Diocesan College Students Gather for First Conference

The room radiated with life. The occupants lifted their voices and souls in praise throughout the day of prayer. Seventy students from George Mason University, Marymount University, and Mary Washington College gathered recently at the George Mason Catholic Campus center in Fairfax for the first Catholic College Conference.

The idea for the conference came about when several of the student and staff leaders met last spring and expressed their desire to unite the ministries more closely. The following fall, the leadership councils from the three schools met at Mary Washington College and participated in a mini-retreat. The idea developed to have a large gathering where everyone could participate. Students joined together from 3-9 p.m. in celebration of their faith.

The retreat was focused towards college students from the Diocese of Arlington. The main goals were to invite students to grow in their love for Christ, to encourage each other and keep up the fight of the faith, to build unity among the different college campus ministries, and to offer vibrant worship to God.

The theme for the day was "Family Reunion." The resounding worship music from Raffy Urgino’s band (Marymount) opened up the retreat. After a few ice-breakers to get to know one another, there was a short talk given by Rita Lima and Patrick David, both from Marymount. They spoke about what is a family and who is part of a family. Lima focused on the sacrifices that families make to help each other. Following the talk was small group reflection time, where the participants continued to contemplate the theme of family.

The second talk, given by Nina Deboeck (Mary Washington), addressed why college students should spread the ministry and how to do so. "Our ministry to spread the message of Jesus is one long-term planning assignment that we can’t afford to procrastinate about," she said. The students proceeded to individual reflection time, followed by Mass held for the students and community members.

The three campus chaplains, Father Peter Nassetta (George Mason), Father Jack Peterson (Marymount), and Father Ronald Escalante (Mary Washington), concelebrated the Mass. Father Peterson addressed the theme of family within his homily. He emphasized the compassion and enthusiasm that the father had towards his son.

"The heart of the parable of the prodigal son is Jesus teaching us about God our Father," he said.

The gathering ended with nearly a full hour of praise and worship music, followed by a closing prayer. "It showed me my heavenly family on earth," said Zach Daniel, a sophomore from Mary Washington. "It was a living moving body of Christ’s followers."

Planning has started for another leadership retreat for the fall and a second conference in the spring.

"I was glad to see a bunch of people who share the same love of Christ," said Liz Sjoberg, a senior. "It was a great starting point for future gatherings among the ministries."

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