The Rev’d John Heaton is New Covenant’s second headmaster, following the founder of the school, Dr. Robert Littlejohn. He has served since 1998 and is in his twenty sixth year of service. He established the school on its permanent campus at Fleetwood Drive in Lynchburg, VA, and led the development of the school through five successful capital campaigns, providing the facilities which now serve more than 450 students through grade 12. Fr. John is an ordained minister in the Reformed Episcopal Church and has served a parish in his home state of Florida. He currently serves as the Associate Priest at All Saints Church which meets in the Marie Macdonald Chapel on the campus of New Covenant. Fr. John holds the BA and MA in theology, and the MA in liberal studies. He teaches intermediate Greek in the School of Rhetoric, and he writes routinely for this blog below.
Three Great Untruths, Part 1
We sometimes teach our children things that we don’t intend. When I was a child we went to the beach often because Daytona was only about an hour away. My
2019 Convocation Address: Three Great Untruths
There are three great untruths we should avoid teaching our children. Listen here:
It Ain’t Funny
It Ain’t Funny Rereading Reinhold Niebuhr’s essay Humor and Faith reminds me that humor is the exclusive domain of human beings. While my dog demonstrates noticeable “joy” when I take
Growing Up, Growing Old, and Good-bye’s
Growing Up, Growing Old, and Good-bye’s You likely do not know the work of Julia Kasdorf. I didn’t either until recently. She’s a published poet, though I think not particularly
New Covenant and the National Reading Crisis
I consistently tell prospective parents that there are a hundred ways to teach students how to read. There are also some ways not to teach them. Reading is not a
Thinking About Critical Thinking
During a recent professional development day, the faculty hosted Dan Willingham, Phd, a leading cognitive psychologist from the University of Virginia. Dr. Willingham’s work with the faculty was extensive, and we
Why Study Dead Languages
Because of our own language’s profound debt to the Latin, the young student of Latin can begin to “translate” English, often without the need of a dictionary. A working knowledge
The Challenge of a Secular Age
We live in a secular age. Charles Taylor, in his massive book which bears the above title, poses the question, “How is it that 500 years ago it was almost impossible
21st Century Skills Require 25 Centuries of Context
My first brush with politics as a “full contact sport” came in 1973 when the Watergate hearings were televised gavel-to-gavel on black and white TV. The three networks, ABC, CBS
