Alumni Pin Mass Homily
(Father Cartaya, S.J. delivered this homily at the Alumni Pin Mass on May 21, 2019 held at Gesu Catholic Church in downtown Miami.)
Soon you will receive the diploma you’ve been working so hard to earn. After seven years at Belen Jesuit, it’s time to say farewell to the school you love, where you have made friends and where you will return one day as proud alumni.
When you began at Belen you made friendships that will extend past your time here: they will be lifelong. Many of those friendships will continue in college and others will get stronger as you grow older. Some of the teachers you’ve had at Belen will now become your mentors as you move on to college. And as you move on, Belen will remain here. It will continue moving forward, led by Father Willie, forming men for excellence in their professions, men of honesty in their lives and men of loyalty to God, to their family, to Belen and to their friends.
From this day forward, you belong to a great army of more than 4 million alumni of Jesuit institutions from more than 300 Jesuit colleges and high schools in the world. Now, a big challenge awaits you. There have been many prominent alumni of Jesuit institutions such as, nine heads of states including one president of the United States. From Belen alone, there have been two alumni who were nominees for the Nobel Prize, one for peace and the other in medicine. These examples are both a challenge and an inspiration for you. We want you to strive for excellence in your life and to be an emblem of dignity and integrity in society.
A reporter who was studying the profile of the typical Jesuit alumnus, summarized his findings in four characteristics which helped define their success and achievements in their professions:
- The alumnus had a serious commitment to his/her endeavors.
- The alumnus struggled for excellence in his/her profession.
- The alumnus had a profound loyalty to God, his/her family, and alma mater.
- The alumnus showed compassion to others and was ready to serve and help his/her community.
Tomorrow, you will graduate, on the 165th year since Belen was founded in 1854. When I graduated from Belen in Cuba it was the 100th anniversary of the school. Allow me, at this moment, to share with you my bittersweet experience of my own graduation in1954. To graduate on the 100th anniversary of a school is not very common. I thought it was the pinnacle of glory, but God had other plans. As it turned out, it wasn’t the pinnacle of glory, it was the epitome of frustration. Just a few weeks before my graduation, I was diagnosed with tuberculosis. I had to be confined for six months to bed, so I had to let go of being able to attend my dream ceremony. I ended up reading about my graduation the next day in the newspaper. I read about the wonderful graduation ceremony and was overwhelmed for joy for my peers. It was such an occasion that even the Pope sent a message to my senior class from Rome. As I read about the ceremony, it was overwhelming and I broke down and cried. My mother heard me crying from the next room and came to me. She sat on my bed and cried with me. She understood.
God had his plans. Thanks to those six months of unexpected repose, I had time to reflect and consider my future. It was during that time I made my decision. If cured, I would follow Jesus. I entered the Society of Jesus a few months later on October 9, 1954. This is the reason why I identify with your graduation, because it will be like the one I couldn’t enjoy 65 years ago.
The gown you will wear at the ceremony, the ring you wear on your finger, and the pin you receive today are symbols of your commitment to your alma mater - Belen Jesuit. These symbols will be a reminder that the Jesuit education that you have received during so many years are part of your academic DNA. The legacy of St. Ignatius of Loyola will be part of your life forever and you can not betray the confidence and expectations we have entrusted to you.
May Jesus and Our Lady of Belen protect and accompany you always and may the Lord grant Belen the pleasure to remember you always with the pride and satisfaction of the values and education Belen has placed in your heart.
Click here to view the photo album.
Click here to view the photo album.
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.