Public Speaking
“I recently attended a presentation where the speaker used the Gospel story of Mary Magdelene’s anointing of Jesus’ hands and feet as a springboard for a discussion of the pitfalls of making assumptions. Several Gospel accounts report that some of Jesus’ disciples chastised Mary for using expensive perfume when the money could have been employed to help the poor. Jesus responded, ‘Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.’ Not realizing that Jesus’ crucifixion was near, some disciples had made false assumptions about what He would want.
With humor and eloquence, this speaker launched into an exploration of the ways in which assumptions hurt people in the contemporary world:
They can make you miss out on fun events
They can make you feel generalized and inhuman
They can mislead the assumer
He further considered current Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging practices that are rooted in the avoidance of making broad inferences based on superficial or scant information.
Would it surprise you to learn that the presenter was an eighth grade Mustard Seed student, Carter Benedict, ’23, giving his Homily Exhibition?”—Head of School Abby Hall Choi
“Of all of our exhibitions, the Homily Exhibitions really speak to the heart of what is special about our school. The student homilies were stellar this year! The depth and the poise that the students demonstrated was especially remarkable when you consider that this class was in COVID lockdown for all of their fifth grade year and half of sixth grade.”
In feedback provided after worship, Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, and Spanish Teacher for Grades 2-8 Tania Oro-Hahn noted that Carter had made complex concepts around developing emotional intelligence accessible and interesting. He provided relevant examples.
The cultivation of the ability to speak comfortably in front of an audience begins in Preschool at Mustard Seed. Throughout the year, children sit on the birthday pillow and join their teacher in front of the group to receive their birthday book. They are encouraged to be brave and stand alone in front of the group, like Daniel and Esther from the Bible, while the rest of the preschool students, family, and faculty sing to them.
Dare To Be A Daniel
Dare to be a Daniel.
Dare to stand alone.
Dare to have a purpose firm.
Dare to make it known.
