08/18/2026
Welcome, parents, grandparents, supporters, students, and teachers, to the 2026-2027 academic year. We can’t help but sing forth our praises, our doxology to the Triune God for this beautiful summer morning, for Beth Derech Christian School, for a new year, for the gift of life, the gift of children, and the gift of learning about our Creator and His creation.
In lockstep with the Holy Spirit and empowered by His divine grace, we shall strive to the highest standards of the classical Christian tradition. We are committed to Christian character and faith formation. We are zealous in encouraging students to grow in knowledge, wisdom, and the love of our Lord, so that they may use what they have been given by God in service of the Missio Dei—the service of Christ, His Church, and His creation.
A Beth Derech Christian education is built on the enduring foundation of The Majestic Curriculum that was laid stone by stone over the centuries by giants like Ambrose, Jerome, and Augustine. A foundation composed of the three ancient languages (Hebrew, Greek, and Latin) that lifted the veil of the imagination of Western Civilization. An education that strives to harness the power of the written word through the art of Aphthonius’ progymnasmata so that our students may understand the responsibility they have been entrusted with: words create worlds. Lastly, it is an education that embodies deep reading of the classics (the greatest works ever written) and scripture (the greatest work ever written) to develop wisdom, virtue, and a living faith.
Students, welcome to the first day of greatness. Remember this day. This is no ordinary Monday. No—this is the day you embarked on the greatest education to ever exist—a classical Christian education. You are about to embark on a journey—a journey into a conversation that has steered the course of human history. You will behold the glory of Eden and weep with God at its loss. You will triumphantly march through seas with Moses and struggle through the wilderness with the devastating problem of sin and see God’s resolution in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. You will argue with Socrates, Aristotle, and Cicero and understand what it is to be a lover of wisdom. You will learn to imagine Christ's Kingdom with Augustine, in the City of God, to see how Jesus is the destiny and fulfillment of all things.
As I look upon the future generation before me and think about the challenges that lie ahead for you, not only in your studies but also in your lives, I think about what encouragement, what exhortation I may offer this morning. As I reflect on the past and the nature of the Church—I think about how the church began as an insignificantly small community of weak and poor persecuted outcasts, but grew to become the largest religion on the face of the earth. The people of God have endured every imaginable horror and obstacle that Hell could devise through the millennia and overcame them all. They have seen the rise and fall of the greatest civilizations the world has ever produced. Titans of the earth like Persia, Greece, and Rome. Yet, it is only God’s Kingdom that remains. The church has not only outlasted all others but has also advanced human civilization and flourishing across the globe without needing to lift a sword. That is real power! But how was Christianity able to do this Herculean feat? How could a movement begun by a peasant carpenter from a backwater village of the Roman Empire become the most influential and transformative force ever to exist?
These civilizations, as great as they were, didn’t understand (as the world still doesn’t today) that a sword, power, money, and social prestige are no match for the way, the Truth, and the life. There is more than merely natural means shaping this world. The world is enchanted, as G.K. Chesterton would say, enchanted by God.
Students, each one of you is a miracle of God, and we believe that each of you is destined for greatness. You have parents who love you and teachers who have a divine calling for formation. All that is needed is for you to persevere, never give up, and never surrender an inch to the enemy. And who is your enemy? The devil and the works of the flesh that plague this world: apathy, sloth, avarice, despair, self-centeredness, and conceit. Those small early church communities were devastated and persecuted many times, but they never gave up. Those believers who have come before you held fast to the Truth, and it was always Christ whom they grounded their anchor—and if this standard of Christianity is going to continue, so must you—ad astra per aspera (to the stars through difficulties).
We hope that you have a wonderful school year and put into practice what you learn as much as you can. We hope that you persevere in your studies and never give up. And we pray that you will add to those Greek and Roman cardinal virtues of prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude the indomitable Christian virtues of faith, hope, and love.
Students, honor and obey your parents and teachers, for this is right in the Lord’s eyes. Be charitable to your classmates and always think of other people first, for like you, they are made in the imago Dei—the image of God. You are heirs to a kingdom that surpasses epochs and empires, and the citizens of that kingdom are looking upon you and celebrating your race. Run the race that God has set before you! Work hard and have a year that changes your life!
Opening School Convocation Address
Nathan Collins
Headmaster/ Logic and Rhetoric Teacher
Beth Derech Christian School of Discipleship
