Movie Night: Believe in Me

We love sports movies around here.

Y'know the ones like Miracle where the underdog US Hockey team succeeds because of the awe-inspiring coaching ... or Rudy, where the star does whatever he needs to get to Notre Dame to play football ... We Are Marshall where the football team is killed in a plane wreck and a brand-new, untried coach needs to step up and re-build the morale of the team and the school ... or Radio where the team gets a new assistant "coach" who they first abused ... or movies like Glory Road or Remember the Titans -- both movies about racial inequalities righted on the playing field ... or The Rookie where Patrick Swayze Dennis Quaid (!) plays the oldest rookie ever to play in a major league baseball game. These are fabulous -- especially for family movie night -- movies that show that right prevails, that the underdog can win, that faith and love are 9/10ths of winning. And these are all based on true stories. And these are all movies dealing with different sports at the professional, college and high school levels.

Well, tonight we watched such a movie ... but this one has a bit of a twist. Believe in Me is about a small town high school in Oklahoma. A small town high school where the girls' basketball team is nothing ... gets only the boys' hand-me-downs and little funding ... gets only left-over coaches. That is until Coach "Driscoll" (real-life coach's name is Jim Keith) ... a man who thought he would head-coach the boys but gets "stuck" with the girls ... and leads them to succeed. This is a great underdog wins type of movie ... a great, spirit is more important than funding type of movie ... a great dedication brings success type of movie. Don't forget to watch thru the credits as there is an interesting bit at the very beginning ....

Staring Bruce Dern as the bad "this is my town" character, Jeffrey Donovan as the Coach and Samantha Mathis as his wife, this movie far exceeded our expectations. Check any of these out (and pardon the language in some -- these are better for kids who know better than to direct-quote a movie!) and you'll enjoy a great family move night!

High School: Online Summer School Classes

OK, if I had a high schooler who needed some summer-time learning, I'd go directly (I'm talking "not even stopping to collect $200") to Homeschool Connections and enroll in at least one of the courses Maureen and her crew are offering.

Here's a blog post about the CSLewis Space Trilogy lit class ... the Perelandra series is such a cool one but is so deep you really need an expert to help you find all the many kernels of truth and faith buried in Lewis' great work of sci-fi. And Maureen's got just the guy for it as you can see in the blog post (but ya gotta click on the first link above to read it!).

They have other online summer classes scheduled as well:

• Tolkein stories -- In this course we will discuss in seminar (discussion) format five short stories by J.R.R. Tolkien in light of his essay called “On Fairy Stories.” The stories are “Smith of Wooton Major,” “Farmer Giles of Ham,” “Leaf by Niggle,” “The Adventures of Tom Bombadil,” and “Roverandom.” All five stories and the essay are available in one volume, called Tales from the Perilous Realm by J. R. R. Tolkien. The assignment will be to write your own fantasy story by the end of the six weeks. High school.It is preferred that students have read Lord of the Rings before coming to this course, but not required.Instructor: Robert Gotcher, Ph.D.Fee: Six-week course for $120.


• Beowulf and Christ -- This great mini epic will be explored as an allegory that te aches the Anglo-Saxon world how to transform pagan heroic ethos into a pattern for Christian heroism and how to re-envision blind Fate as Godly Providence. The Charles Kennedy translation is suggested. Be careful not to get a web version that cuts out the Christian elements. This is a book that lies behind J.R.R. Tolkien’s depiction of Edoras as well as the warlike virtues of Gond or. Suitable for any high school student who can read the poem and enjoy it. It is preferred that student have pre-read the poem before the first day of class. There will be no homework assigned for this course.Instructor: Henry Russell, Ph.D.Fee: Four-week course for $60


• Catholic Living for Young People -- In our complex and changing world, with its serious cultural challenges, how does a young person structure and organize his life so that he can grow in his relationship with the Lord? Themes covered include prayer, study, social life, recreation and entertainment, technology, and decision-making. Lecture and discussion. The student will compose a rule of life tailored to his own situation. High school.Instructor: Robert Gotcher, Ph.D.Fee: Eight-week course for $120.


