Marquette University - Hilltop Yearbook (Milwaukee, WI)

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Some come to Marquette because It is a Jesuit institution. Some come to Marquette not knowing what a Jesuit is. Just how religious is Marquette, and how much does religion affect the students? For freshman Cathy Gasparino, it's a nice even balance. There are plenty of opportunities for spiritual growth if you want it. but it's not forced on you, she says. Freshman Jaye Majdacic agrees. Though she is a Lutheran, she does not feel out of place on Marquette's campus, where 80 percent of the undergraduates are Roman Catholic. It's not readily apparent that it's Catholic, and it's certainly not pushed on you,” Majdacic says. These sentiments reflect the theory behind Marquette's Campus Ministry. which was formed in 1970. We do not have the mission of bringing faith to people as much as helping people discover and share in their faith, says Rev. George Win-zenburg, S.J., director of Campus Ministry. Three graduating seniors say their faith lives at Marquette have been mainly personal matters. My faith has grown the last four years, but it is not because of Marquette’s Influence. It’s a natural growth,” says Robert Lauer. Kevin Rak expresses the same feeling. saying, Spiritual growth comes from Inside and the school does not make a difference.” But do required courses in theology and philosophy foster this spiritual growth? Rev. Jim Warosh, pastoral minister at Tower, thinks they do. Students don't care for them when they first have to take them, but later they come to appreciate these courses and see that they made a difference in their values and attitudes.” Senior Joe Carlson thinks such courses are of value when they cause you to question your faith, but he doubts if they make you grow spiritually. All three seniors feel their most valuable religious experience at Mar- quette is the friendships they made with individual priests. We had a priest on our floor freshman year and we still see him and talk to him. says Rak. I think you see religion as a more personal thing when you are given the opportunity to develop these types of friendships. Winzenburg agrees. Our hope is that by sophomore, junior and senior year, students are comfortable with some religious person on campus and this could be an Invitation to become more Involved with church. But this is up to the student Both Winzenburg and Warosh are encouraged by the significant number of Marquette students who go to church. Warosh says that in his four years as pastoral minister at Tower, he has noticed more students becoming more involved in religion. “Students hunger and want something stable to count on. Perhaps they are finding it in God, he says. —by Dee Dee Derrig 11