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Two Wings: President’s Posts

Two Wings No. 40

By April 8, 2023May 5th, 2023No Comments

“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 about themselves.”

–St. John Paul II Preface to Fides et Ratio

Good Friday Reflection

“Three great holy days recall Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. The words which the Lord uses to announce his by now imminent end therefore make reference to glory. ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified…My soul is troubled now, yet what should I say—Father, save me from this hour?’ (John 12:23, 27). He then utters the words which manifest the mystery of the redemptive death so profoundly: ‘Now judgement has come upon this world…and I—once I am lifted up from earth will draw all men to myself’ (John 12:31-32). That elevation of Christ from the earth is anterior to His elevation into glory. It is elevation on the wood of the cross, the elevation of martyrdom, a mortal elevation.

“Jesus foretells his death in these mysterious words as well: ‘I solemnly assure you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat’ (John 12:24). His death is the pledge of life; it is the source of life for all of us.”

-Pope St. John Paul II

Mike Hagstrom

mike.hagstrom@jp2schools.org

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 assumed office on July 1, 2016. When he applied for the position, he wrote that his “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, seeing that our schools not only merely survive, but also thrive. For they are designed for human flourishing, forming as we do the whole person, each and every student, made in God’s image and likeness, endowed with a transcendent dignity and destiny.” Prior to this role, he taught Religion and served in a number of other leadership capacities at Shanley High School for 31 years. There, he embraced St. Bede’s notion that “I have always found delight in learning, teaching, and writing.” Mike earned his B.A. in English and M.A. in Systematic Theology from Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota. He and his wife, Shawn, have two children (Therese ’08 and Joseph ’16) and two grandchildren (James and Oliver).