On January 6—after surging COVID cases required a remote start to the winter term—Headmaster Kerry Brennan welcomed students and faculty back from winter break in person, ushering in the new year and the hope that it may represent. At the heart of Mr. Brennan’s remarks was the question Who am I?, and what that question means when a person wrestles with imposter syndrome in moments large and small throughout life.

Through personal stories—ranging from tales of little league tryouts to musical auditions, from college orientation through his early years of teaching English at Roxbury Latin—Mr. Brennan offered his own experiences and struggles with imposter syndrome. He ultimately implored boys to remember that they belong and are worthy, regardless of the setting, or challenge, or circumstance:

“You, in your particular gifts, in your limitations, in your experience, and especially in your desire and passion have the capacity to grow and change and improve. You have the capacity to fulfill your ambition to be excellent at something, or, perhaps, many things. You have the capacity to contribute, to make a difference.

“In our lives we are seeking authenticity. We want to be real. We want to be the same person regardless of whose company we are in. We want to feel competent, and contributing, and lovable. Virtually every day, we will ourselves to confront a novel situation or make the acquaintance of a person we did not know before. My parents had different but similarly instructive advice about how I ought to imagine the challenge of pursuing that which is new and daunting and strange. They suggested how I might see myself in the world. My mother admonished my brother and me that we were neither better than someone else nor were we lesser than someone else. Of course, in certain particular ways each of us is better or worse—with some skills, or in some subjects, or applying our knowledge to problem solving, or making friends even. Her point was more of an existential one: We, all of us, are children of God and therefore deserve respect and kindness and love. I am imperfect in the way I encounter and judge people, but I strive for her ideal. My father, on the other hand, advised that half the battle is won not just by showing up but by signaling that you belong there. Some of that, especially if someone feels out of place, or an imposter, requires projecting oneself as confident and committed and concerned. And that one does not betray that he may be, or at least feel, out of place. In those situations, I find myself striving to quickly imitate the patterns and protocols that most others already seem to know. My father’s point was that once an opportunity is offered and accepted that each of us has the chance to prove our legitimacy, or even our excellence in that realm.

“Today, as we all face the New Year, 2022, a year in which we hope that we can know normalcy and health and happiness in our lives, I wish us a few things. I wish that we grow to know and love ourselves in such a way that we can push forward at moments when we might feel most vulnerable, when we have the greatest doubt. I hope that we will know the confidence and ambition that will allow us to grow into the people we are capable of being. Every day we are challenged in significant ways. When we try out for a team; when we volunteer an answer in class; when we audition for a part; when we run for office; when we wonder at what table we will sit in the Refectory; when we first meet new classmates or teachers; when we are in a social situation in which we want the other people or a special other person to like us—usually the liking comes before the admiring and the respecting; when we worry that no one will want to spend time with us over the weekend or the break; when we apply for admission to a school or college; when we apply for a job; when we pursue a relationship with a particular person who might become our life partner; when we wade into any room, a meeting, a reception, a bar. In all these situations, I hope you feel the opposite of what the imposter feels. I hope that you humbly and confidently will imagine yourself anywhere, with any person or group of people, regardless of the circumstances or the prestige or fanciness or the consequences of the situation. For us to evolve, we have to take risks. We have to put ourselves forward. We have to believe that we are worthy.

“We have to summon courage even when we are most fearful. We have to have both the knowledge and courage to ask for help. Over time, we grow more confident not just in who each of us is—our one true, authentic self—but we become eager to project that persona, to risk rejection or ridicule even as we are also risking the possibility of making lifegiving, lifelong connections, of feeling challenged or affirmed, or even falling in love. I wish you all of that in the New Year, and will be especially glad to be part of a community in which no one feels himself or herself an imposter.”

Read Mr. Brennan’s complete Opening of Winter Term remarks.

“It seems fitting in this season of Christmas to share some joy with you all—or at least some insights into the meaning of joy and how you can find it and spread it.”

So began long-time faculty member Jim Ryan in Hall on December 6, reflecting on the Christmas holiday and what it means to him. “Joy somehow seems inextricably tied to this season of Christmas. It’s in the title and in the lyrics of many of the carols that are sung—Joy to the World, O Come All Ye Faithful, and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. The Oxford English Dictionary defines joy as ‘a feeling of great happiness.’ For most of you, the most imminent experience of joy will be that ‘feeling of great happiness’ that comes once your mid-year exams are over. I love that we have the Holiday Concert on the heels of exams being done. It is a source of joy for me and for the community to see so many of you sharing the gift of song. I often see smiles of joy among those in the audience as you regale us with music for the holiday season.”

