School Festivals

“People without the knowledge of their past, history, origin and culture are like trees without roots.”

For a tree to be strong and lively, roots are important. Similarly, for the holistic growth of students, they must connect to the origin of culture which forms the roots of their alma matter. Our institution cherishes the remarkable contribution of the founding fathers who paved way for its existence.

The School Festivals celebrate the existence of the institution. Some of the major school festivals include:

(a) Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Founder of the society of Jesus:

The Society of Jesus, a catholic religious group, was founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1540. St. Xavier’s is one of the 3900 Jesuit educational institutions in 70 countries around the world. Following the footsteps of Jesuit education framework, the programmes and activities of the school are structured to facilitate the bodily, mental, spiritual and emotional well-being of the students. Students are encouraged to use their gifts in the service of others, out of love for God. July 31st celebrates the contributions of St. Ignatius of Loyola, to honour and commemorate the Saint who once said, “Go and set the world on fire.”

(b) Fr. Moore’s Birthday (School Founder)-5th August:

Back in 1965, after the Bokaro Steel Plant was set up, the plant and the district administration invited St. Xavier’s School, Hazaribagh to build an educational institution where the children of the employees could study. Father John Moore took up this responsibility. Addressing the concerns of the administration regarding the school being a boy only institution, Father Moore went beyond tradition and set up St. Xavier’s School as a Co-ed educational institution.

Thus, St. Xavier’s School Bokaro was started in 1966, in a small room in Marafari with a handful of students. The picturesque beauty of the present-day school campus and the buildings that stand tall with pride for its students are all gifts of Father Moore. The school celebrates Father Moore’s birthday to acknowledge his significant contribution which led to the birth of the school and to cherish all that he has done for the institution.

Feast of St. Clare:

On August 11, we celebrate the feast of St. Clare. Founder of the Franciscan Clarist Order, St. Clare dedicated her life in willfully embracing the poor and serving them. St. Xavier’s School cherishes the gift of St. Clare which enables the seamless functioning of the organization. The school is managed by Jesuits in collaboration with member nuns of the Franciscan Order.

Xavier Day: 3rd December

The Indian mission of the Jesuits lies at the very origin of their Order. The patron saint of the School, Saint Francis Xavier with encouragement from his friend Ignatius of Loyola, devoted himself to religious service and became one of the founders of the Jesuit order. St. Francis Xavier opened the first Jesuit school in Goa in 1543. It was named St. Paul’s College. Since then, Jesuit institutions worldwide have been instrumental in promoting the good by initiating the young into secular and human knowledge, simultaneously into spiritual and moral values — the love of God and human person.

Jesuit education is holistic as it seeks the growth and development of the whole person encompassing the cognitive affective psychomotor and spiritual domains. It helps students to realise that talents are gifts to be developed not merely for self-satisfaction or self-game but rather for the good of the human community. Hence, the Jesuit dictum ” Give us a boy and we will return you a man, a citizen of his country and a child of God.”