well, the relationship between parish and school?
[00:11:32] Speaker A: Yes. Two points. One, in terms of the academy model, the boards, it's sort of a mixed experience.
Like anything else. Where it works, it works really, really well. Where it needs improvement, it really does need work. I think the biggest challenge that some of the schools would experience would be the recruitment of members for the board, people who are willing to give what it takes to be part of a board. I mean, that's a lot of sacrifice on the part of the board members and a lot of belief and hard work. Rolling up the sleeves and hard work. It's not just a ceremonial thing. So that's going to be a challenge is to develop a new generation of board members and leaders in terms of the parish school association. Again, where I see it, it works extremely well. There are some schools that are engaged in all of the ascending parishes. There are some schools that are very identified with the particular parish where they live. But in parish life, I see the presence of a school, whether it be on campus or as part of a particular region, that this school can be a real source of energy for the parish. That's where our families are right.
[00:12:46] Speaker C: And we've been blessed here at the academy by having parents who've graduated out, if you will, who've been willing to join the Board of trustees and be active participants in that board because they are looking to give back and appreciate the model that we have here and the things that we've been able to do for their students and what the students have been able to achieve here at the academy. So thank you for that, Bishop. Looking ahead, what are you most hopeful about or what inspires you most about the future of Catholic education?
[00:13:13] Speaker A: I think that in terms of the future, our Superintendent Deacon Kevin McCormick is always saying the best is yet to come. And when you see the commitment of people, I see a real passion for Catholic education.
I see our students who are our leaders and their gifts, their talents, their generosity. I'm excited for Catholic school education. I think we're going to continue to grow stronger. We're going to try to reach out to more of our families. We're still hopeful about this federal tax voucher for scholarships, which will give a greater opportunity to many, many more families. It would allow an institution like Futures in Education to bring many more families into the scholarship program. And it's an assist to the parents, not to the schools. It's an assist to the parents. You know, I was in Ohio two and a half years and I can see what a school choice state looks like. They're going to be building schools. The need is great. The people are committed to it. People love it here. We depend on the goodness and the charity of so many people who support Futures in Education and other scholarship programs. We're very blessed to have those scholarship programs. However, something like a tax credit would expand that and bring the opportunity to many more families, especially you might call them the families in the middle, because this makes now scholarships less of a charity and more of a use of their tax dollars too, for education. It respects what they're contributing to society and to the governments.
[00:14:47] Speaker C: Yeah, Bishop, as the chair of the Board of Trustees, I can tell you we stand with you in terms of that hope and excitement about the possibilities of the future. Our board members certainly are here for reasons that I think we all would celebrate in terms of what we're able to do for our kids, all to make sure that they become great Catholic leaders. So thank you for that. And hopefully our excitement and hope will manifest its itself in positive things as we go forward. So as we wrap up, any final thoughts you'd like to give, and then we're going to ask you if you want to share with us a fun fact. But any final thoughts as we wrap up part one of this podcast?
[00:15:18] Speaker A: Simply my deep appreciation for all of those who are invested in Catholic education. The parents themselves who make sacrifices, the different boards and the leadership volunteers in all the parishes and in the schools, institutions like Futures in Education, and then on the ground, most especially as the year comes to a close, this is a good time to say thanks to all of our teachers, to our administrators, and all the people who are in the day to day work of our schools. One of the things I say to the principals and to the Teachers, when I have the opportunity is for better or for worse. I wish it were a greater investment, a greater involvement. And we are always going to try to draw people into the life of the church, but our school personnel are, for many people, the face of the church. I'm so grateful for the way they do that. And so for many families, they're kind of touching the hem, if you will, to use that gospel image, touching the hem of Jesus's cloak. Because they see in our school personnel that may be the only experience of the church now that has in it a challenge because we want to invite people to a fuller experience of the life of the church. But I'm so incredibly grateful to our school, people on the ground who help to connect people the bridge with the church.
