Nathaniel Lauzon | Staff Writer | nlauzon@mail.smcvt.edu
Photos by Kayla Bell
In recent weeks, students walking across campus may have noticed advertisements on bulletin boards encouraging students to “Come as you are” to Sunday Mass at the Chapel of St. Michael the Archangel. These advertisements are part of a new effort by the campus ministry department to reach students who do not regularly attend or have never attended church.
The Director of Edmundite Campus Ministry, Fr. Michael Carter SSE, said in recent months, the church has seen an uptick in average attendance among students. “There has been an increase in interest and engagement over the past two years or so,” Carter said. To continue this trend, the campus ministry department has put out these advertisements all over campus.
This new poster promotes the church as a place where students can “pray, meditate, relax, and soothe the mind.” It was created by two students, Atticus Tyler ‘27 and Rose Chaloult ‘28. They got the idea for these advertisements after recognizing a lack of campus ministry-themed ads around campus. “We have purposeful learning posters, SGA posters, why don’t we have more campus ministry posters?” Chaloult said.
Chaloult and Tyler, along with other members of the Campus Ministry department, placed these posters in areas with high foot traffic on campus, such as Dion, Alliot, and the academic buildings.
Speaking further about the goal of
these advertisements, Carter stressed the importance of building a sense of community and camaraderie that can come from the church as a common ground. “Coming to church is an opportunity [for students] to really grow their connection with the community, with their own spirituality, and to connect with other like-minded people,” Carter said. This opportunity is available for non-religious and religious students alike.
Kathleen Dean ‘26 is an active member in Campus Ministry. “We want to make sure that there’s no confusion about [the idea] that you can only go if you’re religious, “ Dean said. “You don’t have to be Catholic, you don’t have to be religiously affiliated whatsoever to go to Mass.”
Dean also stressed the importance of community and how the church works to foster that at St. Michael’s College. “Half of the students or less than half of the students are identifying Catholics, practicing Catholics,” Dean said. We have a lot of different backgrounds that participate in the Mass and in the scripture reflection groups outside of Mass. It’s important to realize that the community isn’t exclusive.”
At the collegiate level, students arrive on campus with vastly different backgrounds and experiences from their pasts that shape how members of the community interact with one another. Jerome Monachino, associate director of Campus Ministry and Liturgical Music, stated that “all of our students are so positively different…we have folks from Liberia, Rwanda, Germany, Mali, Tanzania, Burundi, and all over.” According to Monachino, many of the students who are involved in campus ministry are not
Catholics.
The programs run through the Campus Ministry department are also open to people of all faiths and backgrounds. For example, the LEAP retreat held at St. Anne’s Shrine is a popular event that draws interest from a diverse group of students. “Programming is open to all people,” said Carter, further stressing the openness and inclusive attitude of the church.
The recent advertisements put out by students and leaders of Campus Ministry aim to bring in more students of a variety of backgrounds into the church. Members of campus ministry stress that you do not need to be Catholic to attend Mass, retreats, or other ministry programs. Oftentimes, students who attend these events do not strictly identify with the Catholic faith.
As for the future of the campus ministry department, Carter and Monachino both explained that the students at St. Michael’s give them hope for the coming years. They hope that more students, regardless of their background or beliefs, will attend ministry events to meet new people and get involved on campus.
More information on campus ministry programs can be found on the St. Michael’s website as well as the campus ministry Instagram: @smccampusministry