Learning to be Quick to Listen

In societies that have largely forgotten or abandoned Christianity, Catholic schools are often seen as vital tools for reintroducing faith to the wider culture. Principal Jim Bailey of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School can testify to this. He was in the process of entering the Catholic Church when he became the principal of the South Anchorage elementary school in 2008. “Being principal strengthened my desire to join the church,” Bailey told the Catholic Anchor. He credits the Catholic school experience and its immersion in faith with influencing him. It is a phenomena he sees occur with many parents who send their children to Catholic school. This year, Bailey said the school has at least three parents going through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults — the process by which adults are introduced to the Roman Catholic Church. “And that’s fairly typical,” Bailey said of parents who come to the faith through their contact with the school. Evangelization, he said, is the natural outgr...