Connections

“It is good for us to be here.” This was my reaction to attending the Campus Ministry Symposium on May 23-27, 2004 at the University of Notre Dame. The symposium entitled “Transitions in Faith: Young Adult and Beyond” was designed as “A gathering of North American campus ministers from colleges and universities, and diocesan directors of youth and young adult ministry focused on the issues facing Catholic young adults in today’s Church and society.” The symposium was sponsored by the University of Notre Dame in collaboration with the following:

• Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
• Catholic Campus Ministry Association
• Canadian Catholic Campus Ministry
• National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association
• National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

First, a bit about the symposium itself. The speakers and workshop presenters included some of the top people in their respective fields. Among them were Dr. Scott Appleby; Fr. James Bacik; Rev. Allan Deck, SJ; Sr. Fran Ferder and Rev. John Heagle; Dr. Michael Higgins; Dr. Michael Horan; Dr. Robert Ludwig; Dr. Kathleen Maas-Weigert; Dr. Sharon Daloz Parks; and Archbishop Michael Sheehan. This was an impressive gathering of experts focusing exclusively on young adults. Areas of examination included catechesis, culture, spirituality, discipleship, sexuality, multicultural areas, and social justice. Each presentation was followed by table discussion and large group reflections. In addition to these presentations on the current trends and transitions in each area, workshops were offered covering the five best practices in a number of specific areas. This was an intellectually stimulating and enlightening symposium. For more details on the symposium, I encourage you to check out the Notre Dame website at ND.ministry.1@nd.edu. It is my understanding that the papers presented at this symposium will be posted there. Additionally, the proceedings from the symposium will be presented to the USCCB.

Finally, I would like to share my reflections on the symposium as a diocesan director. There were fifteen diocesan directors of youth ministry in attendance. Initially we were feeling a bit out of place, since the focus seemed to be primarily on campus life. However, as the symposium progressed, it became clearer to me that it was, in fact, significant for those of us in youth ministry to be “at the table.” This collaboration of the academic world, campus ministry, young adult ministry and youth ministry provided a unique partnership to begin to create a seamless transition of youth from youth ministry to college life and back to the parish. All of us had contributions to make from our respective points of view regarding this journey. Campus ministers benefited from the knowledge of the formation of youth in the high school years. Youth ministers benefited from learning what campus ministry has to offer youth. Young adult ministry continued to offer insights into the transition of young adults back in parishes after college. I look forward to ongoing collaborative efforts of this nature. Far too often, we assemble in our own particular ministries. This sets up the tendency for insufficient communication with respect to how we are ministering to the same population of youth moving through these various ministries. Although we were not on a mountaintop (re: transfiguration location) at Notre Dame, the symposium afforded us a kind of bird’s-eye view of young adults and we were able to see the bigger picture. That is why I believe “it was good for us to be there.”