Living the Mission: Kaitlyn Griffin '15

A long-time sacristan at The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Kaitlyn Griffin remembers the day she saw the light…literally.

“One morning Mass, the priest was consecrating the host. As he lifted it up, the sun came through a large stained-glass window and shone directly on it. It was insane! And I felt, ‘Oh this is real!’”

Serving as sacristan has been how Kaitlyn has lived NDP’s mission tenet of spirituality beyond her graduation in 2015. The role, which she assumed nine years ago when she was a Towson University freshman, proved a natural progression for this determined altar server who was eventually named the first-ever female master of ceremonies at the Cathedral.

As sacristan, Kaitlyn works each weekend serving as the “go-to” person for services, special events, and building set up. Yet the role is more than a part-time job, which she holds in addition to being NDP’s full-time Assistant Director of Technology. It is a way for her to explore her faith more deeply, understand Catholic doctrine more fully, and bear witness to the real presence of God in people’s lives.

“Part of my role is staying in the shadows, and there I get to see a lot of ‘small moments’ of people in the church,” she says. “Some of the most powerful spiritual moments come from those small moments that not everyone gets to witness.”

Faith gives me purpose; it gives me direction, and it makes me feel that I'm never going at it alone.

Kaitlyn points to her time in Catholic school as most formative in her spiritual and personal journey. At NDP, in particular, she credits her Religion teachers for encouraging her and instilling in her a confidence that to this day has helped her in her professional and personal lives, especially important given the dominance of men in both the technology profession and Catholic Church leadership.

“NDP helped me build confidence and the ability to present myself in any situation. It helped me in college, and it helps in the church where there are a lot of men. That confidence has helped me gain a lot of respect in my role in the church,” she says.

When talking about faith and spirituality, Kaitlyn is very pragmatic and independent. Her advice for anyone, especially those exploring their faith, is to learn as much as they can about church doctrine and engage in dialogue with priests, sisters, and others familiar with Catholic teachings to arrive at personal understanding. Ultimately, the lessons of any spiritual exploration should be transferrable to day-to-day living, something that Kaitlyn points out is fundamental to her faith.

“At the end of the day, you have to look past all of the details and the nuances,” she says. “The number one thing we should be prioritizing as we live our lives is living with love and respecting and loving everyone around us. That’s the core of Catholic faith.”