 To the December Alvernia College graduates assembled for their baccalaureate mass, Rev. Speratus Kamanzi posed the question of the psalmist.
“How can I repay the Lord for His goodness?”
The answer, he suggested, is to “be the light of the world” in their encounters with others, and to always return thanks to God.
Rev. Kamanzi, Alvernia College’s chaplain, delivered the homily prior to the Reading school’s winter commencement on Sunday (December 17). He reminded the students of Alvernia’s tradition of pausing before special celebrations and spending a “mission moment” with God. This baccalaureate celebrate is “the best mission moment.”
“This liturgy is a ‘mass,’” he said, similar to a commissioning ceremony. “Today, we bless our graduates and send them to go in peace to love and serve the Lord.”
Kamanzi also reminded students and guests that the Eucharistic, celebrated during the service, is a time of thanksgiving. In addition to thanking God, students should also give thanks for parents, families and friends who gave support during their college years.
The ceremony also acknowledges sacrifice, which he reminded students was “an act of making sacred.” Their education, rooted in the Franciscan ideals begun by the Bernardine Sisters, comes with a special responsibility. “We send you to the world to continue the practical inspiration from the Franciscan values” encountered at Alvernia College.
“I pray that you do your mission in a spirit of joy.”
Prior to the mass, graduating students and faculty participated in a “hooding” ceremony. This custom, in which faculty members lay a “chaperone” or hood on the student’s gown, is an academic tradition dating back to medieval times. The hood represents the student’s advancement within the academic community and the hood’s color represents the student’s field of study.
For more information about Alvernia College, call (888) ALVERNIA
Updated:
December 19, 2006
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