Our Lady of the Angels Academy - Angelican Yearbook (Enfield, CT)

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WE LIVE IN THE HISTORICAL PAST That world of misery, that lake of burning brimstoue, is extended abroad under you. There is the dreadful pit of the glowing flames of the wrath of God: there is hell's wide gaping mouth open: . . . there is nothing between you and hell but the air,' 'tis only the power and mere pleasure of God that holds you up. Such were the forceful words uttered within the very boundaries of our Academy by jonathan Edwards when he preached his famous Puritanical sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. If we but could turn back the hands of time to that momentous day of July 8, 1741 we could hear in our portals the frantic moans of the congregation as they grasped the church pillars, attempting to keep themselves from slipping into that bottomless pit. But today, about 50 feet southeast of the Academy, there lies- only a boulder commemorating that historical sermon and the location of the second church built in Enfield. As the students of the Academy go to and from classes and interested tourists stop to examine this boulder, both may be unconsciously treading upon the graves of those unfortunate sinners , Another point of interest is the Old Town Hall, which is the oldest public building still in existence. It is located 1X3 of a mile north of the Academy. Indeed, the enduring workmanship of the forefathers of Enfield has been proven by the fact that such a building built in 1775 stands firmly 174 years later. Generation after generation has benefited from this stately Doric structure as it gathered with friends and neighbors in an active community spirit. The Old Town Hall could properly be called the ballot box of Enfield for it is there that a portion of the voting in town elections is held. Each election with its rivalry and spirit, brings to mind the years long ago when the first form of democracy, the town meeting, made its appearance. As tradition has it, on April 20, 1775, the residents of Enfield gathered for Sunday services in the Enfield Congregational Church. The only sound of this Sabbath was the peaceful singing of the congregation when suddenly the vigorous beat of a drum was heard, interrupting the hymns and signalling the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. This memorable day is cited by a monument situated opposite the Old Town Hall and in front of the Enfield Congregational Church, one of the finest examples of Colonial style architecture in New England. It was erected in honor of Captain Thomas Abbey and the Abbey descendants. As we cast a look from the Academy at the statue of the Captain, we can almost hear the roll of his drum when drum and doctrine rudely blent, as Benjamin Franklin Taylor has so realistically portrayed in his poem, The Captain's Drum . The last verse appropriately relates the effect of that colorful event: Brigaded there at Bunker Hill Their names are writ on glory's page The brave old Captain's Sunday drill Has drummed its way across the age. Our Academy, erected in 1783, also holds a place of prominence in Enfield's history. It was built at a time when the drums of war had ceased and the country was hopeful of a new era of independ- ence and success. Passing through the ornate doors made up of glass prisms, one hardly realizes that the beauty in the interior of the Academy was constructed at a time when our country in its infancy had just finished a major war and was in the pro :ess of contracting a peace treaty. We conclude this brief historical background of our Academy by quoting Cicero, Not to know what happened before you were born is to remain always a child. For what is man's life if it is not to be linked with the life of earlier generations by the memory of the past?

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Give an occasion lo a wise man, and wisdom shall be added lo him. Teach a just man, and he shall make haste Io receive it. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowl- edge of the holy is prudence. -Proverbs IX, 9-10. Open House at the Academy offered opportunities for expression of mutual aid and individual and group skills. It was a time of learning and teaching, giving and receiving. New skills were developed and new talents discovered, a talent for painting here, a talent for organizing there. The Academy became a network of hustle and activity. Among the many projects developed, the choice of the Senior Class rested on the apparitions of the Blessed Mother at Fatima. The joy of our great devotion to the Lady overshadowed the difli- culty of the task entailed by the project. Work, indeed, became for us pleasure because the appari- tion concerned our Patroness, the Immaculate Heart of Mary. With every new additional touch to the design, our love for our Blessed Model increased in fervor. Hand in hand with the spiritual benehts, we have gained meaningful experiences in the practical arts. Equipped with this spiritual and practical knowledge, we hope and pray that we are now ready to face the world with all its difficulties and trials. May the Immaculate Heart of Mary be our Guide and Refuge.