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The Launchpad

Mount St. Mary
Catholic High School

Vol. 2 / Issue 3

BE YOUR BEST ALWAYS


“At the Christ Child’s birth, only two groups of people heard the cry: the Shepherds, who know they know nothing, and the Wise Men, those who know they do not know everything. The very simple, the very learned ...Never the man who thinks that he knows everything.””
Bishop Fulton Sheen
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MSM Chritsmas Music
Eva Winkler

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     According to a recent music survey, Mariah Carey holds the title for Most Popular Christmas Song at The Mount, but a beloved annual commercial showed up also. 

     “All I Want for Christmas is You” came in first at 4.9%. “Jingle bells” came in second place with 4.1%. After that, there was a seven-way tie for third place. “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “Last Christmas,” “O Holy Night,” “White Christmas,” “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber, and The BC Clark Jingle all tied at 2.5%. 

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Confused? So were we!

​    There were a few outlying answers that were quite interesting.  Chase Maloy, Mr. Charley Finsel, and Mr. Burns said th eir favorite Christmas song is Grandma got Run Over by a Reindeer. Mr. Cleary said that Little Drummer Boy (the original one!) was his favorite. An unexpected answer was Mr. Randy Garibay’s “Tejano Christmas.” A few students, including Pryce Jeffries, said that all Christmas music is good. While a grinch answered that “All Christmas Music is bad.”

     Junior Sofia Shelepwich said that she has been listening to Christmas music since after Thanksgiving. She said, “It just makes me happy and always puts me in a good mood.” Rylee Riddle agreed by adding, “Christmas music just brings me so much joy.” 

     Jack Mancino said that “I think Christmas music is a good way to celebrate the season, especially because songs tend to align themselves with the ‘true spirit’ of Christmas, generosity, solidarity, kindness, and worship.” 
​

     The Mount community is looking forward to the Christmas season and a well-deserved break.
​

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Semester recap
Kedon Gumerson andJames Wildes III

     This semester has been a crazy one: Covid, ice storms, power outages, and quarantine. Even though this first semester was undoubtedly an adjustment from years past, it was still a good and fun one. 

     It was a great semester for sports. The volleyball team made it to the state championship, the football team made it to the playoffs, and cross-country went to state. On top of that, we grew closer as a Mount community. Like when we came together to clean the fallen tree limbs from the ice storm. 

     “When coming to campus to help clean up, I hung out with a lot of people that I don’t normally hang out with and got to meet some underclassmen. It helped us to come together as a school community," said Eva Winkler.

     There were other highlights of this semester as well.

    “My favorite part of this semester was seeing all the new and returning faces and seeing them after the summer. The way this school year has been, it’s just seeing everyone back together," commented Mr. Burns.

     That’s something that we have needed. Togetherness. Because nothing can grow or become stronger without going through adversity. So, yes, this semester has been full of hardship. But perhaps that’s what we needed.
​
​     After all, this semester has genuinely brought our Mount Community together.

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Used by permission www.honoreliseart.com Artist: Honor Elise.

Basketball home season opener interviews
KEDON GUMERSON AND JAMES WILDES III

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​​     Friday night, December 11, was the MSM Rocket Basketball Home Games opener, and it was a success.  After all Rocket basketball wins, we talked to some players about the games. 

     How were you able to have such a fantastic game on defense?
 "It's a credit to the whole team we all worked together and communicated, and that's how good teams play,"
Cayden Garza. 

     How did you rack up SEVEN steals? 
"I didn't know I had seven steals, but it doesn't matter. I was going to play my game and not worry about the stats" Jaxson Daniels. 

     How different was it having no fans for home games? 
"It was a little weird, but we didn't stress about it. We just had to create our own energy, and I played hard, and I did what I do, so it felt good,"
Diante Palmer. 

     Kedon Gumerson spoke to Ashlanne Fuentes about how not having fans helped? 

     "There was a difference without fans being there, but the bench helped after the shots," Ashlanne Fuentes. 

     Congratulations to Ashlanne Fuentes on her game winning free throws!
​
     Overall it was a first-class night for Rocket Basketball, and they will be back in action soon. Watch all the games on NFHS Network!

