HAMMOND – With doors open and fans running, Bishop Noll staff, teachers and students prepared to participate in a back-to-school Mass with Bishop Robert J. McClory, Father Jeff Burton and Father Ivan Alatorre on the warm morning of Sept. 3 inside the fieldhouse.
While waiting to take her seat inside the gymnasium for Mass, freshman Camila Reynoso shared that she is excited for her first year at the school and the opportunity to learn new things while meeting new people. Although the first weeks of school were a little hard for her, she now feels she is getting used to the routine and enjoys attending a Catholic school.
“I like how we can find out more about God and learn everything about Jesus,” Reynoso said.
It is also the first year for teacher Sue Hokkanen, a new member of the BNI staff. She retired from teaching in Illinois after 18 years, and said being at the Hammond high school has been amazing. She is looking forward to strengthening the curriculum and enjoying being “within the spirit of the students.”
“I'm absolutely loving it,” Hokkanen said. “I finally feel as if my body, my mind and my spirit are all full and in one place – and incredibly all three of them at the same time.”
Bishop Noll Institute President Paul Mullaney said that the school marks its 106th anniversary this year, and he looks forward to helping the school continue to grow and “setting the table for the future.” The Back to School Mass, he noted, is always an opportunity to celebrate the BNI community coming back together and being reminded of its mission.
“Seeing everybody here celebrating the faith as a Catholic school and in prayer together – It's at the heart of what we do, so it's always a great way to start the year,” he said.
Mullaney acknowledged there was a somber atmosphere surrounding the beginning of this school year as it recently lost one of its students, Alejandro Lopez, a junior who passed away from a congenital heart condition.
During the homily, Bishop McClory focused on the theme “Let light shine out of darkness.” That phrase, he explained, is similar to “Eyes on the prize… And that means keeping ourselves focused on what is most important. Sometimes, in the midst of darkness, it becomes very clear, very quickly, what's most important because we are drawn to the light.”
The bishop stated that in certain situations we can either choose to remain in the despair of darkness or we can open our hearts and draw closer to the light.
Providing an example, Bishop McClory shared that he had spoken to a cancer survivor who dealt with depression. However, she began to find strength in her challenges. As she relayed her fears to others, they began responding by sharing their prayers, love and support.
“They wanted her to know how important she was in their life,” the bishop said. “And she said, ‘You know, I started this journey with cancer, with the darkness of that diagnosis. But the reality is that the love of those around me, and the love that God revealed to me, far exceeded that diagnosis.’”
Similarly, Bishop McClory said that although no one may have all the answers as to why they suffered the loss of their classmate, he prayed that it may “help all of us to appreciate what's most important – that we would avail ourselves of the time that we have and the love that we have for others around us to make sure we know what's really important, and keep our eyes fixed on the cross.”
“My brothers and sisters, the Lord has blessed us with so, so much. He has given us his love. He has revealed his love to us. He has assured us that, through your education here at Bishop Noll, you have an extraordinary opportunity. You have an amazing principal. You have committed faculty and family who have made the decision that this is where you belong. The opportunity now is not to get distracted by all kinds of stuff that doesn’t really matter.”
He added, “While we consume the challenges and pain in our lives as darkness, the most important thing is to draw ourselves to the light of Christ.”
Taking to the microphone to share a few reflections following the final hymn, Principal Lorenza Pastrick admitted that perhaps some need to “wake up” when it comes to their faith. She stressed to the students that they are called to be the hands and feet of Christ “now” and “every single day.”
“I think one thing that has been brought to life is that we never know when the Lord is going to take us into his kingdom,” she said. “And because of that, we shouldn’t wait. When you see someone that needs help, don’t wait to be the help. God gives us opportunities to be his hands and feet every day, no matter how old, no matter how young, no matter how disabled you may be or incapable. We are called. Don’t wait for tomorrow.”
Various members of the Lopez family attended the service celebrated in remembrance of Alejandro. His sister Valentina, who just graduated from Bishop Noll, said the Mass was a nice way to honor him, bringing together his classmates and teachers.
“It means a lot to us knowing that we have a lot of support from the school and how much love we have been getting from everybody,” she said.
