Hometown
Cleveland, OH

Undergraduate Institute and Major
The Catholic University of America, Theology and Religious Studies

Current Position
Theology Teacher and Drama Director, St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland, OH

My Experience
My most meaningful class has been Franciscan Spirituality with Sr. Meg Guider. I loved this class because it so excellently combined Church history, spirituality, and ministerial practices. It was one of my first in-person classes at the CSTM, where each student was given the opportunity to be vulnerable, pray together, and learn a lot about a tradition that often goes unnoticed at a Jesuit school!

Why CSTM?
The CSTM has allowed me to pursue a rigorous theological education rooted in the Catholic, Jesuit tradition while actively applying what I learn in the classroom to my ministry. I am so grateful that I could continue my fulltime work in ministry while also deepening my craft with students all over the world.

Hometown
Scranton, Pennsylvania

Undergraduate Institution
University of Scranton

Current Position
Religion Teacher, Boston College High School

Meaningful Course
Ecclesial Ministry has been one of the most formative courses during my time at CSTM. Sr. Meg Guider facilitated the classroom in a way that welcomed and embraced the diverse perspectives and experiences from classmates. This made what we were learning each week practical and grounded in the reality of the Church in the 21st century. I found myself reconsidering what my role within the Church would be and how I might serve others in a sustainable way that genuinely takes my experience and identities as a 1st generation college student and second-generation Salvadoran-American into consideration. Ecclesial Ministry left me believing that my compass for ministry is better oriented towards where I will best serve others and God.

Why CSTM?
Learning goes well beyond the classroom at CSTM. I am grateful to be able to work in ministerial settings as a full-time student. While not every course I have taken has had a direct impact within a particular ministry setting, I have been surprised by which courses and topics have come up in day-to-day work. For example, I did not consider how Christological controversies in history and contemporary views about who Jesus, God and the Spirit are would present themselves in retreat settings, 1-1 student check-ins, and at mass. The impact of what is learned within the classroom dialogues with the world and, in return, this informs how I read articles, write papers and pray and worship. My time at CSTM has helped me learn to remain attentive and sensitive to the movements of the Spirit beyond my study sessions in the library, in the classroom or within my own head.

Hometown
Wantagh, New York

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Boston College, Philosophy and Psychology

Experience
My favorite course at the CSTM has been “Screening Theology,” where I was given the opportunity to see theological ideas come to life within popular films and television shows. Each student brought with them a different interpretation of the films we watched, allowing varying perspectives to raise new understandings within my own context. I thoroughly enjoyed the community created within the course as well as the newfound ways to see the content offered to us. 

Why CSTM?
The CSTM offers me the chance to learn and grow within my friendships between myself and other students. I have learned so much from my classmates and the experiences they bring with them, awakening me to nuance and diversity in thinking about theological concepts. I am grateful that the CSTM offers spaces both within the classroom and outside the classroom for open dialogue and conversation to commence, leaving me with a glimpse of how others see God at work in their lives. With every new conversation I have, whether that be with someone from a different place or different time in their life than myself, I am awakened to how I can expand my vision of God, Theology, and Ministry. Each new perspective I hear enriches my own, allowing a newfound joy and holiness to emerge within my life.

Community
Community at the CSTM is found in the genuine kindness of the students here. Everyone I have met at the CSTM has been profoundly compassionate and open, allowing friendships to flourish and create a comfortable space for so many individuals. I remember sitting outside my classrooms during the first week of school, and so many older students smiled at me and asked me how my day was going so far. Some of them even offered me their contact information in case I needed any help adjusting to graduate school. It is the little moments of care where people here go out of their way to ensure others are feeling safe and comfortable that truly make the community here so vibrant.

