Once I decided to attend University of Chicago, I did a little research to see if we had a Catholic Center and to see what Christian groups there were on campus. I had attended Catholic school growing up and while I hadn’t been a part of youth groups or fellowships, I knew that finding a Christian community – and also being active in it – was very important to me. I was excited to learn about Calvert House and that there were a number of different opportunities to meet other Christian students on campus. I made some friends on Facebook before arriving to campus and we became “Mass buddies,” attending Sunday Mass together. Also, during my first year, I volunteered as a lector at church and tutored a middle school student in math through the Calvert House tutoring program.
As I headed into my second year, I wanted to get more involved and meet more people within the UChicago Christian community. I joined the Catholic Students Association (CSA) Board as treasurer, helping to plan CSA events throughout the school year. My favorite was our weekly fellowship dinners where our Calvert House Undergrad Dinner (CHUD) chair and other CSA member volunteers would prepare home-cooked meals for around 25 of us. The dinners were special because each week I had the opportunity to “serve” my fellow friends and engage in thoughtful faith-oriented discussion. Everyone is welcome at CHUD, regardless of faith background, and many of my Christian soccer teammates would consistently head to CHUD with me after practice.
In addition to leading on the CSA board, I have had the opportunity to both teach and learn within the Catholic community. On the teaching side, two of my friends and I volunteer as catechists for UChicago Lab School (a day school affiliated with UChicago) students who are going through a Pre-Confirmation Program. On the learning side, Calvert House has many programs such as the Peer Mentors and Small Group programs. At the end of second year, I joined a small group to discuss our faith in the context of biweekly religious texts.
When I think about the UChicago Christian community, it’s the little things that stick with me: the conversations with other undergraduate and graduates students in the Calvert House lounge after daily mass, meeting new CSA members who came with their friends to weekly CHUD, or reflecting on readings with teammates during our Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ Bible Study. The Catholic Students Association has been foundational in helping me to grow as a person of faith and I am inspired daily by my fellow board members.
While I can only speak to the Christian experience at UChicago, there are a number of other religious and spiritual RSO's that I didn't mention. Curious about Jewish Life? You should check out my friend Shira’s blog post. You can also find out more about different UChicago Registered Student Organizations (read: clubs!) and faith-based programming on the Spiritual Life website.