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Who is santa claus?​
Kedon Gumerson AND LANDON KENNEDY RIGGS

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It seems Santa Claus may be part of our faculty.

Editor’s note: Ace Reporters Kedon Gumerson and Landon Riggs, have cold hard proof that Santa Claus may be on campus and may even teach a class. Following is their report:

     Having to dig through the evidence was no easy task. We interviewed faculty and students and asked them who they thought it might be. Some people thought it might be Mr. Carey. Some Mr. Woodward, Mr. Burlison, THE Mr. Ruiz, and even Coach A. 

     However, out of everyone we interviewed, most thought it was the one and only Mr. Burns. 

         We decided to follow this lead and see where it would take us. We wanted to set up an interview with Mr. Burns to see if this theory was correct. He was suspiciously not at school that morning. Could it have been due to him being in the North Pole helping the elves prepare for Christmas? We weren’t quite sure, but we wanted to look further into the “Mr. Burns is Santa Claus theory.”

     We were able to land an interview with Mr. Burns’ son, Anthony Burns. Going in, we expected to find that Anthony lived in the North Pole himself, so he may try to keep his dad’s secret. Surprisingly, he didn’t completely deny the theory. We asked him directly if his father was, in fact, Santa Claus.

     “If he was a bit older, he could most definitely have a similar beard,” he quickly responded. 

     The response wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t a no either. It was such a quick response. Our theory was that Anthony was trying to hide something. It could be like the Santa Clause, and Mr. Burns is slowly changing right about now.

     We decided to question Anthony further. When asked if Mr. Burns wasn’t at school that day because he was in the North Pole, Anthony responded with a “No comment.”

     That response seemed to confirm our theory. It was clear to us that Anthony was hiding something, and Mr. Burns was nowhere near campus.

     With the evidence, and what was essentially a confirmation from Anthony Burns, our investigation led us to the conclusion that Mr. Burns could, in fact, be Santa Claus. 
​

     It may be true, and it may not. Just in case:
Mr. Burns, if you’re reading this, we would like an A in all our classes for Christmas. 



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MSM's favorite Christmas movie is …. 
ryan wagner and tucker resolute

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      Elf came in as MSM's favorite Christmas movie.

     Home Alone was a close second. Elf had 21% of the votes, and Home Alone had 20.3% of the vote. Some other popular movies were The Grinch and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. The least selected movie was Holiday Inn, a 1942 musical, and tied for second to last were the films Scrooged, a Bill Murray comedy, and Four Christmases, a comedy.  

     Mr. Sartorius’ favorite Christmas movie is Home Alone 2. “It was one of my first memories when my dad came back from Iraq,” he explained, “I enjoyed the humor and fantasy of a wild child’s movie.”
​
     Our beloved Principal, Mrs. Denegri’s favorite Christmas movie is Elf. “I love Will Ferrell. He is an actor I grew up on.” she said, “I also love the message of Elf, how it tells people to be true to themselves, and that is something I want my students to follow.” The two most popular write-in votes were The Polar Express and The Nightmare Before Christmas.  

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     The vote for best TV special was How the Grinch Stole Christmas with 32.7% of the votes. A Charlie Brown Christmas had 32% of the vote. Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman were running with 15% and 8.2% of the vote, respectively. The least voted was The Year Without a Santa Claus, with 3.2% of the vote.  The two most favored write in TV Specials were The Spongebob Christmas Special and The Best Man Holiday.

     Mr. Carey said, “My favorite Christmas TV special is A Charlie Brown Christmas. I feel like we could all relate to Charlie Brown in some way. I also like the message of true friendship; even though they left Charlie, they supported him when he was the saddest.” 

     Desiree Mayes said her favorite movie is Christmas Vacation. “I liked it because it is hilarious and I watch it with my family every year.” Sophomore Kedon Gumerson said, “My favorite movie is Polar Express because, in my opinion, it is the best childhood Christmas Movie.” Junior Ben Winter said, “My favorite Christmas movie is Elf. I watch every year, and it always cracks me up, and I can’t stop laughing.” Senior Michael Rischard said, “My favorite Christmas special is Rudolph The Rednosed Reindeer. I like the part where Rudolph gets bullied, but in the end, he proves everyone wrong by leading Santa’s Sleigh.” 