Throughout the year, members of the RL community take the stage in Rousmaniere Hall to share their experiences of faith, from a range of religious traditions—especially around the time of annual celebrations. The experience and exploration of spiritual life, in its rich variety of forms, has long been an important part of a Roxbury Latin education. In advance of one of the most joyful holidays of the Christian calendar, Mr. Ryan shared with students and fellow faculty members what the holiday meant to him as a child, and what it has come to mean to him as an adult. He told stories—funny and poignant—about Christmas mornings in his house, with his three siblings and loving parents. He also shared stories of Jesus’s birth as told in the Bible, —from the Gospel of Matthew, and the Gospel of Luke. He told the origin story of Santa Claus—of St. Nicholas, a third-century bishop who was born in a small village in what is now modern-day Turkey who gave to the poor.

Mr. Ryan spoke, ultimately, about the importance of God’s presence in his own life, and of the many gifts he has been blessed with over his lifetime.

“Every day is a kind of Christmas, in that God meets me, or comes to me, where I am in my life—in the joyful moments and in the messy ones. That joy is not just a feeling. It is a joy that comes from a growing confidence in God, who joins me… and takes care of me.”

In conclusion, Mr. Ryan asked the students, “What are the sources of joy in your life? Maybe it’s a well-crafted essay in Mr. Randall’s class. Maybe it’s the joy of creating art under the careful guidance of Mr. Buckley. Or maybe it’s the companionship you’ve found in one or more of your RL brothers. Recognize those sources of joy and cherish them.”

“And finally: What gifts do you have to offer others? Because there’s joy in sharing our gifts. There’s joy to be found in serving others. I ask you to think about what gifts you have to offer. Maybe it’s your time. Maybe it’s your kindness. Perhaps your selflessness. Your companionship. Your concern. Your compassion. Your talents. Your vulnerability. Maybe you can gift someone the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps best of all, you can offer your presence—not presents, but presence. Walk with those who’ve been placed in your life. Accompany them. Be present to them. Be a source of joy to them. Do not believe the lie that you are powerless, that you are unimportant, that you are too small to make a difference in the world or in someone else’s life. The truth is that you can—now, at this time in your life—bring joy, comfort, and peace through simple acts of friendship and forgiveness, patience and compassion, all of which you can give to others as gifts every day of the year. So, whatever your faith or tradition, I hope that in the coming weeks and months, that you may have joy—abundant joy—in your life and that you might bring that joy to others.”

“Today we continue a time-honored RL tradition of recognizing, and celebrating, the particular faith lives of members of our community,” began Headmaster Brennan in Hall on November 9. “We are a school that gathers all kinds of boys committed to understanding and celebrating differences, including differences of faith, that contribute to our whole. Knowing about various religions, and affirming the faith lives of one another, are both worthy pursuits, but it is also in hearing about and from the witnesses to these different faith traditions that our own journey toward meaning and fulfillment can be most hopefully informed.”

Honoring the Hindu celebration of Diwali, taking place in November, Vishnu Emani of Class I took to the lectern to share his experience of the Diwali holiday—its meaning and symbolism—and his experience of Hinduism, a faith tradition dating back more than 4,000 years and with 900 million followers today.

Vishnu began with the recitation of a Sanskrit prayer, which translates to: From ignorance, lead us to truth. From darkness, lead us to light. From death, lead us to eternal peace. “Amidst the chaos that surrounds us, we all strive to bring hope and light to the world,” continued Vishnu. “It is for this reason that we are gathered here today, in celebration of Diwali, one of the most deep-rooted and significant holidays in the Hindu tradition.”

Vishnu brought students and faculty on a journey through the mythological and ideological traditions of the holiday, with the aim of providing a better understanding of Hinduism. He explained how, unlike most world religions, Hindu is not actually an organized religion with a single founder, or a specific text for its followers to abide by.

“There are Hindus that view gods as physical beings, others that see divinity as a symbolic entity, and yet others that are practically atheists,” said Vishnu. “There are Hindus that chant Vedic prayers on a daily basis, and those who would prefer to meditate, sing a devotional song, or help those in need… That is the unique power of Hinduism: it is ultimately each individual that forges his or her own path to enlightenment.”

