I have been associated with the family of the Sacred Heart for the past thirty-four years; this campus has been the site of my most rewarding experiences as a teacher and a parent; it has been the source of my dearest and longest lasting friendships; it is, truly, my second home.

It is indeed a great pleasure and honour to have been asked to speak today to the first graduating class of the Fountain Academy of the Sacred Heart. This beautiful Nova Scotia spring day is one that has been long dreamed of, prayed for, and hard won by the contributions of many, many people. Thank you for letting me share it with you.

Our beloved and iconic former Pope, John Paul II, in his Apostolic Letter "Novo Millennio Ineunte", issued in 2000, at the close of the great Jubilee Year and looking forward to the third millennium after the birth of Jesus, focused on the following phrase, which he was to use repeatedly in addresses, homilies, and other communications during his papacy: “Duc et altum!” – “Put out into the deep.” The phrase is taken from the Gospel of St Luke, Chapter 5, verses 2 – 6.

“Duc in altum - Put out into the deep." In that simple phrase we are told that with God's help, anything and everything can be accomplished, as indeed it was when Simon Peter accepted Jesus’ command to “lower the nets”. Our presence here today is the result of many people who accepted that command…………………………

Well, today we see the culmination of those efforts I have described: a graduating class that has distinguished itself academically, athletically, and in a variety of extra-curricular activities, such as debate, music and drama; a group of young men of whom we can all be as proud as their parents surely are. Perhaps our nets are not as full yet as those of the Apostles, but the catch has been rich indeed.

And where is “the deep” for all of us? We know that it is a dark and scary place, as it was for Simon Peter. He and his brothers had truly labored all night and caught nothing, but they had, like so many of us, remained safely close to shore, in a sheltered harbor, unwilling to venture into the deep waters where sudden storms and tumultuous waves put their livelihoods and, in fact, their lives at risk.

The “deep” is a place of war, pestilence, famine, and death; a place of suffering, and above all, a place of fear and uncertainty. And even when we hear the words of Jesus, “Do not be afraid,” without a deep faith – one of the goals of Sacred Heart education – it will be difficult, if not impossible, to find the courage to venture into that place, much less to struggle against it.

The “deep” is also a place of swirling tides of superficiality. The great Protestant theologian Paul Tillich observed that the tragedy of the modern world was not so much its myriad social and psychological problems as the superficiality of our response to them. “Modern man,” he wrote, “has lost the capacity to go into the depth of things.” A Sacred Heart education that emphasizes a respect for intellectual values, and a belief that there is such a thing as Truth that is worth seeking, will enable you to move beyond the superficiality of the culture around us and to live your lives as joyful witnesses to truth and the often hidden beauty of God’s creation.

You must “put out into the deep” to fulfill the school’s call to “Engage the World”, for it is only in “the deep” that you will be able to build a community of hope, only in “the deep” that your commitment to social justice will be tested and bear fruit, only in “the deep” that you will continue the personal growth that has been encouraged at Sacred Heart…………………………

I have made reference several times to a “boys’ school”, but with today’s graduation, you have become men. It is good, then, to recall the words of St Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians: "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. But, when I became a man, I put away childish things. We see now as through a glass, darkly; but then face to face. Now, I know in part; but then, I shall know even as I am known. And now there remain faith, hope, and love, these three: but the greatest of these is love."

What this means for you, the first graduates of the Fountain Academy of the Sacred Heart, is that you are called to a life of service, to God, in whatever way you know God, and to other people. That service will be devoted first to your family but also to the broader community. “Duc in altum.” At every point in your lives, there will be countless opportunities to use your knowledge, skills, and character to serve others, if only you will “put out into the deep.”

Thank you and God bless you.