     No matter which one is your favorite, go get some popcorn and hot chocolate and watch your favorite with your family this holiday.​

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Christmas Movie Suggestions

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Need some ideas for Christmas movies? Here are some choices. They have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops according to artistic merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating and the Motion Picture Association of America rating.

  1. The Bells of St. Mary's (1945) (A-I) (NR)
  2. The Bishop's Wife (1947) (A-II) (NR)
  3. A Christmas Carol (1951) (A-I) (NR)
  4. A Christmas Carol (2009) (A-I) (PG) 
  5. A Christmas Story (1983) (A-II) (PG)
  6. Christmas with the Kranks (2004) (A-II) (PG)
  7. Come to the Stable (1949) (A-I) (NR)
  8. The Fourth Wise Man (1985) (A-I) (NR)
  9. Fred Claus (2007) (A-II)  (PG)
  10. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) (A-II) (NR) 
  11. Joyeux Noel (2006) (A-II) (PG-13) 
  12. Miracle on 34th Street (1947) (A-II) (NR)
  13. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) (A-I) (G) 
  14. The Nativity Story (2006) (A-I)  (PG) 
  15. The Polar Express (2004) (A-I) (G)
  16. Prancer (1989) (A-I) (G)
  17. The Shop Around the Corner (1940) (A-II) (NR)
  18. Three Godfathers (1948) (A-II) (NR) 
  19. White Christmas (1954) (A-I) (NR)

The True Meaning of Christmas

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From: The True Meaning of Christmas.
mindszenty report/Cardinal Mindszenty Foundation. 
December 2010.
(Used with permission)

​     Just behind The Night before Christmas in popularity is Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Its seasonal message of charity and good will towards all people still strikes a powerful chord, not only in England but also in the United States. Dickens’ morality tale significantly contributed to an evolving Christmas celebration that eclectically emerged from America’s many ethnic and religious traditions. In the 20th century, a secular motif gradually enveloped these traditions, obscuring the true meaning. 

     Most American families have adopted the evolving Christmas traditions without question. What they have failed to understand over the years is that America’s cultural custodians have virtually reinvented a religious holiday. While the decline of Christmas’ spiritual nature started to change in the early 19th century subtly, its demise had rapidly accelerated by the late 20th century. As a religious commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ, Christmas has become buried under an avalanche of shiny gifts, sumptuous meals, festive music, decorative displays, including Christmas trees, lights, garlands, mistletoe, and holly.

     Many Catholics have divided their celebration with a Christmas evening Mass, and perhaps a nativity arrangement, just before assuming the same material characteristics and festivities as their secular counterparts. Christmas’ spiritual and religious features have become so separated from the real meaning that millions of non-believers, what author Shannon Bell called Christmas atheists, enthusiastically celebrate Christmas to receive presents and good cheer. 

     The Christmas buying season has become vitally important to retailers over the past several decades. Because gift-giving and the other aspects of Christmas involve greater economic activity for both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a critical sales period for retailers and businesses. This flurry of spending has also contributed to the dissipation of the spiritual and religious traditions of Christmas. Christmas’ main reason for existing seems to be for the satisfaction of the materialistic needs of believers and unbelievers alike to the near exclusion of Christ.

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​     The word Christmas is an old English word that means Christ’s Mass or, as it came to be when shortened, Christ-Mass. It refers to the celebration of the Lord’s Supper that is the Mass. The earliest mention of the word dates back to 1038 A.D. Christians at that time considered the Lord’s Supper to be the essential part of the celebration of Christ’s birth. Hence it came to be called Christmas.

     During the 20th century, some people found that all references to Christmas, even the most benign, were offensive. Despite its overt secular aspects, America’s celebration of Christmas has inadvertently become a battleground in the culture war. "Over the last several years, there has been a war on Christmas, and fairly overwhelming attempts to strip Christ from Christmas and strip the religious foundation from the holiday," said Wendy Wright, president of the organization Concerned Women for America. 

     While the true meaning of Christmas may not have a cultural, moral, and emotional impact, it does strike at the very fiber of man’s rejection of God, which is central to the cultural battle. Some believe it’s all part of a secular progressive agenda to get Christianity out of the public square. They correctly believe that, using the example of Western Europe and Canada as a guide, it is clear that, if they can remove the obstacle of religion from the public marketplace, it would ease the advancement of the modernist agenda, which includes the legalization of narcotics, euthanasia, the death culture, blocking religious freedom and destruction of the sanctity of marriage. 

