The Cristo Rey Torch

Transcription

1 The Cristo Rey Torch Vol. III, No. 1 Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School * 680 W Peachtree, Atlanta, GA Wednesday, October 28, 2015 Pilgrim s Progress Cristo Rey students pay a visit to the pope Benton Thompson, IV Six students from the Cristo Rey 2018 sophomore class were given the opportunity to see the pope on September 26, 2016 in Philadelphia. They traveled to Philadelphia by van with two courageous chaperones: Mr. Soares and Mrs. Bush. Carlos Ramirez was interviewed before leaving for the trip. When he found out that he was selected, he was shocked and excited to have been given the opportunity to go see Pope Francis. His expectations for the trip were that it would be a pilgrimage, not a vacation, and that they would be living a simple life in community while on the pilgrimage. Lastly, Carlos was asked how he expected this trip to impact his life, and he answered, One never knows what to expect, but in every pilgrimage, someone always comes back changed, and becomes a better person." Jaqueline Montes-Espericueta said she found Pope Francis s speeches and the opportunity to see him up close to be the most powerful part of her trip. His words at Independence Hall have caused her to be open to anyone's ideas, to welcome people, to continue her culture and traditions, to not to be afraid to show who she really is, and lastly to not be discouraged because everyone has a gift to show. She has many great memories, but the best one is seeing millions of people in Philadelphia from different cultures and religions all coming together to receive the pope in the Mass of the Family. New Beginnings Cristo Rey Atlanta will be getting a new home Malcolm Delfish On September 24th, Cristo Rey was blessed with the news that the school was moving to a new building. President Bill Garrett gathered all of the students into the great room and explained to the student body that the school was running out of space and needed a new building. Cont. p. C2

2 A2 SCHOOL NEWS Freshmen Adjustments Jahdirah Wilkinson, Eunique Banner, & Kennedy Harris s Just as sophomores did last year, the class of 2019 is working on the adjustment to being a Cristo Rey student. Eighty four percent of students stated that it was their dreams and future goals that inspired them to come to Cristo Rey. Still, on the first day, 94% of students reported not knowing what to expect. Seventy-eight percent believed that homework was the hardest thing about the school, but now are taking advantage of study hall and 9th period. On a positive note, 9th graders have had little trouble getting to know their classmates. Eighty percent now report knowing five or more students well. The freshmen have many questions about how to survive at Cristo Rey. The most common questions are about time management, studying, extracurricular activities, how to deal with stress, and balancing work and homework on the same day. If these struggles are real for you, read on for expert advice! Q: How do you manage your time? A: After getting home, take a mini-break so you could settle down; go do chores. Don t procrastinate because time goes by quickly. Divide your hours of homework and free time, if you have it. -Lizeth Morales, 10th grade Q: How do you balance your homework and going to work on the same day? A: Depending on what time you leave for work [you might] have some time to start on your homework. Sometimes the work-study program will give you down time, that way you ll finish early but don t wait until the last minute. -Juan Garcia 10th grade Q: How do you not give up? A: Ask for help and [do] not stay in the shadows. It s better to be with someone than to handle it alone. -Juan Garcia, 10th grade Everyone knows the feeling of anxiety, especially the freshman at this high school. However, these words from the sophomores demonstrate that by taking strategies and putting them to good use, students can learn to be more organized and prepared for their classes this year and years to come.

3 A3 Jada Milligan & Melanie Mata s SCHOOL NEWS Drafted to Success On August 14 Cristo Rey held its second Draft Day. Dressed in their business attire, freshmen and sophomores waited impatiently, ready to seize the day and get assigned to their companies. When it was finally time to go to the All Saints Episcopal Church for the ceremony, all anyone could see was a line of students along the sidewalk dressed in gray and white with teachers here and there. The seats of the church were filled with students in their business attire, businessmen and women occupied the back rows, camera crews stood nearby, and a news broadcaster at the front happily waited to announce the names of the students. Freshman Nala Bishop, assigned to Airgas Specialty Products where oxygen tanks are made, said that she was nervous and excited prior to Draft Day. When it finally came, she was more enthusiastic about finally getting a job. When freshman Chloe Simon, assigned to Alston & Bird, law firm, learned what her job would be, she didn t know what to expect, but she had an open mind. Once Chloe went to her job site during the Corporate Work Study Program (CWSP) orientation, she knew what type of environment she was going to be working in. She now believes that she will fit into her company perfectly because her co-workers are goofy and they like to have fun. Sophomore Tre vion Williams works at Invesco, a stock and trade company, and said that he was overjoyed that he gets to work at the same company he worked at last year and to see his former coworkers again. Despite the nervousness and anxiety of the students, they can t wait for Draft Day to happen again. I love the food at my job, one word to describe my job is delicious! -Nala Bishop, 9th (D Youville) I love doing projects that involve my own personality and tastes! Cassandra Canales, 9th, (Drexel) My job has a lot to offer, I always have different projects! Solomon Hill, 9th, (Toussaint) You re invited to Cristo Rey's first official... Dance!Dance!Dance! November 20th from 6 to 8 p.m.

