Sunday, December 16, 2012

Campus Ministry

For many of the women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande, college is a long way back. However, for others, college is much more current. For generations, the Episcopal church, has operated "Canterbury Centers" on university campuses around the country. Sometimes they are very active and at other locations they are nearly empty buildings.
In Albuquerque, the Canterbury Campus Ministry is a busy place with a variety of activities for students to participate in. Leaders know that busy schedules mean that it is not necessarily the same group that gathers each time, so activities are catered to a drop-in crowd.

Things like Yoga for Night Owls and Theology Pub encourage students to come to a church and to discuss theological topics in a less structured environment. Cooking 101 serves a dual purpose by giving cooking skills to students and providing meals to perennially hungry young men and women, plus, through fund raisers like the fall Pie Baking and Tamale Making events, raising money for Campus Ministry and outreach to Episcopal Relief and Development.

It's all about planting seeds of faith and nurturing the sprouts. Because young women (and men) in college now get their information via the internet and social media, leaders of Canterbury Campus Ministry use these avenues to get the information to students. As women in the DRG, we might consider taking a page out of that book to reach the younger women in our parishes and cities... something to think about.