Celebrating a Sept. 28 Mass marking the 60th anniversary of St. Pius X Regional School in Bowie, Maryland, Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory urged the students and staff to emulate their school’s patron and “be generous and kind and loving.”
“We are all called to be saints, every one of us,” the cardinal said. “There is a special bond with the saint after whom you are named, and I hope you become like that saint.”
Cardinal Gregory was the principal celebrant of the all-school Mass. Concelebrants included Father Michael Jones, the pastor of St. Pius X Parish and the school’s pastoral administrator; and Father Michael Russo, parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Parish in Bowie. In addition to St. Pius X Parish, Sacred Heart parish is one of the four Bowie parishes that sponsor the school. The other parishes are Ascension Parish and St. Edward the Confessor Parish.
Calling the students “a wonderful group of young people,” Cardinal Gregory said that school’s patron saint “spent his whole life getting people to grow in their love of Holy Communion.”
He explained to the students that their school’s patron was originally named Giuseppe Sarto, who took the name Pius X when he was elected pope more than a 100 years ago. He explained that as pope, Pius sought to inspire greater love for the Most Blessed Sacrament among the faithful.
“Because of St. Pius’s great love of the Eucharist, the Church grew – and continues to grow – in holiness, goodness, love and kindness,” Cardinal Gregory told the students. “I hope you learn about this saint because we are all called to be saints, especially saints who contribute to the good of the world.”
School principal Ann Gillespie also noted that it was appropriate that the school was named after the saintly pope because, “he loved children and as a priest, one of his favorite activities was preparing children for Holy Communion.” She noted that at his direction, the age to receive Communion was lowered from the original 12 years old to seven years old.
The parish school at St. Pius X was founded in 1962, and the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Aberdeen, South Dakota originally staffed it until 1965. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania then staffed the school until 1999.
Over the years, the school building and academic offerings have expanded.
In 1965, the school added five classrooms and a convent to the school building. Four additional classrooms were built in 1968. In 1996, a middle school wing was dedicated that includes classrooms, computer lab, an office, bathrooms and other rooms. The curriculum now includes computer, science lab, and Spanish-language classes.
In 1990, it was named a regional school to serve the four parishes of Bowie, and in 2016, the U.S. Department of Education named St. Pius X Regional School as a National Blue Ribbon School.
“For 60 years, St. Pius (school) has formed the hearts and minds of the next generation, and we have also prepared their souls,” Father Jones said. “Today at this Mass we recommit ourselves to just that.”
During the Mass, prayers were offered for the safety and protection of those who have been affected or are in the path of Hurricane Ian, a category 4 storm that slammed into the Gulf Coast of Florida just hours after the Mass was celebrated.
At the end of the Mass, Cardinal Gregory blessed St. Pius X prayer cards for the students and prayed that students “be constant in the faith and be of one accord.”