Despite the fact that Hindus spread across the 29 states and 700 languages and dialects spoken in India, they convene in spirit to celebrate this most cherished holiday, Vishnu explained. “Diwali is the Hindu festival of light, a symbol of hope, righteousness, and enlightenment. While Diwali originated as a holiday with mythological importance, it has become a day for spiritual reflection, music and dance, and festive celebration all around the world. Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains across the world gather to chant prayers, light candles, and celebrate with fireworks. Personally, Diwali is a time for self-reflection. One of the crucial concepts that I often contemplate is the Hindu precept of dharma. Loosely translated as ‘duty’ or ‘righteousness’, dharma encapsulates our obligations as humans towards justice, peace, and benevolence.”

Vishnu went on to share the story of King Ravana and Prince Rama, from the ancient epic The Ramayana, and the story of Hanuman, which he feels to be one of the most powerful in the Hindu mythology. These stories capture in different ways the struggles of good and evil, and Vishnu went on to share his interpretations of the meanings and importance of each.

“I chose to interpret the stories the way I do not because I believe my interpretation to be the truth, the correct way of understanding the text, but because it makes me a better person. For me, the purpose of religion is not to find an absolute truth. It is to find fulfillment. So, this Diwali, I urge you to find fulfillment by appreciating the goodness in others, no matter how evil they may seem, by using mistakes as a tool for self-reflection, and living your lives with bhakti.”

On October 26, Andrew Sullivan—prolific journalist, blogger, public intellectual, and media commentator for more than three decades—spoke with students in Hall about his work in the public sphere and his own personal story. A Catholic, conservative, out gay man, Mr. Sullivan has been a vocal advocate for gay rights, specifically gay marriage, for decades. A former editor of The New Republic, he was the founding editor of The Daily Dish, and has been a regular writer for The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, Time, Newsweek, New York magazine, The Sunday Times (London), and now The Weekly Dish. His most recent book, Out On a Limb, is a collection of his essays from 1989-2021.

Born in Surrey, England, into a Catholic family of Irish descent, Mr. Sullivan struggled with reconciling two parts of his identity—being both Catholic and gay.

“As I grew up, it occurred to me that I really shouldn’t exist,” Mr. Sullivan began. “I’ve spent my whole life being asked: How can you be gay and a Catholic? And it’s a good question. I’m going to try and explain it a little bit. The truth is you don’t choose these things. Choices—sometimes, somewhat—elaborate a rather arrogant idea of how human lives unfold.”

Mr. Sullivan went on to share the story of his growing up in a conservative, Catholic family; of realizing he was different from other boys; of the refuge his school represented in his life; and about coming to the United States on a scholarship and falling in love with America.

“If you grew up in class-structured England in the 1970s and early-’80s, America was paradise,” Mr. Sullivan said. “No one asked where you were from. No one asked how dare you do that. People were enthusiastic. People were individuals.” That freedom and openness he experienced here helped him decide to come out to his family and to pursue a career writing. With an internship at The New Republic, prompted by a conversation in the editorial room about domestic partnership for gay couples, he said, “Why don’t you just give them marriage? Isn’t that easier? You don’t have to come up with these new terms. You don’t have to create some rival institution.”

Mr. Sullivan wrote an essay making the case—the conservative case—for gay marriage, titled “Here Comes the Groom,” which became the issue’s cover story and, subsequently, a huge sensation.

“It began to dawn on me, maybe this is a good idea,” he said. “No one else had previously really talked about it. And eventually I decided this is going to be what I’m going to do. I’m going to try and campaign and argue and fight and bring this about. Maybe I won’t live long enough. Maybe it’ll happen sometime. Maybe in the future, who knows, someone will pick this up.”

Mr. Sullivan shared the ups and downs of his own professional and personal trajectory—climbing the ranks of journalism and media; struggling through the AIDS epidemic; experiencing a crisis of faith, and emerging from that.

“Even though I’d been given everything, God came in and said, none of this really matters. I learned that there will be ups and downs, there will be triumphs and catastrophes, but neither matter. What matters is the ability to keep going and to have faith that there is not meaninglessness, that there is not fathomless evil in the world. And that is hard enough.”

“You don’t know who you’re sitting next to right now, or where they will go. You have many parts of your life that contradict each other, that are in stress with one another. Be patient. Be yourself. Do not try to adjust to every identity you’re supposed to adjust to. Just be yourself with integrity and patience. And if you do that, and you breathe, the world will create a space for you. And when you have done that for yourself—when you have made the place in the world a little easier for you to live and breathe and be yourself—you won’t know it, but you will have done it for somebody else, as well. And when you think about what progress is, what advancement is, you can think in terms of laws and arguments, but what it really is, is human beings, slowly through the centuries, through the millennia, refusing to be anything other than they are, insisting upon that, and expanding the possibilities of freedom for everybody else.”

