“So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners; but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God; built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone; in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God by the Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:19-22)
What a wonderful first few days we’ve had at our three campuses! Nearly 70 new learners and scholars joined the ranks of the Golden Gryphons last week. While it will take some repetition to get everyone’s names down instinctively, the familiar looks of joyful, whimsical, warm, and sometimes anxious anticipation on our students’ faces on day one are a delight for those of us who serve on campus during the day. Each year on the first day of school, the weight and glory of our privileged position as parents and teachers is felt more keenly.
The biblical author, James, writes that not many of us should presume to be teachers because we will be judged more harshly, but sometimes that seems like a small price to pay for the privilege of doing what we do at Capstone. Such a warning makes us reverent, to be sure, but we are joyfully reverent because our students are delightful, and the curriculum we share with them is full of rich treasures. We know that their anticipation will be met with good gifts of knowledge, wisdom, and beauty.
As we settle in to new and old habits and relationships this new school year, I thought it might be a good time to remind ourselves why we are called Capstone. In some of the newsletters to come, I’ll plan to share with you the purpose and power behind our school’s symbols—the academic crest and the Golden Gryphon. Later in the school year, I’ll share with you some of the symbolism and overt messaging incorporated into the architecture of our new campus.
So for this week, why are we called Capstone? Our founding team, board, leadership, and faculty are concerned about the erosion of the foundation and walls of the Church and of society by the folly and vice that run rampant through culture, government, schools, and even families, largely due to the neglect of wisdom and virtue as studied and pursued in the classical Christian liberal arts that shaped the best of Western Tradition in ages past. CapstoneClassical Academy was established in 2022 to repair the damage caused by this neglect and to provide a capstonefor future generations of the Church and society.
That’s all well and good, but what, exactly, is a capstone? Capstones are the protective stones set along the top of masonry walls, causing water to flow off of the top of the wall in order to mitigate erosion of the wall itself. In Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish builders, he declares that those who put his words into practice build their lives upon solid, immovable rock that can withstand the storms of evil and suffering. An excellent classical Christian school integrates Christ’s teachings with the classical liberal arts, providing a capstone of wisdom and virtue that protects its students and its community from the eroding effects of folly and vice.
Inscribed in the frieze that adorns the perimeter of Founders Hall, the grand entrance to our permanent campus, is Ephesians 2:19-22. Through St. Paul’s words, we will all be reminded that we—and by God’s grace, our students—are being built together into a dwelling place of God by the Spirit. The foundation of the house into which we are all incorporated is the apostles and prophets, and Christ is its cornerstone. Capstone’s parents and teachers aim to provide not the cornerstone, which is Christ himself, but a protective capstone of faith, wisdom, and virtue for our students so that as they graduate and assume their respective roles within God’s Kingdom, the capstone of their education will stand strong against erosion caused by caustic spiritual, moral, intellectual, and civic storms in the Church and in society. Please join me in praying that God will provide all that we need to honor the purpose and promise of our name for His glory and your children’s joy.