Saint Mary's students, faculty and staff gathered at the Church of Our Lady of Loretto Sunday to celebrate Mass and ring in the new academic year.
Father John Pearson, CSC, presided over the Mass at which President Carol Ann Mooney spoke, and both the Loretto and Saint's Mary's College choirs provided music.
Father Pearson spoke of Father Basil Anthony Moreau's life and the creation of the Holy Cross religious order that he founded in 1840 during his homily.
"This is the year of Father Moreau," Pearson said, in relation to Moreau's upcoming beatification ceremony in September. "We're going to be talking about him a lot."
Only four years after founding the religious order of the Holy Cross and three years after the Sisters of the Holy Cross were founded, Moreau sent a group of order members to Indiana. In 1855, the Sisters he had sent moved their institution to its current location.
"This is a place where the Word of God is preached, and heard, and lived," Pearson said.
College president Carol Ann Mooney also spoke of Moreau and the Holy Cross education, which he helped to create.
"The Holy Cross Education has remained true to the philosophy of its founder," Mooney said. "It focuses on embracing all of human knowledge and attends to the spiritual foundation [of its members]."
Mooney said that as members of the Holy Cross family of brothers, sisters, faculty, staff and students, we must all strive to "prepare the world for better times than ours", which is one of the main goals of Father Moreau.
Moreau will be beatified in Le Mans, France fromSept. 12-16.
Beatification is the second step in the Catholic Church's road to sainthood.
