“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know Himself— so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth and themselves.”
-St. John Paul II Preface to Fides et Ratio
Fides et Ratio Reflections
Statue of Our Lady at Nativity Church
“May is Mary’s month and I/Muse at that and wonder why…”
–opening lines of “The May Magnificat” by Gerard Manley Hopkins, S. J.
English Jesuit priest Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote “The May Magnificat” in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary while a student at Stonyhurst College in 1878. The broader world did not know those words until his collected poems were published in 1918—29 years after his death from typhoid fever while serving in a slum parish in Dublin.
It has been said that no one should graduate from a Catholic high school without having committed to memory the 48 lines of “The May Magnificat” by Hopkins. When I repeated that statement to my Freshmen each May, nervous glances shot across the room. 48 lines? Are you serious, Mr. Hagstrom?
But they are short lines and, thankfully, Fr. Hopkins employed beautiful rhyme and meter. It’s relatively easy. In the end, though, I didn’t require that it be memorized, but many Freshmen chose to do so for extra credit. I hope they can still recall it years later this May.
May Magnificat by Gerard Manley Hopkins – Famous poems, famous poets. – All Poetry
Nevertheless, in reading and studying the poem, they all understood Hopkins’ central point: May is Mary’s month because “all through mothering earth” Spring is producing “growth in every thing,” just as Christ the Lord grew within her. Her magnifying of the Lord is echoed in mother nature magnifying the Lord, especially in the month of May.
Recent days here finally feel like Spring, so enjoy the flowers, the blossoms, the greening, the birthing, the growing, and the newness!
Our schools typically observe May Crownings this month of May. May we, too, magnify the Lord in our observances and seek to do His Will as Our Lady did so perfectly.
In a similar way, congratulations and thank you to all mothers and grandmothers on Mothers Day, May 10. Thank you for so beautifully glorifying God in your motherhood.
Our President
Mike Hagstrom
Mike Hagstrom was named President of St. John Paul II Catholic Schools and Director of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Fargo on March 15, 2016, and officially assumed the role on July 1, 2016. In his application for the position, he described his leadership philosophy as one of stewardship, writing:
“My approach would be that of stewardship of the great gift of Catholic Schools. With the help of God’s grace and all our stakeholders, we can be good stewards together, ensuring that our schools not only survive, but thrive. They are designed for human flourishing, forming the whole person, each and every student made in God’s image and likeness, endowed with a transcendent dignity and destiny.”
Before stepping into diocesan leadership, Mike dedicated 31 years to Shanley High School, where he taught Religion and served in a variety of leadership roles. During his time there, he embodied the spirit of St. Bede’s words: “I have always found delight in learning, teaching, and writing.”
Mike earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Master of Arts in Systematic Theology from Saint John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota. He and his wife, Shawn, are the proud parents of two Shanley graduates, Therese (’08) and Joseph (’16), and grandparents to James and Oliver.
