As we have our Festive Fridays this month, I hope we can all look around and acknowledge the people in our community who are celebrating the values that they find most important to them. At St. Luke’s, we should continue to allow students and faculty to celebrate the holidays they choose and encourage them also to learn about the holidays that are celebrated by others.

There is no reason to ignore holidays and religions because they are always present in the communities around us. The student government has adopted this stance and is currently taking steps to embrace all holidays. 

Macy Millones ‘23, a ninth-grade class representative, said, “[St. Luke’s] has allow[ed] students to bring in the decorations they choose to put up in the Commons,” and the school has, therefore, allowed students to determine what is being celebrated in the school. While this is a promising start, there is more St. Luke’s could do to use holidays as an opportunity to learn about other countries and their celebrations. 

Not only could we link the history of holidays and religion to what we’re learning in school, but we could also make an effort to travel to different places of worship. Perhaps we can start celebrating holidays by learning about them in town meeting. We could also play holiday movies, regardless of how many or how few people within our community celebrate them.

As open-mindedness is a value of the St. Luke’s community, we have a great reason to discover cultures other than those that are prominent at St. Luke’s. While there are some people in the school who do not celebrate holidays or associate with religions, I still believe all have a right to celebrate what they value. Additionally, we can take opportunities to learn about the beliefs of non-religious people, especially in the months with fewer holidays. 

Next time you see a peer who honors a different religion than yours, ask them about it, and you’ll be able to start expanding your understanding of all religions.