December 6, 2018 

Dear Parents,

Happy Feast of Saint Nicholas! This is a special day for us at the Basilica of Saint Mary since it is the first anniversary of the granting of the title of Basilica. Some of the privileges granted by the Holy See for being a Basilica include:

The faithful who devoutly visit the basilica and within it participate in any sacred rite or at least recite the Lord's Prayer and the profession of faith may obtain a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic Communion, and prayer for the intention of the Supreme Pontiff):

1.      on the anniversary of the dedication of the same basilica;

2.      on the day of the liturgical celebration of the title;

3.      on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles;

4.      on the anniversary of the granting of the title of basilica;

5.      once a year on a day to be determined by the local Ordinary;

6.      once a year on a day freely chosen by the each of the faithful.

This is also the anniversary of Bishop Burbidge's installation as Bishop of Arlington. Wonderful to share this day with our Bishop and Saint Nick! We also begin our forty hours of Eucharistic Adoration following the noon Mass, so please stop by for a visit during these days of grace. More information may be found on the parish website.

A reminder that we have two obligations to attend Mass this weekend, The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception which falls on Saturday, December 8th and the Second Sunday of Advent.

Masses for the Immaculate Conception Holy Day will be Friday evening at 5pm and 7:30pm (Vigils), and Saturday at 8:30am. 10:30am and 12:30pm. The vigil Mass on Saturday will be for the second Sunday of Advent, so please plan accordingly.

The Immaculate Conception celebrates God's way of preparing for Christmas by creating his mother free from sin from the moment of her conception. We will make our consecration to Mary at all of the Masses for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.

A blessed Advent,

Father Hathaway

Dear Parents,

As we celebrate the season of Advent, we prepare ourselves for the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ, at Christmas. Advent is a time of hopeful waiting, a time of anticipation and joy. This is evident throughout our school with Advent wreaths in each classroom. In the spirit of the season, our students had a glimmer of Christmas with the Out of Uniform Day, on Wednesday, to support Catholic Charities. Your generosity was, once again, a testament to our mission of stewardship. May our prayerful observance of this season of Advent draw us nearer to our loving and merciful God.

This first week of Advent has been a prayerful one with the celebration of the Feast of St. Nicholas, which is also a plenary indulgence day for our Basilica, as it is the anniversary of Pope Francis naming us as a minor basilica. Our students also completed their 33 day journey in consecrating themselves to our Blessed Mother.  We recited the Consecration Prayer together at Mass and then Father Hathaway enrolled/re-enrolled each of us into the Miraculous Medal Society.

This blessed season of Advent also brings us two Marian Feasts, the Immaculate Conception, on December 8, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, on December 12. It is my prayer that through the intercession of Mother Mary, our patroness,that these feast days will nurture each of us to be better Saints, Stewards, and Scholars!

While the secular world is focusing on external gifts, may we remain focused on the true meaning of this season—the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. May God bless you and those whom you love.

Yours in Christ+
Mrs. Cantwell

Students in Miss Ricardo's homeroom class, 5-21, were awarded CHARITY BEAR in recognition for the classroom with the largest contribution total of $238.27 to Catholic Charities for WE CARE WEEK.  Thank you to  ALL students and their parents for their donations yesterday. The total amount collected $2,329.24. God bless you! 

Saint Monica, Saint Isaac Jogues, and Saint Rita of Cascia are the saints our students are studying this month as examples of how to live the virtue of patience. 

How are you living this virtue today?  We all know what it's like to wait for our turn in a line, a game, results from a test, for an expected phone call...for Christmas!  But, how often do we wait patiently, without complaining? Patience is listed as one of the 12 fruits, or perfections, that The Holy Spirit forms in us (p.1832, Catechism of the Catholic Church).  If this fruit is truly alive in us, we can control our emotions when something disagreeable happens and respond with calm instead of anger, dismay or irritation. In times of great suffering, such as a serious illness, or loss of home or job, the virtue of patience can be a tremendous witness to God Who always responds to our prayers: " I waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined to me and heard my cry" (Psalm 40:1).

