On the seventh Sunday of Easter, we always read from the seventeenth chapter of John's Gospel. This chapter of John's Gospel comes at the conclusion of Jesus' farewell discourse delivered to the disciples at the Last Supper. This entire chapter is a prayer by Jesus, commending himself to the Father and expressing his care and concern for his disciples. At the end of this prayer, Jesus and his disciples depart for the garden, and Jesus is arrested.

Several important themes appear in this prayer. First, Jesus' prayer reaffirms the complete union between himself and the Father. Throughout John's Gospel, Jesus has been presented as the one who preexisted with the Father and as the one sent by the Father to do his work on earth. In today's reading, we hear Jesus include all his disciples in this union with the Father. We are reminded that Christ is the source of Christian unity. Through Christ, we are united with one another and with God Our Father.

In this prayer, Jesus describes part of his mission in the language of protection. He has protected those who were given to him by the Father. In this we hear echoes of the dualism that is reflected throughout John's Gospel. Beginning with the opening chapter, the Evangelist John has presented Jesus' mission on earth in the context of a cosmic struggle between good and evil, represented by light and darkness. In Jesus' presence, his disciples have been protected from Satan. Now that Jesus is returning to the Father, he prays that his disciples will continue to be protected from the evil one. We can't help but note here the echoes of the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, the Lord's Prayer.

We also see in this chapter the distinction found in John's Gospel between the world and the disciples. The disciples are in the world, but they do not belong to the world. Yet like Jesus, they are sent into the world for the world's salvation. As Jesus' teaching and ministry was a source of consternation for some, Jesus knows that the world may not accept his disciples with open arms. Again, we hear echoes of John's theme that salvation is worked out through the cosmic battle between light and darkness. The world, according to John, prefers the darkness. Yet the light will not be overcome by the darkness.

Reading this prayer of Jesus during the Easter Season, through the lens of his Resurrection, we know that the light of Christ has overcome the darkness of sin and death in our world. In the opening line of this prayer, we hear Jesus pray that his disciples will be kept in the name that he was given by God. We know that the salvation is given to us in the name of Jesus, and that his name—“God saves”—announces his mission on our behalf. (Loyola Press)

We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with the pandemic. It was great news to see that San Mateo County is in the yellow tier now.

This will be a year not to be forgotten by all. On the other hand, my heart goes out to the people in India who are experiencing the wrath of the virus. We are seeing devastating images on the news with the death of thousands of people.

The virus is getting now to remote villages in the Himalayas, where I have friends living. They are praying that they will receive the vaccine soon. Let us keep in our prayers all those people in countries where the vaccine is taking time to be distributed to them.

As we wind down the school year, I wish to share some of the end of year activities:

1. Student Body Farewell Mass for the 8th graders will be on Tuesday, June 1st at 9am with a live stream. Followed by a buddy activity between 1st grade and 8th graders.

2. 8th grade drive through celebration on Wednesday, June 2nd at 7pm on the school grounds.

3. 8th grade Graduation Mass at 6pm on June 3rd in the Church.

4. Book and laptop drop-offs on Thursday, June 10th between 1pm to 4pm at the front office.

5. End of Year Farewell Mass on June 11th in the Church at 9:30am.

6. Last day dismissal starting at 10:50am.

Dismissal times are as follows:

10:50am - Kindergarten

10:55am - Grade 1

11:00am - Grade 2

11:05am - Grades 3 - 5

11:15am - Grades 6 - 8

Fun Run

We had a very successful fun run this year with the profits going to the new window blinds in the classrooms. Thanks to everyone for your generous support. We made over $40,000 towards the blinds.

Vaccine for 12-year-olds and up

As you are aware, the vaccine is available now for 12-year-olds and up. It is advisable that you have your child vaccinated over the next few weeks. You can obtain more information from: https://www.childrenshospital.org/conditions-and-treatments/conditions/c/coronavirus/vaccine

School Year 2021-2022

It is appearing we will be resuming a normal school year starting in August. We will be able to offer Outdoor Education to the 6th and 7th graders in April and the Washington DC trip for the 8th graders in May.

Enrollment 2021-2022

I will need all your efforts in assisting in obtaining more students for the next school year. Our Kindergarten class is the lowest it has been in 14 years, and we have vacancies in other grades. Unfortunately, the pandemic has forced some of our families out of the bay area. So, let’s rally together to get our enrollment to where it was prior to the pandemic at 280 students.

Staffing 2021–2022

I am pleased to say that all our teachers will be returning back for the next school year, and we are very fortunate to have a well-qualified group of dedicated teachers serving your families. God Bless them.

Carnival

To conclude the school year, the Parish is hosting a carnival with all the rides from the parish festival that we use to have in the past. It will be held from June 11th to June 13th. The rides will be arriving on the site on Wednesday, June 9th after school. There will be changes to drop-off and pick-up on Thursday (June 10th) and Friday (June 11th).

The Little Spanish-English School Donation

Mrs. Allen organized a successful donation of educational items for The Little Spanish-English School. The school's president sent a thank you letter to all the families that contributed. Please see letter attached.

God Bless,

Vincent Riener

Principal

Dear All Souls Families,

You can now pay and add credit to your child/children's cafeteria account through SchoolSpeak. Your payment will be processed through PayPal with a 3% convenience fee for all transactions.

Sign-in to your SchoolSpeak account and select "Lunch Order" in the quick links menu on the left. The "Pay" tab will direct you to your payment options. You may pay the cafeteria balance through your existing PayPal account or as a guest using your credit or debit card. You may also add credit to your child/children's cafeteria account. If you wish, you may still make cash or check payments to the school office.

Please note, for the families that have a credit card on file I will no longer be charging your credit card for lunch payments. You are responsible for paying and adding credit to your cafeteria account.

Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Regards,

Ms. Escobar

17- Staff Dev. Mtg. - 12:20 Dismissal

18- School Board Mtg. - 6:30pm

20- School Assembly - 2:30pm

31- Memorial Day - Holiday

1- Student Body Farewell Mass - 9am

2- 8th Grade Drive Through on School Grounds - 7:00pm

3- 8th Grade Graduation Mass - 7pm

6- School Family Mass - 9am

7- Early Dismissal - 2:30pm - Faculty Meeting

9- Principal's Awards Ceremony - 9am

9- Minimum Day - 12:20pm Dismissal - Faculty Meeting

10- Grade K - 7 Laptop and Books Drop-Off - 1:00pm - 4:00pm

10- Minimum Day - 12:20pm Dismissal - Faculty Meeting

11- End of Year Celebration Mass - 9:30am

11- Last Day of School - Dismissal begins 10:50am

Please check with all providers regarding current summer program dates, times,

and other important information.