CANNONBALL MOMENTS

One of the countless graces experienced in my role at Regis Jesuit is the opportunity to observe inspiring teaching and learning. Whether a scheduled classroom visit or an informal pop-in, one will find our teachers and students engaged in all sorts of activities, lessons and discussions nurturing growth. Occasionally, on retreat, at Service Projects or in the classroom, we experience what Ignatian educators call a “cannonball moment,” referring to the cannonball that shattered St. Ignatius’s leg at the fort in Pamplona, ultimately changing the trajectory of his life. Both teachers and students may encounter these ineffable moments, calling us to reconsider our identity and way of proceeding.

Before teaching my very first class as an educator, I was amped. Actually, I was on fire. Armed with my newly acquired degrees, I was drenched with Jesus, oozing spirituality and Church knowledge, ready to transform young people’s lives. In my naïve mind, students would hang on every word, comply, and bask in the sacred space that would be my classroom. All I needed was the Bible, the Catechism and the Spiritual Exercises and look out. I strutted into Sophomore Scripture ready to impart my wisdom (or lack thereof). During the second class meeting of the week, one of my students started moaning and blood seeped from his mouth. I panicked, sprang out of my room, yelled down to the Dean’s Office for help and ran back into the class. The student, Andy, was smiling and the class was chuckling. Andy had used two fake blood capsules to prank his teacher. Cannonball.

In my vain and misguided attempt to be not only a boat, but an aircraft carrier for souls, I had failed to enter into relationship. My pride, ego and immaturity blocked opportunities to really know my students. Andy taught me that I was not the biggest thing in the room. However, neither was he nor the other students. God is the greatest thing in the classroom and experienced most profoundly through the relationships between teachers and students. I quickly learned that theology was the beginning of my work, not the end. I learned to teach students, not a subject. I learned how to create an atmosphere where the most important elements in the room are the human beings. The pathway to God is relationship. Be, but be together.

Our teachers at Regis Jesuit create safe spaces for our students to be vulnerable. Whether the particular period is student-centered or teacher-centered, group work or a Socratic seminar, a presentation or a quiz on Canvas, the pastoral presence and affect are evident. I witness these relationships, and, every so often, the cannonball moments of our teachers and students—moments where the trajectory of their lives could be changed and where God becomes more present.

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Jimmy Tricco is in his second year as principal of Regis Jesuit. He generally writes for Inspire & Ignite once a month.