Student Reflection: Mass of the Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom

早上好，修士们， 

我是2026届的瑞恩·道森. 欢迎来到弥撒. 今天是圣约翰金口节. 我知道我们中的许多人可能正在绞尽脑汁, 想知道我们以前是否听说过这个名字. This isn’t a man we’ve likely had on any of our quizlets, nor slides on Schoology.  但是，他有一个非常迷人的故事!  He was brought to Constantinople to become the bishop due to him being one of the greatest orators of his day. 他是一个强有力的、鼓舞人心的演说家, 但更重要的是, 他宣扬深刻的信息，谴责他的同辈, AND encouraged the rich and powerful to listen to the original teaching of Jesus, 把自己的财富分给穷人.

这不是一件容易的事，他周围的人都因此看不起他. John Chyrsotom was probably the first person to ever be “canceled” when those in power (who were his peers, 注意你)让他流亡.

I retell Saint John’s Chrysotom’s story today because of the way it connects to the first reading. 在这段经文中，保罗说, “如果我传福音, 这不是我自夸的理由, 因为我被强加了一项义务, 我若不传，就有祸了!”

我们必须记住圣. 保罗被打败了, 生, and stoned yet still continued to share the Gospel because God obligated him to. 当我们想到重要的人, 尤其是在教堂里, we often think that their motivation to do these “great works of God was personal pleasure and can imagine that it came easy to them.”

圣保罗, 就是那个写了无数封信的保罗, 多次发表演讲, 被封为圣人, a man who Christians all over the world model their lives after. 保罗把分享福音描述为一种义务, 作为一种责任, 不是给他带来快乐或自然而然的事情.

 

The same way Saint John Chrysostom’s duty was to expose the wrong around him, and the same way it was 圣保罗’s duty and obligation to share the gospel, 我们都有上帝刻在我们心里的义务. 即使我们的环境并不总是理想的, we all have a duty and responsibility to bear witness to those things. Whether that be in our homes, during family gatherings or in our classrooms and our school community.

作为个人的例子, in eighth grade my class read a book called Rules about a young child with autism. As somebody with a person with special needs in my immediate family, it was extremely difficult to hear the generalizations and harsh comments made by 老师 and classmates about people with disabilities. 我知道他们没有恶意, but due to their lack of knowledge many of their comments came across as, 好吧, 的意思是. 最后我在课堂上发言，分享我的经验, 坦率地说，哪一种感觉非常可怕. 我的评论得到了各种各样的反馈. 大多数都是积极的，但也有一些不太乐观.

然而，直到今天，我都不后悔说出来. 主要是,  因为一个同学后来跟我说话, expressing the same thoughts I did and sharing their same experience as someone with autism. Sometimes the reward for doing the right thing is in quiet whispers and not huge fanfares. My message was still 好吧 received overall and I was able to see a major change in my classroom. 现在我知道我没有改变世界, 但如果我们都致力于做一些小小的改正, 我们在家里做了很大的改变, 学校, 甚至整个世界. 

我知道用自己的声音说话可能会让人害怕. If you know me personally this will definitely come as a surprise… but speaking up, 即使是出于好意, 这让我害怕. 依靠神, 然而, I’m able to share messages that are important to me with my peers, 朋友, 和社区. The only way I’m able to do it through what Philippians 4:7 best describes as the peace of God that transcends all understanding. 我发现在恐惧的时刻, 我觉得上帝离我最近，就像我耳边的小声音在说, 继续.

I’m not afraid to stand here and tell you all that I’ve failed at this as 好吧. My mind constantly replays all the times I heard God tell me to do or don’t do something; and I did things my own way.  This doesn’t make me a bad person; it just makes me a real one. So don’t beat yourself up over mistakes, because mistakes are inevitable. Instead, let us focus our energy on how we can help others the next time. 

As we continue this school year, let’s remember to put St John Chrysostom and St. 保罗的信息在esball世博付诸行动. It's essential to us to have the courage to stand up for those in the world being mistreated. Even if that 的意思是s speaking uncomfortable truths to our own 朋友. 

The obligations God puts in our hearts show up in a variety of different ways. 其中之一就是帮助别人. 例如, 当你看到有人在浴室里哭, 或者向下看 , don't be afraid to start a conversation and check in on them - especially if you don’t know them. You never know when God is using you to make a lasting impact on someone’s life. Some of my worst days have been made better by smiles from a stranger. 

So, 当你走进浴室，看到一个眼睛浮肿的人, 尤其是期末考试, 一定要问他们出了什么事. 语言和科学考试真的很艰难，我们都知道这一点. Not trying to scare anybody up there in the balcony but buckle up and trust me when I say it’s in your best interest to invest in Quizlet plus. You would’ve thought I saw a ghost and not the preterite tense when I walked out my Spanish final last year. 但我去自助餐厅的那一刻, 一个我不认识的人给了我一些他们的唐恩都乐. This may sound “big-backed” of me, but I felt so much better after a chocolate frosted donut. Spreading the greatest form of love, which is God, to others can be as simple as a bite to eat. 

作为学生, 老师, 和多明尼加学校的教员, let us ask God for the courage and wisdom to be people who stand up for what is right.

And on the flip side of that, may we have the humility to accept the correction of others. Let’s all make a conscious effort to make Fenwick a safe loving environment. It’s not just doing the right thing, it's doing the only thing that’s right.