• Writing for College -- What are the characteristics of excellent writing in the eyes of college professors? This course will use the rhetorical arts to help turn competent writing into impressive writing. What are the essential components of an excellent piece of nonfiction writing? How does one write a compelling introduction and conclusion? How does one argue effectively for one’s position? What are important mistakes to avoid? The course will work with previous writing samples of the students, as well as composition exercises, culminating in the writing of a short argumentative essay. Juniors and seniors.Instr uctor: Robert Gotcher, Ph.D.Fee: Six-week course for $120.


• The Catholic Shakespeare: MacBeth -- The course will explore the play on four levels: 1) What is literally happening and why that is often surprising; 2) What main Christian moral messages are being embodied in the play; 3) The Biblical references that enrich the meaning of the work; and finally, 4) How Shakespeare is presenting the challenges and duties of the Body of Christ within the Elizabethan police state. Suitable for anyone who can read the play and enjoy it. It is preferred that students have pre-read the play before the first day of class.Instructor: Henry Russell, Ph.D.Fee: Four-week course for $60.


• The Mass Explained -- In order to participate fully in the Mass, we need to understand it better. The Bible provides many images and ideas that are the basis for the structure and prayers of the Mass. This course looks at these Biblical ideas and explains how they are realized and fulfilled in the celebration of the Mass. Some of the images include the Trinity; temple, priest and sacrifice; the Passover and the Exodus; and the bridegroom/bride. In this course we will look closely at the prayers and structure of the Mass in light of these images and ideas. This course will not require written assignments. It will involve reading from the Bible. High school.Instructor: Robert Gotcher, Ph.D.Fee: Six-week course for $90.

The fees are quite reasonable for these courses as detailed above. Because some of these are discussion courses, students are not only required to have high-speed internet but also a headset with microphone. And here's a cool aspect: All Homeschool Connections courses are recorded and available to registered students for up to six months, so your student can refer to the "live classes" repeatedly after the class is over!

If you want to register, just go to Homeschool Connections or if you have any questions or suggestions, you can email Maureen Wittmann directly at mwittlans@aol.com.

John Paul the Great -- is now open!

There was MUCH celebrating today as Bishop Paul S. Loverde officially blessed the new high school -- Pope John Paul the Great Catholic High School. We've only been here since June and yet it seems like forever since we were given a "hard hat" tour of the not-quite-complete building.

Today it was marvelous! The new paint, custom millwork and spotless carpet attested to the newness -- a newness that carries a promise of the New Evangelization as preached by the school's patron, Pope John Paul 2 on the eve of the new millenium. The empty shelves in the library* will soon be filled as will the science labs and the other classrooms -- after all, school offficially starts one week from tomorrow.

But today, for the first time, all the staff, faculty, students, families and friends were together to celebrate and pray for the next school year. The Dominicans of Nashville to whom the administration of the school has been trusted, are well-loved by my family and obviously by many others too. The "love fest" today was amazing proof of the power of the Holy Spirit to move people toward the good, the true and the beautiful.

We are so blessed to be part of this new school ... part of this community ... part of this family who came together today. We are so blessed with the chance to help form the leaders of tomorrow in all aspects of their secondary education -- particularly in their learning about bioethics and the tough questions of today and tomorrow.

Dear Lord,

We know that every good and perfect gift comes from you. Thank you for the gift of Catholic Education, in particular the gift of this new high school, Pope John Paul the Great.

In your kindness Lord, grant us, the faculty, staff, students, families, and friends faith enough to know that you are at work in us and through us.

Bless all of those who are working to build this school and give us sufficient grace to complete the many tasks set before us.

Mary, Mother of God, intercede for us so that we may enthusiastically give our daily fiat to the work that is to come.

Let the zeal of St. Dominic live on in our mission for the new evangelization that has begun.

Pope John Paul the Great, Pray for us!

Amen!

*If you're interested in helping to stock the library shelves, Cynthia Trax, the librarian, would greatly appreciate donations of books or Amazon gift cards (send to c.trax at jpthegreat.org)