[00:16:34] Speaker C: Wonderful. Bishop Brennan, thank you so much for your time for part one of this podcast. Miriam, thank you for joining us. We're going to be moving to a part two where the bishop will have the opportunity to speak with two of our academy students.
[00:16:53] Speaker E: My name is Nicholas Roeder.
[00:16:54] Speaker F: My name is Sophia Starcic. We're both in eighth grade and today is our last day of school.
[00:16:58] Speaker A: Wow. Thanks for giving me time during your last day of school. I'm so proud to be part of your podcast today.
[00:17:03] Speaker F: Hopefully you'll sign our yearbooks a little bit later.
[00:17:05] Speaker A: Good idea. Good idea.
[00:17:07] Speaker E: We just had some questions for you, and I'm gonna start it off. What does a typical day in the life of a bishop look like?
[00:17:12] Speaker A: The amazing thing, and probably the most exciting thing about being a bishop, is that there is no such thing as a typical day. So certainly my own day, and for most bishops, begins with prayer. It's the first thing we do. I spend time in the Ch. Chapel or on days like this, sitting outside to do certain prayer. There are certain prayers that I'm committed to being a priest. I make a promise to pray the office, and then I have my own devotional prayers and time with God. Today it got me out early to visit a school. I love those days. And this is my second time here at Divine Wisdom in the year. Sometimes it's saying daily Mass, either in a parish or in the chapel. Sometimes there are days that are all day meetings.
Those are the boring days, but those probably the necessary things to make the other things.
But for me, the most exciting thing is when I get to visit a parish, whether it be just a parish visitation, a confirmation. Were you guys confirmed this year?
[00:18:05] Speaker F: I'm actually Greek Orthodox.
[00:18:06] Speaker A: Ah, very good.
[00:18:07] Speaker E: I'm going to be confirmed in October right here.
[00:18:10] Speaker A: In October. I love when I get to go to visit a parish, celebrate confirmation or just be amongst the parish life, you know, Greek Orthodox. I was with the Greek Orthodox bishop last night. They had a concert.
[00:18:24] Speaker F: Oh, wow.
[00:18:24] Speaker A: In honor of the Patriarch Bartholomew's feast day. And so we have a great relationship with the Greek Orthodox year in New York City. Yes.
[00:18:34] Speaker F: So in your opinion, how can young people these days grow closer to God in such a digital and fast changing time period?
[00:18:40] Speaker A: Isn't it true there are so many distractions, Right? We need time to listen sometimes. It's just taking note of the fact of friendship with Jesus Christ. My hope is that as you graduate a school like this, that you've at least come to know Jesus Christ not just as a historical figure, but as a person. And when you have that, you can relate to him, just talk to him and that helps to realize what's most important. Sometimes we go to Jesus talking about what we're grateful for, what's going well. Let him share the victories with us. Sometimes we go to Jesus and say, this is what I'm worried about. You know, there are a lot of things on our minds, aren't there? You know, especially as you're beginning a new phase. And sometimes you just have to say, Jesus, this is what's going on in my life and I need some help.
[00:19:24] Speaker E: Do you have a favorite saint or Bible verse that helps you through these tough times?
[00:19:28] Speaker A: My favorite Bible verse is John 3:16.
It's a famous one. In the old days when I was a kid growing up, you'd often see somebody holding a sign at a ball field saying, John 3:16. It says that for God so loved the world.
God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so that all those who believe in him might not die, but might have eternal life. So to me it says everything. Saint. I've got a bunch of them. My name is Robert. I've always been close to Robert Bellarmine. He was a voice of reason in very tumultuous times. I kind of go to him, say, help me to be calm like you. Help me to be steady. I love St. Agnes. I was a priest in St. Agnes for many years. She's a teenage saint. And then more modern, a teenage saint soon to be Carlo Acutis.
[00:20:12] Speaker F: Oh, yeah, yeah.
[00:20:13] Speaker E: He's going to be canonized.