Our Student Council is asking for your help supporting our St. Vincent de Paul Project this year. We are supporting twelve local families in need through this project. Your donations will help put gifts under the trees of these families. We will be collecting money from December 6^th through December 13^th. We encourage you to send in cash or to pay via the direct link on Faith Direct. All donations are greatly appreciated! Thank you for your support!

Congratulations to our Students of the Month for November who demonstrate the virtue of humility!  We are proud of all students who earned this recognition at our assembly Tuesday! Saints Stewards Scholars

As we enter into cold and flu season:  Please be aware that the clinic does not stock comfort items such as cough drops, etc.  If you believe your child would benefit, please feel free to send a supply in for your child. If your child is not feeling well prior to the start of school and/or has a fever of 99.5 or above, please keep your child at home until he/she is feeling better.

CHRISTMAS PROGRAMS - GRADES K-3

Wednesday, December 19

6:30 pm-7:45 pm, in the School Gym

• All students arrive at school 6:00 pm.

• Kindergarten and First Grade students go to the gym. 
• Second and Third Grade students go to the cafeteria.
• Due to the limited viewing space, we ask Kindergarten and First Grade families, without siblings in Second and Third Grades, to please exit the gym after the K-1 program finishes. Thank you for your cooperation to ensure that the Second and Third Grade Program begins on time.
• Please be mindful, when parking on the blacktop, not to block anyone in. Parking patrols will be helping direct parking traffic on the blacktop. 

We look forward to sharing this evening with you and ask attendance to be limited to families of our students in K-3 so that we can accommodate all families for this festive program.

Winter Registration now open!

The Basilica School of St. Mary

Chess and Coding Clubs

Chess Club is taught by experienced Silver Knights instructors using a curriculum developed by National Masters. Each weekly session is a mix of learning and play. Playing chess is a great way to develop a child's critical thinking skills, sportsmanship, and patience — all while having fun!

• All grades and skill levels welcome. All equipment provided.
• Dates: Club meets every Friday that school is in session starting on 1/14 and ending on 3/25. Club will not meet on 1/21, 2/18 and 3/11
• A make-up day, if necessary, will be on 4/1
• Time:   3:15—4:15 PM
• Tuition:  $132 for 8 weeks

In Coding Club, learn to code your own games and animations using Scratch. MIT developed Scratch 10 years ago to give kids a fun way to learn programming skills and computational thinking. Each multi-week session includes all new projects that all kids will enjoy, from beginners to advanced coders. What will you create?

• Grades 2 & up —- only 18 spots available!   All computers and equipment provided. 
• Dates: Club meets every Friday that school is in session starting on 1/14 and ending on 3/25. Club will not meet on 1/21, 2/18 and 3/11
• A make-up day, if necessary, will be on 4/1
• Time:   3:15—4:15 PM 
• Tuition:  $198 for 8 weeks

To Register, Visit: www.skenrichment.com

To request scholarships or financial aid, please visit our website.  

LOOKING AHEAD

BASILICA EVENTS

All 8th Grade Students invited to

the Steubenville Conference this Summer

When? June 14-16th, 2019
Where? Franciscan University of Steubenville in Steubenville, Ohio.
What is it? A conference for all Catholic youth to meet teens across the country and grow in their faith!
More information? Check our website https://stmaryoldtown.org/steubenville-conference/ or the conference page https://steubenvilleconferences.com/youth/

For questions regarding the Conference, please contact the Assistant Youth Director, Mariane Leite at mleite@stmaryoldtown.org or 703-836-4100, or Mrs. Doucette at bdoucette@smsva.org.

PRAYERS

• For the repose of the soul of George H. W. Bush, the 41st President of The United States of America, may he know the merciful love of Almighty God
• For the victims of the fires in California, may they find mercy and hope in Your Light
• For Pope Francis and all Church leaders, that they will be witnesses of justice and repentance as we reach out to those who have been hurt
• That we will be led by the Holy Spirit to grow in the virtue of patience
• For all of our dearly departed
• For our service men and women, at home and abroad
• For the lonely, the sick, and the poor
• For all souls in Purgatory

Send requests for prayers to jcantwell@smsva.org.

 THE BASILICA SCHOOL OF SAINT MARY

400 Green Street  

Alexandria, VA  22314 

(703) 549-1646?