Along with academic programs and athletics, Catholic campus ministry leaders at the University of Louisville would like to see students consider campus ministry when selecting a college.
“Our students are so joyful, so alive, so eager to share the Gospel,” said Laura Makin, the Catholic campus minister at UofL. “Campus ministry offers different ways to experience Christ and the church. A lot of our students are local and now are seeing a new way to participate in the church.”
UofL Catholic opened a eucharistic chapel on campus last year. Mass and adoration are held daily and there are weekly gatherings for praise and worship music. In addition to Makin, the campus ministry has four full-time Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) missionaries who host small group sessions, lead Bible studies and offer general support.
The most exciting aspect is having the Blessed Sacrament on campus in the chapel, Makin said.
Nicolas Caicedo, a student leader, agrees.
“The moment we established the Blessed Sacrament here, I’ve seen so many transformations in people’s lives,” he said. “Reversions — people coming back to the church — and conversions. Even some of my nonreligious friends are attending Mass now.”
The ministry, housed in the Interfaith Center in the heart of UofL’s Belknap Campus, has been under Makin’s tutelage for three years. Last year, shortly before the chapel opened on campus, Dominican Father John Baptist Hoang came on board as the full-time campus minister.
Makin said she and Father Hoang prioritize offering retreats and pilgrimages as ways to connect with students and deepen their faith.
The weekend after Thanksgiving, UofL Catholic hosted a wilderness retreat at Red River Gorge. They invited campus ministry folks from six colleges — including the University of Kentucky, Jefferson Community & Technical College and Bellarmine University — and hosted 40 people.
“We camped, had a bonfire, adoration from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.,” Makin explained. “We had separate hikes for men and women and did talks and prayer. I was on cloud nine. It was the most beautiful weekend.”
Caicedo called the weekend “amazing and spectacular all around.”
Makin said since she’s been on campus, interest in campus ministry and the community of Catholic students has grown.
“The reach on campus has been great,” she said. This year during welcome week for freshmen, Makin noted, many students told her they already attend Mass weekly and they asked about other activities.
Thus, Makin and Caicedo created study groups. The study sessions are just what they sound like — a time for students to study together. But students do more than that, too, Makin said.
“During the study sessions, students have the support of good, virtuous friends,” she said. “They’re creating natural, holy friendships. And (studying) it’s something everyone here has to do, so now they do it together and in support of one another.”
In trying to meet students’ needs, Makin said campus ministers are also able to “introduce Christ into parts of their lives where they haven’t known him before.”
“Your faith should be integrated into every part of your life,” she said. “Even while studying. Even while hanging out with your friends.”
In March, a group of 19 students will embark on a pilgrimage to Rome. Caicedo said pilgrimages and retreats remind him that ministry is on campus, but it’s also beyond campus, and he finds that encouraging.
“I can go anywhere on Earth and the church is there,” he said.
Makin considers UofL Catholic “a blessing” and a home for Catholic students.
“We are all made for community. We are all made to know love and serve God. It’s been a blessing to see Catholic campus ministry at UofL become that home for students to know that community.”
“The moment we established the Blessed Sacrament here I’ve seen so many transformations in people’s lives.”
Nicolas Caicedo, student leader
