This is a special occasion for me because this is my very first time celebrating this Convocation as Auxiliary Bishop of our Diocese. Although Bishop Oscar Cantú is unable to be with us today because of an unexpected commitment, he asked me to convey his warm greetings, his gratitude for each one of you, and his prayers and blessings as you begin another year of educating the young people entrusted to your care.

I would also like to express my sincere appreciation to Pam Lyons, our Superintendent and her Staff at our Department of Catholic Schools for their tireless dedication to Catholic education. I am also grateful to Latanya Hilton, Kate Caputo and Fr. Neil Francis Kalaw, together with the faculty and staff, of Archbishop Mitty High School for hosting this year’s Convocation.

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Saint Lawrence, one of the most beloved martyrs of the early Church.

When the Roman authorities demanded that Lawrence surrender the treasures of the Church, he gathered the poor, the sick, the widows, the orphans, and presented them before the emperor saying, “These are the treasures of the Church.” 

For this courageous witness, Lawrence was condemned to die by being roasted alive on a gridiron. Even in the midst of unimaginable suffering, he retained his joyful spirit, humorously telling his executioners, “Turn me over; I am done on this side.”

That story is not merely about courage. It is about joy. It is about conviction. It is about knowing what truly matters.

Our Gospel today echoes that same truth. Jesus says, “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.”

Every Catholic educator is called to become that grain of wheat. Every lesson prepared late into the evening… Every struggling student patiently encouraged… Every difficult conversation with parents… Every act of kindness that no one notices… Every prayer offered for your students… These may seem like little deaths. Yet these are precisely the seeds that God transforms into an abundant harvest.

Saint Paul tells us in today’s first reading, “Whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” That is the mission of Catholic education. We are Sowers.

We may not immediately see the fruits of our labor. Sometimes we wonder whether our efforts make any difference in a world that seems increasingly indifferent to faith. Yet every seed planted with love eventually bears fruit according to God’s time.

Our Catholic schools today face enormous challenges. Enrollment pressures. Financial realities. Competition from charter schools, private schools, online education, and changing family priorities.

These realities are real. But perhaps they also invite us to ask a deeper question. What exactly is the product we are offering?

If our answer is merely academic excellence, then we will always have competitors. If our answer is better technology, better facilities, or higher test scores, then others may eventually surpass us.

But if our answer is the formation of the whole human person - mind, heart, body, and soul - then no one can replace what Catholic education offers.

Our classrooms teach mathematics, science, literature, history, and technology. But they also teach compassion, integrity, forgiveness, prayer, service, respect for the dignity of every human life, and hope.

These cannot be measured by standardized tests, yet they shape the kind of men and women our world desperately needs.

The greatest success of a Catholic school is not simply that a student enters Stanford, Berkeley, or another prestigious university.

Our greatest success is when our graduates become holy husbands and wives, faithful priests and religious sisters, generous parents, ethical business leaders, compassionate physicians, honest public servants, dedicated teachers, and disciples of Jesus Christ wherever they are called to serve.

Dear Principals, teachers, pastors, chaplains, and school staff, never underestimate your vocation. You are not simply preparing students for high school and college. You are preparing them for eternity. You are not only forming the future of the Church. You are forming the Church of today.

Our young people are not merely tomorrow’s Catholics. They are already active members of Christ’s Body. They evangelize their classmates, inspire their families, serve their communities, and remind all of us of the beauty of youthful faith.

As we continue our School Visioning Process and prepare for our Department of Catholic Schools Assembly on October 31, let us dream boldly.

Let us ask not only, “How can our schools survive?” Let us ask instead, “How can our schools become even more faithful missionary disciples of Jesus Christ?” “How can every graduate become a joyful witness to the Gospel?” “How can our schools more deeply embrace the Pastoral Plan of our Diocese?”

The answer begins not with strategies but with holiness. Saint Lawrence teaches us that joyful disciples change the world. Our students deserve joyful principals. They deserve joyful teachers. They deserve joyful Catholic communities where faith is lived with conviction and enthusiasm. Joy is contagious.

Students quickly recognize whether we teach Christ merely as a subject or whether we truly know Him as our Savior. May every classroom become a place where young people encounter not only knowledge but Jesus Himself.

As we begin this new academic year, let us entrust our schools, our students, our families, and one another to the Lord. May Saint Lawrence intercede for us, that we may always remember that the greatest treasures of the Church are not our buildings or programs, but the people God has entrusted to us.

May we sow generously. May we serve joyfully. May we teach faithfully. And may Christ, the Divine Teacher, bless every Catholic school in the Diocese of San José with a year filled with wisdom, courage, hope, and abundant grace. Amen.