Over the course of his career, Mr. Sullivan has never shied away from staking out bold positions on social and political issues. A fiercely independent conservative, Mr. Sullivan wrote an essay titled “The Politics of Homosexuality,” published in The New Republic in 1993, which has been called the most consequential in the gay rights movement. A pioneer of online journalism, he started blogging in 2000 and helped define the new medium with his blog, The Daily Dish. In 2007, he was one of the first political writers to champion the presidential campaign of Barack Obama, and his cover story for The Atlantic, “Why Obama Matters,” was seen as a milestone in that campaign’s messaging. He has been a vocal foe both of Donald Trump and of wokeness on the left. Loved and loathed by both the political left and right, Mr. Sullivan, it has been said, is a tribe of one.

In his introduction of Mr. Sullivan, Headmaster Kerry Brennan said, “I am grateful to have with us this morning an individual who speaks the truth as he knows it, regardless of the popularity of his stance, and who—equally important—acknowledges when he’s gotten it wrong. I hope that his visit today inspires meaningful and respectful conversation in the days to come.”

After Hall, Mr. Sullivan spent time with students in classes throughout the day, answering their questions about a range of topics, from the media and conservatism to his personal story and background.

On October 14, Stephen Hoge, president of Moderna Therapeutics, spoke with students in Hall about his company’s development of its mRNA vaccine against COVID-19; his professional trajectory from a physician in New York to leading Moderna’s research and development; and the lessons he has learned along the way.

“Whenever I hear the story of the last year—anything I’ve done over the last decade—told, I’m sort of humbled by it,” Dr. Hoge began. “It sounds great in the retelling, but the living of it, I assure you, was full of lots more uncertainty and self doubt—and even in this moment, a whole lot of questions about whether we’re doing the right thing or enough of it.”

After graduating from Amherst College and earning his medical degree at University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Hoge worked as an emergency room doctor in New York City. “I realized, however, that this wasn’t the way that I was best going to help other people,” he recalls. “Many people viewed what I was doing as God’s work, but it wasn’t actually the thing I was best at. And so I got a bit lost. I had tremendous self-doubt. Imagine spending 12 years of your life training for something—your parents are proud of you, everybody thinks it’s the right thing—and suddenly realizing that it’s not what you were put on the planet to do? But it just didn’t feel right. I was so full of doubt that I left that career to pursue something different—but I didn’t know what that something was.”

He finally found his purpose—the way in which he felt he could actually make people’s lives better—when he joined Moderna in 2012. Today he leads all scientific research and clinical development for Moderna.

“Finding your purpose is most important in choosing how you want to spend your time, but the second thing I’d leave you with is this: You have to ask really good questions to be successful in pursuing your purpose. The way that I do that is through something called science. I came to love what I thought was science in high school, but I didn’t understand it. When I was your age, I thought science was this really cool set of facts about the universe. Biology, physics, chemistry, how things worked. I thought science was a collection of information, that it was knowledge. I was totally wrong. Science is a way of asking questions about something you don’t yet understand, which helps you generate new information, and adding that information to the world. As I began to truly practice science, that’s what I came to love the most about it: It’s an approach to the unknown.”

In joining Moderna and its work using messenger RNA as a means of fighting viral infection, Dr. Hoge was told by many people that it simply couldn’t be done. Yet he and his team persisted; they kept asking Why?; and their scientific approach, technology, persistence, and willingness to take a risk and “bet the farm,” as Dr. Hoge said, has helped result in the saving of millions of lives in the fight against COVID-19.

“I’ve been blessed in my life to choose optimism,” Dr. Hoge said. “I’ve come to learn that optimism is not a right. It’s not something that we are born with. It is something that others can give to us or take away from us. In that sense, when I look back at the privilege of my life and think about my responsibility going forward, it is that we have to find a way to give optimism to each other—believe that we can actually make our lives better or better for those around us. That precious gift of optimism is something that we need to defend and protect for each other.”

In conclusion, Headmaster Brennan underscored for students in Rousmaniere Hall, “Thanks to Dr. Hoge and his colleagues—his fellow scientists, doctors, researchers, entrepreneurs—we are able to be in this room together today, shoulder to shoulder, with the knowledge that our COVID-19 vaccines will—if not spare us from contracting the virus—spare us at least the worst of its effects. That is no small comfort, and no small step toward our country and our world being free from this pandemic’s grip.”