This article highlights one of the 70 ministries that are supported by the Annual Appeal of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington. Giving Week for the 2022 Annual Appeal is Feb. 12 to 20. People can make gifts to the Annual Appeal by visiting give.adw.org.
“How can we do more?” That is the question University of Maryland student Christopher Desrochers found himself asking as in-person activities began to resume on campus and at the Catholic Student Center in College Park in the spring of 2021. “We want to be here for something and not just get through college and hang out,” said the now-senior.
That sentiment, shared by staff and students alike, was behind a renewal of CSC activity in the fall of 2021. Thirty-five Bible studies drawing 250 students were active during the semester. At least 150 students have attended CSC’s popular weekly Wednesday Night Dinner, with more than 250 students having attended the first dinner of the semester. In addition, Father Conrad Murphy, chaplain at the Catholic Student Center at the University of Maryland in College Park, said their RCIA program is the largest it has been in years, which he attributes to the vibrant community there.
“The desire among our students to share the good news of Jesus Christ is tangible when you are at the CSC,” said Father Murphy. “In the craziness of our world, they are joyful and zealous servants of the Gospel.”
Desrochers, serving as Grand Knight for the CSC’s Knights of Columbus Council, has seen a similar renewal in their membership. “When the pandemic hit, we were down to eight active members in our council. This year, however, we have 30 active members and our activity has grown as well,” he said.
Some of those activities led by Desrochers and the Knights include weekly virtual trivia nights, Sunday brunch after the CSC’s 10 a.m. Mass, food drives, and a “Rosary Challenge” where students contributed more than 1,000 prayed rosaries in the fall.
“This year has been a beautiful chance to witness the drive our community had for coming together and pursuing our faith. We asked ourselves, how can we as Knights be a more intentional organization to set up some of those opportunities,” said Desrochers.
Father Murphy said there has been a similar renewal among the CSC’s alumni. “We have so many vocations in the last few years, not only to the seminary and religious life, but to share the Gospel in serving the poor as missionaries to the homeless and on campus as FOCUS missionaries. When people are legitimately concerned about the state of the Church post-pandemic, these students are really seeds of renewal that are going out into our parishes.”
Soon joining the alumni ranks with a degree in computer sciences, Desrochers knows the CSC will always be a home.
“A consistent and rock-solid home is what the CSC has provided me,” he said. “It’s a place I can go regardless of how I am feeling, even if it’s just going to the chapel. You can be entirely who you are – frustrated, disappointed, whatever – and you know you will always be accepted. That is what a home is to me.”
