Fordham Preparatory School - Ramview Ramview SPRING 17 | Page 21

The Prep at Prayer
As a Catholic, all-male, Jesuit, college preparatory school, Fordham
Prep’s mission is to inspire young men to reflect, to question, to learn,
to pray, to love, to serve and to lead.
So reads the first sentence of Fordham Prep’s Mission statement,
and the element of prayer is the focus of this article. Prayer, the
turning of one’s mind, heart an d soul in communication with
God, is a constitutive part of the Fordham Prep experience. Every
day begins in prayer as we seek the wisdom and grace of God,
becoming aware of our liturgical season, the inspiration of the
Saints and the events of the world in solidarity with our brothers
and sisters in need. Each morning, we ask for the intercession of
St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus, and St.
John the Baptist, the patron of Fordham Prep.
Our prayer is inspired and informed by the great gift of Ignatian
Spirituality. Classic Ignatian prayers are woven into each weekly
grade-level assembly, and the critical aspect of reflection is
fostered as the community pauses to pray the Examen. Thus at
the end of each week, we prayerfully review the week’s events,
both positive and negative, seeking God’s light so that we may
learn and grow, hopeful for what lies ahead.
Prayer connects us in a real and meaningful way to how God calls
us individually and as a community, so that what we do, we do
for the greater glory of God. Prayer begins our classes and it
inspires our many drives for those in need. It is a daily part of
the lives of our students who lead in Ministry- whether praying a
daily Examen as a sophomore, praying with scripture as a junior
or praying with the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius as a senior.
It reminds all of us at the Prep that we are called to live lives not
just for ourselves. For just as our day begins in prayer, so does it
end in prayer where as a community we ask the Lord to:
...teach us to be generous;
teach us to serve you as you deserve,
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to seek reward,
except that of knowing that I do your will.
Amen.
St. Ignatius Loyola
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