Message to graduates from Bishop Solis

Intermountain Catholic

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CONGRATULATIONS to the 2018 graduates! I join each one of you, your parents, families, school faculty and staff as well as your friends as you celebrate this great accomplishment in your lives. Your graduation is a milestone, marking another successful academic year. This is a special occasion not only to celebrate but also to be thankful for: It is such an important blessing.

Gratitude is the ability to remember good things with thankful appreciation. I encourage you to never forget to be thankful always for all the good things that come your way. All your memorable school experiences are not a matter of coincidence but are in the divine plan. These were labors of love and sacrifice of your parents, your teachers and other school staff, who worked with dedication and patience to help you learn in order to broaden your knowledge and make each of you a better person. Your classmates and friends shared moments of joy and comfort with you during difficult times. Most importantly, thank God, who is the source of all goodness and blessings.

Life is a continuous process of growth that affects us, and influences our society and the world we live in. I pray that the many hours of study, homework and other activities in your school helped you gain knowledge, transformed you significantly and made you more intelligent, smarter and wiser, sharpening not only your brain but also molding your heart. This is important because the mission of education is to help you mold your total personal well-being: the formation of your mind and the development of your moral character, to become more intelligent but also acquire the goodness and holiness of heart to be the best person you are for everyone, just as God has created you.

The path to genuine success is the work of the mind and of the heart. I exhort you to broaden your perspective of your success as children of God. Pope Francis, in his apostolic exhortation “Rejoice and Be Glad,” which was released in March, reminds us of our universal vocation or calling in life, that is, HOLINESS: to be holy as God our Father is holy. Holiness consists of our fidelity to God’s will and to the Gospel values of love and service. Saint Mother Theresa beautifully expressed it in her own words: “We are called not to be successful but to be faithful.”

Our personal glory and success are irrelevant if these are kept for ourselves. Success extends beyond ourselves to a personal relationship with God and with one another. What matters is how we make a difference in the lives of other people by the way we love and serve one another. Our mission is to bring God’s love to the world by becoming a conduit of grace and a channel of God’s blessings to others. Be agents of change to restore order in our society and help build a civilization of love, justice and peace.

Lastly, success can be a source of personal pride and glory. Be humble. Whenever you achieve something, measure your success not only according to the degree of your knowledge but in terms of love and good works. After all, everything we have and anything we achieve are not of our own making, but the design of God for us and for our world.

As you move on to the next chapter of your life – to college or a career – go with faith and confidence knowing that God is with you. Pray that the Holy Spirit continues to inspire your mind and heart to learn what is truly essential and meaningful in life. May God continue to guide you, lead you and bless you with more successes in life.

The Most Rev. Oscar A. Solis

Bishop of Salt Lake City