[00:20:14] Speaker A: He's going to be canonized soon. So I feel kinship with him. And then another one, two saints I grew up with as they were like real people, John Paul II and Mother Teresa. They were famous figures when I was growing up, and they had such an influence on my life. And now they're saints. So it's kind of cool to see somebody who you kind of knew about, somebody you met, become a saint.
[00:20:32] Speaker E: It's definitely cool.
[00:20:33] Speaker F: So as Catholics, how can we make a difference in the world? Likes little things that we can do every day to further our faith.
[00:20:41] Speaker A: Well, just speaking of Mother Teresa, she says, don't worry about doing great things. Do simple things with great love. And I think that as Catholics, as Christians, together, we can do simple things. Maybe we do sometimes the same things as other people are doing, but we do it for a different reason. We do it because of that relationship with Jesus Christ. And we need to strive to do it with great love. Not for what I'm going to get out of it, but for. For how it's going to make a difference in somebody else's life. You know, when you think about it, how did Jesus work? He worked one by one, two by two. Right. He engaged individual people and let them realize how important they were to him. They got to realize how important they were in his eyes. And if we can do that, just one or two people at a time, that they know that when they spend some time with us, when that they might know something about how much they're loved and respected and that comes from that friendship with Christ. Does that make sense?
[00:21:39] Speaker F: Yeah.
[00:21:39] Speaker E: Yes. You don't have to change the whole world as long as you change someone that's really important.
[00:21:43] Speaker A: That's a good way of putting it.
[00:21:44] Speaker F: And that one person can light another person, and then that way, what's going on?
[00:21:48] Speaker A: You got it.
[00:21:49] Speaker F: Touch the whole world.
[00:21:50] Speaker A: You got it. Can I jump in for a minute? I'm going to ask you guys a question, because one of the things that I was so impressed with when I came here for Catholic Schools Week were the different groups and the societies that you have here precisely for doing that. Could you tell me about the Lukuma foundation, for example? Tell me a little bit about it.
[00:22:09] Speaker F: Sure. So I'm a member of the Lukumi Foundation Good Deeds Council here, and there's our book right there. And we had an opportunity to write essays about our good deeds that we've done here and be published in the book, which was incredible. So the Lukumi foundation works with kids all over the world to do good deeds and sometimes will even do good deeds, like in our hometowns, in our communities, that we all end up working together in the end. And I think that that's just Incredible.
[00:22:35] Speaker A: And the book is called Inspiring Stories that Make a Difference. So the Lukumi foundation is really a worldwide organization. Right. And so you're connected with students from all around the world.
[00:22:46] Speaker E: All around the world, yes. All of us come together at the end of each month to talk about all the good deeds we've been doing and to give each other ideas on how we can inspire other people.
[00:22:54] Speaker A: And have you seen some of the fruits of that? Have you seen that take form here?
[00:22:58] Speaker F: Yes, it's absolutely incredible. Over Easter break, there was a summit in which kids from all over the world came to New York City. We met all of them and they toured our school, and it was just such an amazing experience. We got to learn about the good things that they're doing in their communities. And one thing that the Italian students said, they said, oh, your school is so colorful. We're going to start decorating our school. And I thought that that was just something that stuck with me.
[00:23:24] Speaker A: Inspire each other.
[00:23:25] Speaker E: Just a little thing like that can help brighten everyone's day.
[00:23:27] Speaker A: Exactly. Exact.
In something like that, you start to see how it explodes around the world. Right. You just changing one person, but that one person, a network all around the world. So impressive things that you've got going on here.
[00:23:41] Speaker E: Thank you. What is your favorite sacrament to celebrate and why?
