I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons.
St. Thomas More Newman Center The Roman Catholic Campus Ministry for The Ohio State University
Cardinal Newman
64 West Lane Avenue Columbus, Ohio 43201-1098 phone: (614) 291-4674 • fax: (614) 291-2065 mailbox@buckeyecatholic.com www.BuckeyeCatholic.com Winter 2022
B U C K E Y E
CATHOLIC A publication for members and friends of the Newman Center at The Ohio State University
“THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED HAS BECOME THE CORNERSTONE.” —Psalm 118:22 BLENDED CAMPUS MINISTRY By Laura Scanlon
In the summer of 2020, the Newman Center was invited by the USCCB and CCMA (Catholic Campus Ministry Association) to participate in a pilot program for a blended ministry initiative. With so many campuses across the U.S. serving as home to a traditional campus ministry as well as missionary campus ministry organizations like St. Paul’s Outreach (SPO) and Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS), campus ministers have seen the need to find common ways to share collaboratively in Catholic campus ministry while also embracing our unique calls and missions. At the time, we were preparing to welcome FOCUS to campus in the Fall of 2020, and it seemed like a perfect time and opportunity to step back and embrace the unique call we have to provide a powerful Catholic experience for our students at OSU through the Newman Center,
Student Thanksgiving Dinner was a huge undertaking by the collaborative campus ministry
SPO, and our newest collaborators, FOCUS. The ultimate goal for the USCCB and CCMA was to create a resource to help facilitate meaningful collaboration on campuses where multiple Catholic ministries serve. Since we already had t wo collaborative teams in place between the Newman Center, SPO, and FOCUS which met regularly, we made a plan in those settings for the pilot to be lived out in our unique setting at OSU last year. In many ways, it proved to be a gift to do this collaborative work during a very unique year dealing with the pandemic realities. Four members from each of our staffs came together for several partial day retreats. We first prayed through and reflected on suggested scripture as well as Church documents pertaining to campus ministry and mission. We shared about how these inspired texts spoke to each of us in our call to ministry. We then took some time to reflect more deeply on each of our unique missions and approaches to ministry. We came up with the communalities we heard across each of our ministries and created a shared vision statement to speak to the spirit of our blended approach to ministry for Catholic life at OSU. This gave us the freedom to express our unique ministry strengths that bring wholeness to Catholic life at OSU. Finally, we invited all of our student leaders to partner with us in this common vision. We offered a leadership retreat led by the team of twelve from our respective staffs. We asked each leader to pray about how this vision might be lived in their own unique call to lead in this Catholic community at OSU.
Welcome Week activities such as the scavenger hunt had a renewed sense of unity and energy
As we began the 2021-22 school year, it was clear that much fruit had come from our efforts and this blended ministry work. Welcome Week in August was an amazing collaborative effort. While it has been for so many years, there was a new spirit in that collaboration that was felt by all involved. As we’ve continued through this school year, there have been many amazing opportunities to collaborate and support one in another in all our efforts to build up the Catholic experience for our students at Ohio State. B L E N D E D M I N I S T R Y V I S I O N S TAT E M E N T:
United and rooted in Christ as the Buckeye Catholic community, we invite students into a Christ centered life that transforms them into deeper lifelong discipleship.
St. Thomas More Newman Center is served by the Paulist Fathers, Missionaries to North America since 1858.