The vertebral column of our Catholic faith is the Creed, that long and beautiful prayer that we recite, standing, Sunday to Sunday after the homily, in the middle of the celebration of Holy Mass. The Creed has not changed in more than fifteen hundred years. Our faith is solid, our identity as Catholics is great, and we are proud, so we have the responsibility of transmitting this Catholic faith to our children. In the Creed we say that we believe "in the Church that is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic." The visible head of this Church is the Roman Pontiff whose mission is to confirm the faith of all the baptized. Our school is named after our parish, and the parish is dedicated to the apostle in whose hands Christ left the care of the Catholic Church: St. Peter. That is why it is good, convenient and healthy that often we pay attention to the voice of the Vicar of Christ, the Pope. One of the most beautiful and endearing speeches that I have heard of him, took place in Rome, in a meeting that Pope Francis had with students, parents and teachers of Catholic schools. Now that the summer break is over and that we return to school I would like to propose a leisurely reading of these words of the Vicar of Christ, perhaps his discourse may help us to understand better the wonderful opportunity we have in our hands and the value of being part of a Catholic school, and also the privilege of strengthening our Catholic faith in the little ones. Also the effort we all must make to achieve the virtues of which the Pope speaks, especially the magnanimity of heart is important. The Virgin Mary is also an essential part of our school community. She is not only the Mother of God but also the Mother of Christians and the Mother of the Church. From her Jesus learned the customs and traditions of the Jewish people. From her he learned to speak and to pray. May Mary be our model and our help in this wonderful task of the Catholic education of our children and may she protect our school, staff, students and families 
 • Fr. Agustin Estrada, parochial vicar and 7th/8th grade religion teacher at St. Peter Prince of the Apostles Catholic Church and School