The Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin school community prayed, celebrated, and laughed with Cleveland Bishop Nelson J. Perez during his first-ever visit to NDCL on Dec. 10.
Bishop Perez Visits NDCL
The Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin school community prayed, celebrated, and laughed with Cleveland Bishop Nelson J. Perez during his first-ever visit to NDCL on Dec. 10.
During the celebration of the Eucharist that began the day, the bishop urged students and staff to place a friend or family member before the presence of God during the Mass as well as throughout the Advent and Christmas seasons.
“You can do that through prayer or by inviting someone who may be distant to the faith to join you in church at Christmas,” he explained.
Reflecting on the gospel story of the men who lowered their friend through the roof of a house to bring him to Jesus, the bishop asked, “What better gift can we give our friends than to do as the men in our Gospel and bring them into the presence of God?”
The bishop also congratulated NDCL on its recent National Blue Ribbon Award.
“I know the hard work it takes to win that award. It says a lot about you as students and a lot about your teachers,” he said.
Following Mass, Bishop Perez took a tour of the building and enjoyed lunch with several students before heading up the hill to visit with the students and staff of Notre Dame Elementary School.
Lions Share Christmas joy
Thanks to the generosity and hard work of many in the NDCL community, Christmas will be brighter for more than 200 children and adults throughout northeastern Ohio.
“Through our Giving Tree project, we chose to make Christmas special for providing gifts for people served by the Sisters of Notre Dame at Saint Francis School, Metro Catholic School, Blessing House and the Renee Jones Empowerment Center (RJEC),” explained Director of Campus Ministry Beth Davis.
“Through our relationship with the RJEC, we supported a pregnant woman who had recently been rescued from human trafficking,” Mrs. Davis said. “Our students and staff also donated bicycles to be refurbished by RJEC for children whose families cannot afford them.”
Students made several dozen fleece blankets for the homeless women and men served by Cleveland’s Saint Malachi Church and Painesville’s Saint Mary Church. Early in the Advent season, they also assembled Boxes of Joy to be delivered throughout the world by Cross Catholic Outreach.
