In our continued pursuit of the beautiful, CAW will be attending Wichita Grand Opera’s upcoming production of Rusalka. Headmaster Snyder is once again taking the stage in a WGO production and we invite you to join us! Purchase opera tickets HERE.
CAW is partnering with the Wichita Grand Opera and Fairmount Ministries and Coffee Co. for our 2nd Annual Concert Series in November. More information coming soon!
The Janitorial Duties of Education
“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:7-10
Goethe observed that “with no understanding of another language we do not understand our own.” This is one of the main reasons that we study Latin in classical schools, to gain a greater understanding of language, a gift of God, so that we may communicate and understand more deeply. We also have another habit in classical education: we read the great Western tradition of books. Why? There are many opinions about this which can all be seen as children of one opinion, that we are western people, and in accepting what they have given us we are coming into our inheritance, another gift of God. In Latin, we find the noun “Janitor”. The janitor in Roman times was a keeper of the house, which in our day has swiveled to “house keeper.” The difference (and language does change, another thing we observe in classical education) between the janitor of old and that of today is that the janitor not only kept keys but was responsible for admitting or barring the way to visitors and guests, looking out for the members of the household to let them through the door day and night.
Teachers in classical schools are classical janitors, opening the house of inheritance to the members of the family. For our teachers at Concordia Academy, that rich treasury of our household includes the doctrines handed down in scripture, in the history of the teachers of the Faith as well as the lessons and philosophy that brought light and prosperity to so many for so many years. This year we are blessed to find ourselves in the company of five teachers with the addition of Jennifer Montgomery of St. John’s Lincolnville, who with her years of experience and vocation as a professor of literature has turned her attention to admitting our students to their storied inheritance. Taking our joyful duty to heart, Concordia is opening more doors, bestowing more treasures, and distributing the vast estate of providence to our younger brothers and sisters.
This season our school will be attending Wichita Grand Opera’s production of Dvorak’s opera Rusalka, a cultural treasure from 1901. Later on in November we look forward to presenting two cantatas of J.S. Bach during our Concordia Concert Series. You too may be a guest knocking at the door, or perhaps you are a near or distant relative, enquiring after that hospitable house of legend, our shared Christian culture. Put “Exploring Concordia” on your calendar for October 24th and see what is behind the door of a Classical Lutheran high school. Matins are every school day at 8 AM, and vespers are prayed afternoons at 3:15, where you are invited to join with the students and faculty. Come meet our janitors.