[00:23:44] Speaker A: Hands down, it's the Eucharist. Well, actually, there are moments that are special for a bishop to be able to celebrate Confirmation. I love doing Confirmation because I love the interaction with the young people. We make a connection beforehand. Praying with, I see the goodness in our young people. You always inspire me. And then, of course, ordination, that's something only a bishop does. So those are two sacraments that mean a lot to me. But to me, the Eucharist, day after day after day, that encounter with Jesus Christ, to be able myself to receive Jesus in the Eucharist, but then to be able to offer Jesus to the people of God, it's such a privilege. And to me, it's the strength of my day to be able to offer those the prayer of the church and bring Jesus under the form of bread and wine into the world. It's an amazing gift, amazing opportunity.
[00:24:35] Speaker E: Thank you.
[00:24:35] Speaker F: What helps you stay strong in your faith when things are difficult? I know you mentioned before, like praying Bible verses, saints. What are some other things that ground you?
[00:24:44] Speaker A: I had a priest once say to me that his own prayer was often, you know, when things were tough. He says, jesus, you've always managed to help me before. I need you now. That kind of inspired Me. And that became a part of my prayer, sometimes being aware of the way that the Lord has helped us. A little bit of gratitude. Gratitude is an extraordinary thing. It's nice to be grateful. It's a good thing to be a person of gratitude. But gratitude also helps me because then I can remember. I'm not long. And God's helped me before. God will help me now. And God's been helping Christians for generations. Doesn't mean that life's going to be easy. It doesn't mean that I'm not going to have my disappointments. Boy, I have my share of those. But it means that I can rise above the disappointments.
It means that I can get through the tough times, and it means that I can trust God to do what God wants to do. And that's it. In the end, you say to the Lord, you know, each bishop chooses a motto to guide you. The motto I chose is Thy will be done, which you know because it's from the Our Father. Right? Saying the Our Father can remind me, Thy will be done in the end. Lord, this is your world, your church.
[00:25:52] Speaker E: On earth as it is in heaven.
[00:25:54] Speaker A: Exactly. It's in God's hands. That's a good question. Those are good questions.
[00:25:58] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:25:58] Speaker E: Do you believe that God will always come back, even if you feel like you're in a place of despair?
[00:26:03] Speaker A: Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. And, you know, some of the greatest saints. Again, I go back to Mother Teresa. She spoke about having some really dark moments. And, you know, faith isn't just believing in God. When everything is easy, that's a good feeling. Real faith is believing in God when things are.
[00:26:22] Speaker E: When times get tough and when you feel like, is he even there? Sometimes you just have to stay strong and hold your faith.
[00:26:29] Speaker A: That's real faith. That's real faith. You got it. You hit the nail on the head. You know, people sometimes say, father, I've lost my faith. And I said, no, just the fact that you're saying that to me tells me you have faith. What you're losing is the consolation that faith gives you. And God will give that back to you. Absolutely. You know, the late Pope Francis said, God never gets tired of forgiving us. He never gets tired of reaching out to us. Sometimes we get tired of turning to him, but he'll always bring us back.
[00:26:54] Speaker F: On the topic of popes, what are some changes that we can expect in the Catholic Church following the arrival of Pope Leo?
[00:27:00] Speaker A: That's a good question. Because the simple answer is, I don't know. And that's not a Bad thing. That's not evading the question. I was just a little bit older than the two of you when Pope John Paul II was elected. So you're coming out of eighth grade, rising freshman. I was a sophomore in high school, and I remember being excited about a new pope but not having a clue what to expect. And it turned out to be a major transformative moment. He came to Madison Square Garden the following year, and I expected something very formal. And what I saw in John Paul was so different than anything I expected. And when you think about what he did for the life of the church, how he brought about an excitement in being Catholic, he brought about a sense of belonging. Because of all of his visits, so many people felt a connection to him, and that was a beginning of a transformative era. You're at the beginning of a transformative era, too, because, like him, John Paul was a young pope. Pope Leo was a young pope. He's going to be around for a little bit, we hope. And I think he's going to be full of surprises, meeting the needs of the church in the next century. And you guys, you're part of it. You're not just bystanders. You're part of shaping this future. You're going to be part of living in this new era. So in terms of specifics, I don't know, but what I do sense already is a new excitement about being Christian, a new excitement about being Catholic, a new sense of being close to Jesus, and that that has relevance in our lives. And, you know, I'm in it. I'm well invested in the life of the church. Right. I'm hoping that for you now, at the beginning of your high school years, this might be an invitation and a source of inspiration for you to be part of this transformation.