     John Gibson, the author of “The War on Christmas: How the Liberals Plot to Ban the Sacred Christian Holiday Is Worse Than You Thought,” realizes the conundrum most retailers face concerning their seasonal advertising. Many large retailers are under severe pressure from boycotts and threats. He is trying to educate the public about which retailers were not afraid to declare Merry Christmas in their advertising. Gibson also points out that the war on Christmas gravitated toward the public school systems all over America. Many school districts have changed their annual celebrations from Christmas to the winter break, or winter solstice, a reversion to a pre-Christian past.

     For God to complete the purpose of Christmas, man must die to his lower instincts. Just the same as plants and lower animals die to their former existence to become something higher. By dying to his willful pride, man can be raised to eternal life. To become a Christian does not mean reading the Bible, singing religious hymns, or just being kind to one’s neighbor. Just as the modern world is bathed in radio and TV waves, only those who are tuned in to His station or the Logos, receive the knowledge and enjoyment of His promise of eternal life. It means sharing the Divinity that came to man in Bethlehem.

     Christmas is not an isolated historical event like the Battle of Waterloo or the assassination of a president. It is a veritable historical watershed that has separated humanity from its pagan ways. From that point, it would be impossible for man to divinize himself and ignore God’s sacrificial love without serious human consequences.

     This process is not easy because God came not to make humans nice people but to radically change them into new creatures. God’s abundant grace is there to inspire humans to put on the new man if they are willing to pay the price of having their moral worthlessness burned in the flames of love. When the life of Christ gets in human beings, they can never be the same. Their human intellect becomes powerless as their wills overflow with grace for pursuing good and avoiding evil. 

     God’s salvation is open to everyone. No one is too unworthy. His love can make even the lowliest of humans blaze with an iridescence that serves as a mirror of His never-ending love for His creation. His salvific love for the least of His brethren was the reason that Jesus was born in a stable on His first night on earth and was surrounded by animals. 

     The only two classes of people who heard the cry that night were the simple shepherds, who knew they knew nothing and the wise men, who knew they do not know everything. Only the very simple and the very learned discovered God that night in the austere confines of a cave. It is not surprising then that most sophisticated people since then have missed or forgotten the salvific nature of Christmas. 

      If human life is ever to be incorporated into the Divine, God must in some way come down to humans. Christ’s birth is that human nature was taken up and elevated into a unity with the Person of God. But Jesus had not made Himself a God, nor was he an ethicist like Confucius, a teacher like Socrates, nor a prophet like Ezekiel, but instead He was True God and true man for He did not cease being God when he assumed a human nature. God will not consume men without their permission. When humans agree to die to the world, the flesh, and the devil, they are open to God’s cleansing love.

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​     Most of the world does not fully recognize or understand Mary’s vital role in the birth of Jesus. At the inauguration of human salvation, the divine plan involves the Virgin Mary. God’s plan for human partnership began when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and asked her to serve as a human vessel for the Son of God. Since God would not violate man’s free will, the plan of salvation may very well have been stifled without her human consent. Mary’s simple fiat in surrendering herself to the Divine scheme of things initiated the greatest story ever told. The Incarnation would not have happened without a human participation. God would not redeem man by taking away his free will. 


     In one of his talks on the Holy Mother, Pope John Paul II clarified Mary’s role in the Christmas message: The fiat of the Annunciation inaugurated the New Covenant between God and the creature. Thanks to Mary, the bond between God and humankind broken by sin is now happily restored. Because of her simple assent, Mary became a flesh and blood ciborium for the Son of God. 

     The name Jesus means Savior. And for humankind, His name meant everything. The real meaning of Christmas then concerns an all-loving God, who so loved His creatures that He sent His only Son to free them from the bondage of their sins through His death and Resurrection so that humankind would have life through Him. For without this first coming of Christ, men could never see the face of God. This truly is the real meaning of Christmas. 

     William A. Borst, Ph.D.
​     http://www.mindszenty.org/


Christmas sing along
​by james wildes

Having a hard time with the video - try clicking here.

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