Dear Trinity families,
On Sunday, October 3rd Episcopal Schools all over the country will celebrate Episcopal School Sunday. We will celebrate as an Episcopal community during the 10:30 am service. This is an important service to attend because you have chosen to send your child to an Episcopal School. I am certain friends have asked you, “So what exactly is an Episcopal School?” The National Association of Episcopal Schools shares that Episcopal schools are most distinctive when they are true to their mission and when they do so in the graceful and inclusive manner. Episcopal schools were created to be communities that honor, celebrate, and worship God as the center of life. Episcopal Schools are created to be models of God’s love and grace. They are created to serve God in Christ in all persons, regardless of origin, background, ability, or religion. They are created to “strive for social justice and peace among all people and [to] respect the dignity of every human being."
Episcopal schools have been established, however, not solely as communities for Christians, like a parish church, but as ecumenical and diverse ministry of educational and human formation for people of all faiths and backgrounds. Episcopal schools are populated by a rich variety of human beings, from increasingly diverse religious, cultural, and economic backgrounds. It is also a distinguishing characteristic of Episcopal schools to integrate religious and spiritual formation into the overall curriculum and life of each school community. Episcopal schools are clear, yet graceful, about how they articulate and express their basic identities, especially in their religious curricula and traditions. Trinity invites all families who attend and work here—Episcopalians and non-Episcopalians, Christians and non-Christians, people of no faith tradition—both to seek clarity about their own beliefs and religions and to honor those traditions more fully and faithfully in their own lives. Above all, Episcopal schools exist not merely to educate, but to demonstrate and proclaim the unique worth and beauty of all human beings.
In practice, these principles and ideals are expressed through:
• School Worship that is creative, inclusive, and draws fully upon the liturgical resources of Trinity Episcopal Church, and is a regular part of school life for all faculty and students.
• Community Life, in which reflection, prayer, and matters of the spirit are honored and cultivated and the physical, mental, and emotional health of all are supported and nurtured. All Trinity families and friends are welcomed each Tuesday and Thursday to our 8:15 am Morning Chapel Service or Sunday Service at 8:00 and 10:30 am.
• Religious Formation and Study that is meaningful, academically substantive, and age-appropriate; and in teaching the Christian tradition, fostering dialogue with other faith traditions.
• Social Justice, which is the integration of the ideals and concepts of equity, justice, and a just society throughout the life of the school; the embracing and honoring of diversity; and the inclusion of community service and service-learning as an integral part of the life of the school.
What truly distinguishes us from the rest are these principles woven into the very fabric of Trinity’s overall ethos, along with high academic standards and a faculty and staff that loves what they do each day.
With warm regards,
Mark Ravelli, Head of School