[00:28:41] Speaker E: It will be. Do you feel that your visits to the parishes help kids feel a sense of belonging just how the old popes did?
[00:28:48] Speaker A: I hope so.
I hope so. Definitely you would say that.
[00:28:52] Speaker F: Yeah.
[00:28:52] Speaker A: Thank you. Thank you. I know that you do it for me. It was great. Sophia, you were one of the ambassadors who led me around. It's always so inspiring, so uplifting to see all. All of you. I hope so. I mean, it's important. When I go to do confirmations, I get a few minutes to chat with the kids beforehand, and I ask them about them, to get to know them a little bit. One of the things, probably the most important thing I say is that the fact that they're there says something about them.
Takes courage and generosity to step forward today. And probably one of the most important things I want them to know is how much I admire them, how much I admire you. I admire you for your connection to your Catholic faith, to your Greek Orthodox faith. I admire you for living out your values. I admire you for continuing on this road of faith and friendship with Jesus Christ. We're not going to be perfect if I can get that across.
How valuable they are, how important they are in the eyes of God, and how important young people are in the eyes of the church, and how important you are, each of you as individuals. If that message sinks in even just a little, and maybe even like you said before, just to one person, it's all worthwhile to close it out.
[00:30:00] Speaker E: Do you have any final pieces of advice for any 8th graders getting confirmed or any younger kids receiving the Eucharist for the first time?
[00:30:07] Speaker A: To the young people receiving the Eucharist, I would say, always stay close to Jesus. He gives you that gift in the Eucharist, and I'll often say that to them. Always stay close to Jesus. To you who are 8th graders, remember who you are.
Remember what matters, and same thing. Always stay close to Jesus. Count on him as a friend.
[00:30:26] Speaker E: Thank you.
[00:30:27] Speaker A: Good luck to you both. In high school, we were talking before the recording, but. And the principal gave us your school. So are you looking forward to high school?
[00:30:35] Speaker E: Yes, I definitely am. It's going to be a great experience.
[00:30:37] Speaker A: Why did you choose Xavier?
[00:30:39] Speaker E: Because of how many opportunities it has. I could do so much when I'm there, and I will meet so many good friends, and the brotherhood will really bring me closer to Jesus.
[00:30:47] Speaker A: Good for you. Good for you. That's a bit of a commute from here in Douglaston.
[00:30:51] Speaker E: Yes. It's very manageable, though, because there's a couple of other kids doing it, too, so I will never feel alone.
[00:30:56] Speaker A: And you're going to Townsend Townsend Harris. What excites you about going to Townsend Harris?
[00:31:01] Speaker F: Half day Fridays? Oh, no, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding.
[00:31:05] Speaker A: I love it.
[00:31:06] Speaker F: Townsend Harris has a reputation for being incredibly academic, but also balancing, like, arts and culture. It is a humanities school, so I'm excited to, like, follow my passion of reading, writing, art, theater, and being able to, like, really follow that and contribute.
[00:31:23] Speaker A: Congratulations on your graduation. Thank you. Thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for allowing me to be on your podcast today. Thank you for coming and good luck. Best of everything in high school.
[00:31:33] Speaker E: Thank you. I appreciate it, Bishop.
[00:31:34] Speaker F: Thank you.
[00:31:35] Speaker B: Thanks for joining us in another edition of our diocesan podcast, Big City Capital. We thank the faculty and staff of Divine Wisdom Academy for their participation in this week's podcast. And we hope that you'll join us again next week for a new edition of Big City Catholics. God bless you.
