Faith Formation

Education at Aquinas Academy is a matter of both the mind and the soul. Theology or catechesis is a core subject at every grade level and the formation of students’ Catholic identity is a priority in all of our activities. Mass is offered almost every day and there are regular opportunities for the Sacrament of Confession. Students are also provided many occasions to put their faith into practice through faculty and parent supervised service projects and other charitable outreaches to those in need in our community.

Fostering the Spiritual Life

We create an environment for our students to encounter Christ and form devotions through:

• Overnight Retreats for Middle and High School
• First Communion and Confirmation Retreats
• Procession for the Feast of Corpus Christi
• Evenings of Adoration and Festival of Praise
• Visits and presentations about vocations from local Religious
• Devotions to Our Lady, including a May Crowning and a flower procession for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception
• Pilgrimages to local Catholic churches and sites
• St. Thomas Aquinas Feast Day and All Saints' Day celebrations
• Praying the Stations of the Cross, and many other Catholic prayer devotions

What does devotion look like? Some years ago when we started Aquinas Academy in Pittsburgh, I would bring the students to the chapel after lunch to visit the Most Blessed Sacrament. It was wonderful to see how eager and open they were to visit Jesus. Two young girls, in 5th and 6th grade, would always make a beeline for a devotional alcove on the side of the Church which was full of vigil lights and a statue of the Blessed Mother. They would kneel, fold their hands, bow their heads, and pray silently, without a care in the world and no human respect. What a picture of pure devotion.

Both are married now and have children to whom they will no doubt pass along their robust faith. Kneeling, folded hands, and bowed heads: the very picture of devotion! Just like the statue of Mary and her Mother Saint Anne in the Church of St. Anne in Jerusalem. — Rev. Francis J. Hoffman, aka Father Rocky, in his “Daily Teaching Minute” for the Relevant Radio® 54 Day Rosary Novena: “Day 29: Singular Vessel of Devotion, Pray for Us!” on October 6, 2020.