iserve Userve?

Y serve? Service is an integral part in the life of a Christian. ”The soul of one who serves God always swims in joy, always keeps holiday, is always in her palace of jubilation, ever singing with fresh ardor and fresh pleasure a new song of joy and love.” -Saint John of the Cross, Doctor of the Church

Y serve? Service is an outward sign of humility in the life of a Christian. ”What a great right Jesus Christ has to our service, for the benefits with which He has loaded us! and how dear have these benefits cost Him! When He purposed to act according to His love, He seems, if we may so speak, to have forgotten He was God.” -Saint Ignatius, Father of the Church

Y serve? Service is a way to exercise the WILL, feed the intellect, and fortify the spirit. ”One act performed in dryness of spirit is worth more than several done in great sensible fervor.” -Saint Francis of Sales, Doctor of the Church

Y serve? Service is the way we actively show love for God and others. ”I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1

Y serve? To serve Him is an honor. ”The service of God is not a burden, but an honor: so far from branding us with the mark of slavery, it wipes it away.” -Saint Peter Chrysologus, Father and Doctor of the Church

Why is Christian service *compulsory? a.Your slave labor is a great tax write off for the school. b.We are trying to weed out the lazy people. c.We are power hungry control freaks. d.We love you and want what is best for you. *compulsory - necessary; required by authority

Why is Christian service compulsory? a.Your slave labor is a great tax write off for the school.(The school doesn’t get diddly squat for requiring students to serve.)

Why is Christian service compulsory? We are trying to weed out the lazy people. Contrary to popular belief, “lazy” is an adjective describing a mood, not a personality. Therefore, what people often view as a tendency for laziness is a lack of motivation or direction. Our goal is to help young people find an area of service that brings them joy, stimulation, even excitement!

Why is Christian service compulsory? We are power hungry control freaks. Well, maybe this, too. JK! Psychologically speaking, people like to be in control of their actions and options. When people are “required” by authority to do something, the natural inclination is to question and perhaps even rebel to a point. This is also an important part of adolescence. (Some of you are doing a phenomenal job! )

Why is Christian service compulsory? We love you and want what is best for you. Awww… that is so sweet! Believe me, enforcing the service part of your education is not the easiest part. However, if Christian service is omitted or not taken seriously, we are neglecting an important part of Catholic education. So, regardless of your current spiritual inclination, please plan to serve Christ and others as an important and much appreciated part of the West Catholic experience. We NEED you and WANT you as part of the serving community.

Y Document? Why do I have to “log” my hours? Doesn’t that go against scripture regarding serving anonymously? “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Mt. 6: 1-2)

Y Document? Why do I have to “log” my hours? Doesn’t that go against scripture regarding serving anonymously? This scripture refers to our motive. If we serve in hopes that we will be given prestige or honor, we miss the true purpose. However, even this initial motivation will likely be changed to a more pure one once the action is initiated. “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Mt. 6: 1-2)

Y Document? Why do I have to “log” my hours? Doesn’t that go against scripture regarding serving anonymously? Even so, you wouldn’t disobey authority just because you fear your motives might be questioned by God, would you? I mean, if that’s the case, we’ll take the heat on this one… er, I mean the blame. “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Mt. 6: 1-2)

Y Document? But documenting hours is such a hassle!!! There are ways to make it easier… 1.Print out a few service forms from the West Catholic website and take one with you whenever you go somewhere to serve. 2.If you don’t have the form available, print one as soon as you are able and get it to the person in charge of your service event.

Y Document? But documenting hours is such a hassle!!! There are ways to make it easier… 3. Embarrassed to ask? Don’t be. Just find a moment when it won’t be a bother to the person in charge. Say something like this: “My school requires that students track their volunteer service hours. Will you please sign this as verification of my time and service here today (or whatever day it was…)?THANK YOU!”

Y Document? But documenting hours is such a hassle!!! There are ways to make it easier… 3. Embarrassed to ask? Don’t be. Just find a moment when it won’t be a bother to the person in charge. Say something like this: “My school requires that students track their volunteer service hours. Will you please sign this as verification of my time and service here today (or whatever day it was…)?THANK YOU!” 4. Have your form filled out ahead of time. That way, the person knows exactly what they are signing. Otherwise, it might be a little like signing a blank check. Adults are resistant to signing something like that.

Y Document? But documenting hours is such a hassle!!! Ipads are handy in this regard! 5. Get into the habit of pairing this documentation with other routine tasks like checking Moodle or Infinite Campus. 6. Keep those completed service forms in a place that will remind you to log them onto the WC website. Perhaps you could paper clip them to your student planner.

Y Document? But documenting hours is such a hassle!!! Ipads are handy in this regard! 7. Go to search “service hours,” and the correct place appears. Fill out the on line form and submit. Then turn in the form to Mr. Dolci. Done!

What does the school do with this documentation? Unlike academics and sports, service does not have an easy measure. Academic performance is measured by ACT analysis, college acceptance, etc. Sports performance is measured by ranking and trophies, and the like. Keeping a record of student service ensures that we are providing this important aspect of the Catholic education experience.

What does the school do with this documentation? An endorsement on your transcript shows colleges a great deal about you. For example: 1.You care about the world. 2.You obey authority. 3.You attend to details. 4.You have energy and initiative. 5.You will serve the college in some way.

What does the school do with this documentation? An endorsement on your transcript shows colleges a great deal about you. For example: 5.You say “yes” to helping others. 6.You are a team player. 7.You want to attend college enough that you achieved the endorsement. 8.You are balanced… more than “just” a student or an athlete… 9.You have an “edge” over other applicants without this endorsement. 10.You follow through on tasks and endeavors.

What does the school do with this documentation? GOOD West Catholic works hard to attain and maintain its Catholic identity. We want the world to know we are helping young people to become strong, active Christians. Having these numbers of logged service hours gives us information to report to the community. If tooting that horn gets more students to come to West Catholic to learn about Christ and His love for them, then that is a GOOD reason to boast.

U serve! If you ever need help documenting hours or finding a service opportunity, please contact Mrs. Hathaway or Mr. Dolci. West Catholic has a club called S.A.S.S. that meets every other Tuesday. It has its own Moodle page, so even if you can’t attend meetings, you can check the Moodle calendar for the next service opportunity.

U serve! S.A.S.S. is only one way to find service opportunities. Be open to serving others and watch the Holy Spirit bring these opportunities your way! ”There is no higher dignity than to serve Christ.” -Saint Ambrose, Father and Doctor of the Church