Archbishop Henning delivers his remarks at the inaugural gala to benefit Chesterton Academy of the Immaculata opening this fall. Seen in the foreground is Franciscan University of Steubenville theater professor John H. Walker portraying G.K. Chesterton. Pilot photo/Wes Cipolla
NEWTON — On the night of Feb. 2, the Boston Marriott Newton was graced by an unusual visitor.
In the hallway outside of the main ballroom, surrounded by well-dressed guests, none other than G.K. Chesterton, the British Catholic author and philosopher who died in 1936, was holding court. He was the man of the evening, regaling guests with anecdotes from his life, such as the time he was approached by a “constable” who told him to stop writing poetry in the street while “traffic was whizzing about.”
“That’s what the middle of the street is for, good man!” Chesterton told the officer.
Chesterton rubbed elbows with the hundreds of benefactors who had come to celebrate the opening of a school named after him. Chesterton Academy of the Immaculata, a self-proclaimed “joyfully Catholic, classical high school,” will open its doors in Boston’s western suburbs this fall. It is one of over 60 Chesterton Academies active in the U.S. The emcee of the celebratory gala on Feb. 2 was none other than “Chesterton” himself, played by Franciscan University of Steubenville theater professor John H. Walker. Walker tours the nation as Chesterton in his one-man show “The Golden Key” and portrays him on the EWTN television series “Chesterton Station.”
“No one likes anything better than a big fat guy with an accent,” Walker said in his remarks at the gala, breaking character for the first time all night.
Besides Chesterton, the night’s guest of honor was Archbishop Richard G. Henning, who was bishop of Providence when Chesterton Academy of Our Lady of Hope opened in Warwick, Rhode Island.
“We are deeply grateful for his presence here tonight and for his blessing on our endeavor to build a high school with a higher purpose,” Chesterton Academy of the Immaculata Board Chair Nathalie Calvo said in her introduction of the archbishop.
Archbishop Henning’s predecessor in Providence, Bishop Thomas Tobin, was bishop when the school was first announced, but Archbishop Henning was there when it first opened. The archbishop described it thusly: Bishop Tobin was there for the conception, but he was there for the birth.
“I was delighted when coming to Boston to learn that there’s a new baby about to be born here, and I’m expecting great things,” he said. “So my primary message to you tonight is to say that I will certainly be looking forward to being with you and seeing this come to life, but I’m also so grateful to you for the hard work that has already been done and all the hard work that’s coming.”
Students at Chesterton Academies receive humanities-focused education with math, science, classical literature, philosophy, and theology classes. All students are also required to take four years of art and music classes, and three years of drama classes.
The new Boston-area Chesterton Academy is set to open this fall. Though its final location has yet to be announced, it will be in MetroWest.
“Chesterton Academy of the Immaculata was born from a deep desire to provide an education that would nurture both the minds and the souls of our young people, to inspire them to be disciples of Christ and bear witness to a culture of life,” Calvo said. “It started with a group of parents who saw the need for such a high school in MetroWest Boston, one that would stand firm in the truths of our Catholic faith, offer a rigorous classical curriculum, and remain accessible to families of all sizes and income levels.”
In his remarks, Boston College philosophy professor and author Peter Kreeft depicted education as the front lines of spiritual warfare in today’s society.
“Believing and faithful Catholics know that we are in the middle of a great spiritual war today, that the spirit that lusts after our children’s minds and bodies is not the Holy Spirit, but the unholy spirit,” Kreeft said.
To pass on the faith, he said, Catholic parents must flee the sinking ship of public education to the “lifeboat” Chesterton Academy provides. He called Chesterton a place that teaches “great books,” not “stupid little crummy books.”
He said that he has never seen anything more impressive in education than what he has seen at Chesterton Academy. Neither has Dominic Taglia, who graduated from the Chesterton Academy of the Holy Family outside Chicago in 2023 and is now studying accounting and Italian studies at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester.
“My family believed in Chesterton Academy and the model from the very start,” Taglia said in his remarks, “because it was evident that the network of schools was deeply rooted in the Catholic faith. Daily Mass, opportunity for adoration, and faith being incorporated into every subject are just a few of the reasons that Chesterton is a step above.”
He said that he would not have gotten into Holy Cross if he hadn’t been able to impress the interviewer with the philosophical knowledge he learned at Chesterton. Thanks to his art history coursework, he was accepted into a study abroad program in Venice.
“Everyone in Chesterton is working toward a common goal, which is to nurture and promote the good of the students,” he said. “Faculty, staff, parents, and even siblings all play a vital role in the success of those students.”
(Editor’s note: This story was updated Feb. 12, 2025 to clarify the content of Peter Kreeft’s remarks.)