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April 8, 2021Thousands of students leave their homes and communities each year to attend college. Once away from home, students sometimes stop attending Mass, which can lead to leaving the Church. But, through Catholic campus ministries across several Oklahoma campuses, they have the opportunity to connect with fellow Catholic students.
“The statistics these days are pretty startling when it comes to the number of Christians who leave their faith whenever they go to college,” explained Jayce Palmer, coordinator of Young Adult and Campus Evangelization and Discipleship for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City.
“The statistics right now show that more than 80 percent of students who go to college will stop going to Mass entirely within two years. When you think about those stakes, it’s really a search and rescue mission, so the purpose is to win back our lost youth.”
There are Catholic campus ministries at several colleges, including the University of Oklahoma, University of Central Oklahoma and Southwest Oklahoma State University.
“The purpose of a Catholic campus ministry is to create and grow a community of real friends who are believers in Jesus Christ. The heart of campus ministry, I believe, is to welcome students and to create a home for them where they are free to be themselves – making encounter with Christ possible – for Christ meets and loves us as we truly are,” said Rachel Smith, campus minister at Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church in Edmond.
“We desire to not only introduce students to Christ and the Church, but to walk alongside them and form them as disciples and help them make disciples. The purpose of ministry is to build the Church and win souls for Jesus.”
There are several ways campus missionaries help college students stay connected, including access to Mass and the sacraments, student dinners, retreats and service days, student leadership and discipleship. Campuses also bring in the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS). Missionaries join social groups and invite them to Mass and other events such as Bible study.
“I think just on a personal level we want to show our students that we are with them for the long haul,” Smith said. “We encourage them to be excellent right where they are, as students, but that perfection is not a requirement of success or holiness. I think our community at UCO, especially our chaplain, Father Alexander Kroll, does a great job of addressing the nitty gritty of college and spiritual life, but also isn’t afraid to have real, great fun.”
Both Smith and Palmer have a passion for helping college students keep their faith. They both recalled their years as college students and hearing the Lord speak to them.
“When I was in college, I didn’t have a student community or anyone to mentor me. It felt like it was just me and Jesus for the most part – and I surely was not the perfect disciple then, nor will I ever be. But, the Lord told me to keep trying and eventually he put me on a path after college that led to wonderful community, a missionary life, and a deeper relationship with him.”
Palmer said he heard the Lord’s call to ministry during his college years.
“At first, I went to school at the University of Oklahoma. I was studying petroleum engineering, which is very different from what I am doing at the archdiocese as the Coordinator of Campus and Young Adult and Evangelization. I had a friend of mine who said I would make a great missionary. He slowly and surely won me over to the idea, then I heard the Lord’s voice calling me and calling me to be a missionary, and I finally said ‘yes.’ I knew I didn’t want to be a petroleum engineer anymore. I was never going to drill another oil well again,” he said.
Palmer added he has a passion for helping young adults nurture their relationship with Christ and not lose focus on their faith.
“The thing that puts fire in my heart is that there are so many young people that are so unhappy because they are not living in the way in which they were created and made for. They are not living out their true purpose and that is something I have a real passion for and want to help them with.”
To find a Catholic campus ministry in the archdiocese or to organize one, contact [email protected] or (405) 709-2783.
Jolene Schonchin is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic.
Photo: (Above) Fr. James Claver, Servants of Christ Jesus of Denver, and FOCUS team director Matthew Schmerber at the Forge college retreat in 2020. Photo Connor Keef.
Rachel Smith, campus minister at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Edmond, with missionaries in Amarillo, Texas. Photo provided.
