Iowa attendees to the Catholic Campus Ministry Association gathering are pictured at Dominican University in River Forest, Ill. Those attending from the Diocese of Davenport were Nicky Gant, Jack Breakey, Krystal Osorio and Sarah Callahan.
By Anne Marie Amacher
The Catholic Messenger
RIVER FOREST, Ill. — Nine campus ministers and students from Iowa explored how service and justice, rooted in Catholic faith, can serve as vital fruits of evangelization. The Catholic Service and Justice Innovation Gathering was held late last fall at Dominican University. It was a partnership with the Catholic Campus Ministry Association, Porticus North America and Notre Dame’s McGrath Institute for Church Life through the Pathways to Communion Project, funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc.
This two-day event brought together campus ministers, theologians and student leaders to provide practical strategies to connect personal spirituality with social action.
Attending the event from Iowa were Emily Klaus, Catholic Campus Ministry Association, Ames; Paul Lee, St. Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center, University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls; Nicky Gant, St. Ambrose University, Davenport; Jack Breakey, St. Ambrose; Hannah Eby, Loras College, Dubuque; Eliza Petersen, St. Stephen; Krystal Osorio, St. Ambrose; and Sarah Callahan, Diocese of Davenport.
“This was a brand new program,” said Gant, service and justice coordinator for campus ministry at St. Ambrose. “I am always looking for new ways to inspire, support and empower our student leaders to put their faith in action through service and justice work in our community. I was only able to bring two students to the conference with me, but we were blessed with an abundance of inspiration to bring home and share with our wonderful community here at St. Ambrose.”
“I really loved seeing our student leaders, who are both active in different aspects of our campus ministry come together to identify with the same problem, brainstorm a solution and confidently present their ideas in front of a group of religious scholars and campus ministers from across the Midwest,” Gant added. “When young people are given an opportunity to reflect on the issues of our times and a voice in how to make positive changes, the world instantly becomes a better place.”
Callahan, who was social media coordinator at the Diocese of Davenport, attended because each campus minister was asked to bring a theologian. Callahan has a master’s in theology.
“A highlight for me was getting to know the St. Ambrose students and watch them gain insights and feel empowered throughout our time there, as well as connecting with other thinkers from around the country who have a deep love for marrying faith and justice.”
A presentation on ways to sustain the work of justice and included a variety of prayer and meditation styles gave her ideas on ways to incorporate into the content she creates for diocesan social media. “There was also a presentation that included the examples of many saints who found themselves at the intersection of faith and justice.” She was excited to incorporate them into diocesan social media posts.
Gant was inspired and enriched “by all of the speakers with concrete ideas that I am able to share with the students. In particular, Meg Hunter-Kilmer shared stories of obscure saints, who lived out their faith through radical solidarity with the poor, which raised the bar on what we can hope to accomplish in full obedience to the Holy Spirit in our lives.”
Gant continued, “Nathanial Samuel from Loyola University shared simple spiritual practices to nurture our own interior life to help us find a healthy balance as we pursue this radical journey of seeking justice for all. Additionally, Emily Klaus from Catholic Campus Ministry Association taught us the simple concept of utilizing the five whys to dig deeper into root causes of injustice, which can be easily taught to students as a process to dig deeper and increase our effectiveness as we work to seek the common good for all.”
Callahan said, “I am inspired by the work being done in campus ministries to form students to live out the Gospel in the world, during their time in school and after they graduate. The students give me hope for the future of our Church.”
