Our Crest

Our school is named after St. Benedict of Nursia, the monk and founder of a monastic community that helped to preserve the works of Western civilization after the collapse of the Roman empire. Like St. Benedict, we aspire to preserve and pass on our Western intellectual and spiritual heritage to our children.

The center of the crest contains the back of the St. Benedict medal. Each letter stands for one word in Latin. Here is an explanation of the meaning of the letters from the Order of St. Benedict website:

On the back of the medal, the cross is dominant. On the arms of the cross are the initial letters of a rhythmic Latin prayer: Crux sacra sit mihi lux! Nunquam draco sit mihi dux! (May the holy cross be my light! May the dragon never be my guide!).

In the angles of the cross, the letters C S P B stand for Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti (The cross of our holy father Benedict).

Above the cross is the word pax (peace), that has been a Benedictine motto for centuries. Around the margin of the back of the medal, the letters V R S N S M V - S M Q L I V B are the initial letters, as mentioned above, of a Latin prayer of exorcism against Satan: Vade retro Satana! Nunquam suade mihi vana! Sunt mala quae libas. Ipse venena bibas! (Begone Satan! Never tempt me with your vanities! What you offer me is evil. Drink the poison yourself!)

The second salient feature on our crest is the raven. According to a biography of St. Benedict, the saint used to feed a raven in the wilderness. Once, when a jealous priest tried to kill Benedict with a poisoned piece of bread, the raven, at Benedict's bidding, took the bread away to a place where it couldn't harm anyone.

Our Motto

SAPIENTIA, FIDES, VIRTUS

Our Latin motto states the three major characteristics we hope to instill in our students: wisdom, faith, and virtue.