4 B1 OPINION Do Animals Pray? Pious Parakeets? The matter of free will Kennedy Harris One question that I have always wondered the answer to is if animals pray or not. Do dogs open up their doggy bibles and read? Do birds sing songs of prayer? How do animals connect with God? According to Father Van Dyke and Father Kenny, animals pray by being their best animal selves. Birds sing songs of worship to give God glory. Dolphins tilt their heads backwards and show God thanks. Are animals closer to God because they give praise in a different way? As we have learned in Father Kenny's religion class, humans were put here to have dominion over the animals. Animals unlike humans weren t made with consciousness. What if that lack of consciousness actually makes them closer to God? Animals can hear and see the unknown and unseen; for example, they can sense natural disasters and even death. Maybe this shows that God values animals more because he gave them special powers. Animals may get warnings of danger while they are being their best selves and that s why sometimes they stop and stare. Only God will know how animals truly praise him. Animals might even be oblivious to the higher spirit that created them. Who knows? All I know is that, at the end of the day, animals and humans all praise God in a different way. Eunique Banner Of course animals don t pray! Animals are simple-minded creatures that cannot have an understanding of religion. The definition of prayer is a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or an object of worship. I believe that animals don t pray because they have no reason to and also that God never gave animals specifically the right of free will as He did with Adam and Eve. Animals, soulless and ignorant, do not have the ability to pray or even comprehend religion. Although the Bible says that animals, in fact, do go to Heaven, there are a lot of other absurd ideas and beliefs within its many passages. Luke 3:6 states, And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. Typically, when the Bible refers to something as being in the flesh, it is alluding to humans. Metaphorically speaking, how could a dog possible be able to comprehend a higher being and pray to it when it spends all day chasing its own tail? There is, logically, no way that animals are able to pray.

5 C1 SPORTS Flame Spotlight: Naol Hulufe Melanie Mata & Eunique Banner s Exclusive Interview with new AD Meet History Teacher and Athletic Director, Mr. Straube Benton Thompson IV Tell me what the sports are that we have here at Cristo Rey. We have boys and girls cross country, girls volleyball, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, and boys baseball. Student Naol Hulufe has always had a forte for running. However, when Naol first learned he would be competing in the varsity race at the Dominion Dash on September 19, he felt uneasy. His competitors were mostly seniors, and it was not the race he prepared for. Although Naol started the race slow, he eventually picked up the pace and caught up with the front runners. He won his first varsity race with a time of 19:52. The race was not easy for Naol because he did not like leaving his teammates behind, but he knew that he needed to in order to run his best race. He has had running experience all his life but didn't join a cross country team until the age of thirteen. Before moving here he used to live in a mountainous area in Ethiopia where he would practice running with his friends. His dedication did not stop there; he would also run a mile or two everyday at six in the morning! Apart from everything, he knows that teamwork is most important, "If they don t win, I don t win,if they lose, I lose." To Naol the most important aspect of it all is having great teamwork and feeling comfortable with his cross country team. When are these sports coming? Cross country and girls volleyball will take place during the fall. Basketball will be in the winter. Baseball and soccer will begin in the spring. What are your expectations for this year's sports teams? I expect all student athletes to give 100% effort. All sports will be competitive and have games this year. Will you ever practice and interact with our student athletes? Yes. I will also be the coach for the boys baseball team.

6 C2 Regan Riley Tenbite Tesfaye Elizabeth Rodriguez s Serve s Up! The game at KIPP Collegiate on Thursday September 17, 2015 marked the real commencement of Cristo Rey s volleyball team. After over two weeks of tough after-school practice almost every day, Cristo Rey s girls volleyball team debuted under the coaching of Ms. Melissa Beam and Mr. Ivan Soares. The Cristo Rey Volleyball team played a total of three volleyball games this year which is a drastic improvement from last year. The girls learned teamwork, communication, and strategy. The volleyball season is over for now but the team will still be warming up for next season so that they may set the net on fire next season. The team practiced three days a week until 6 p.m. Many players chose to practice after, therefore extending practices to around 6:15 or 6:30. Sometimes, when games were coming up, they stayed after school on Fridays to be able to do well in the game. Overall, the girls on the volleyball team have worked hard, and are ready to work harder, to represent the Cristo Rey Flames. Viva Cristo Rey! SPORTS Cont. from front page He gave the students visuals of the building along with plenty of information. After delivering the great news, the students awarded him with a huge round of applause. The new building is located on 22 Piedmont Avenue at a soaring seven-story building with a two-deck parking garage. Cristo Rey will be relocating to the new site during the school year. The students are very thankful for the new space. Isela Benitez said, "The new school will be amazing, large, and better than Cristo Rey's current location. I will feel no significant loss moving from our current building. There will be more space and opportunities and an actual gym." Monick Umana said," I like the new building and have no real attachments to this building. I'm looking forward to having more space in the common area. Right now it's too crowded and there's nowhere to put your stuff." Students and staff are optimistic about the move. The Cristo Rey Torch Staff would like to thank all of the faculty, staff, and students for their contributions. Without their help, we would not have been able to complete our first issue of the Cristo Rey Torch. Sincerely, Benton Thompson IV Malcolm Delfish Jadirah Wilkinson Kennedy Harris Eunique Banner Jada Milligan Melanie Mata Regan Riley Elizabeth Rodriguez Amani Clark & Tenbite Tesfaye