Best of the Week 2021-2022: Excellence in College Prep

THEOLOGY STUDENTS PRACTICE "MEDITATION & MINDFULNESS"

Senior Theology students have been practicing mindfulness and meditation at every start of their class period, intentionally focusing on specific mantras, spiritual reflections, or just taking time out of their busy days to sit in silence for a few minutes. "I'm a firm believer in the reality that the first ten minutes of a class period are especially sacred," said Owen Williams '13, Theology teacher. "Making sure my students feel seen, heard, and wholeheartedly welcome in my classroom is essential to my teaching style. Those first few minutes are a good chance for all of us to remember that education, especially in the realm of theology, is really an experience of shared humanity." Acknowledging that senior year Theology could be the last time students take a religious or spiritual academic course in their academic lives, Mr. Williams and Theology Department Chair Chris Merriman try to incorporate world religious practices, including meditation, to help students develop an interiority they can return to for the rest of their lives. Spending up to five minutes each day in meditation helps students practice different methods of intentional breathing and sacred stillness. "These guys live immensely busy, loud lives. Meditation slows them down and requires them to look deeply within their souls," says Mr. Williams. "We try to grow their appreciation for soul-tending and we hope that our graduates will bring their practice of meditation from our classes to their day-to-day life, making a more mindful existence going forward."