Home City and Country
San Dimas, CA

Undergraduate Institute and Major
St. John’s University (MN), Theology

Most Meaningful Relationship
It has been a joy to work alongside the CSTM’s new dean, Mick McCarthy, S.J. As the CSTM Diversity / Equity / Inclusion graduate assistant and student representative to the Committee on Race and Ethnicity (CORE), I have had the opportunity to collaborate with Dean Mick as we reimagine what community can look like at the CSTM. Dean Mick exemplifies the Ignatian phrase “cura personalis” by taking proactive steps to ensure that I am first supported as a person. I can’t even begin to count the many times Dean Mick has counseled me, showed genuine concern for my health and well-being, and supported me in my journey to become my best and most authentic self. I am truly grateful for the relationship we’ve been able to cultivate in such a short time, and I look to my future at the CSTM with excitement of joys yet to come.

My Experience
The CSTM has blessed me with the opportunity to play at weekly liturgical celebrations, prayer services, open mic nights, and praise and worship. There is nothing like cultivating lasting bonds with my peers through this sacred gift. Music has the power to unite all God’s people. Musical harmony has its fair share of consonance and dissonance, and in an era characterized by discord, I believe it doesn’t hurt to lift your voice and share that song God placed on your heart. I hope you’ll join me.

Hometown
South Bend, IN

Undergraduate Institute and Major
University of Notre Dame, Program of Liberal Studies

Most Meaningful Course
Popes and the Papacy with Professor Cathy Mooney and six other students. It was a challenging and fast moving class. I'm grateful I took the class during my first semester at the CSTM because it offered invaluable context and perspective on the Church and the way it has transformed over its 2000 year history. Additionally, our small class allowed us to get to know each other and develop a great rapport. Each of us were encouraged to explore our interests and share them with each other, and we built a learning community of curiosity and healthy skepticism. I also have some great Cathy-verified dinner party anecdotes about the papacy ready to pull out whenever the need arises.

My Experience
Everyone at the CSTM comes with unique experiences and goals, but the desire to do good in the world and continue to discover our vocations is there for everyone. The students, faculty, and staff share a common goal of discovering, recovering, and reimagining what the Church can be. 

Community
Before applying to the CSTM, I had never been to Boston and had one friend in the city. I anticipated that my first semester would be lonely and that I would primarily spend time with those in my MDiv cohort and my housemates. To my surprise, I was also welcomed by professors, administrators, and students from every degree program and graduation year. This spirit of hospitality continued throughout the semester, in and out of the classroom.

Hometown
Philadelphia, PA

Undergraduate Institute and Major
Fairfield University, American Studies and Religious Studies

Most Meaningful Experience
I took a class on theology, ethics, and race in the BC Theology Department with a group of students from the CSTM. The ability to study with world class scholars, to learn from master teachers, and to grow in relationship with fellow students is invaluable. In that class we built a community that extended beyond the classroom; we shared our hopes and challenges. We learned concrete lessons and reworked what we thought we knew previously through the lens of authors often overlooked in the academy. Studying with peers in dual degree programs, on the ordination track, and with a variety of lived experiences has enriched my learning experience and blessed me with a diversity of relationships that I cherish far beyond the classroom.

My Experience
The CSTM has provided a fertile ground for me to ask theological questions and to hone my sense of academic inquiry. The professors I've had have modeled what it means to "do" theology and encouraged me to do the same. They have mentored me and also urged me to develop a sense of collegiality. We learn together in the classroom- asking questions about theology and practice. Answering those questions is a community effort that draws off of varied sources. The CSTM works for me because it provides a space for growth on both ends of the theological spectrum. Students are encouraged to build relationships and to discover the answers that can be found in deep conversations and thorough study.

Community
The CSTM is a community growing and learning together. It is a community filled with support and striving to build relationships for the life of the world and for the future of the church. The community at the CSTM prays together, learns together, and ultimately grows together. It is a community with heart that enriches the mind and nurtures relationships of the soul.

Hometown
Manila, Philippines, and Jakarta, Indonesia

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Boston College, B.S., Double Major in Management and Theology

CSTM Community
One of the most meaningful experiences that I have had at CSTM is working as a Graduate Assistant for the Admissions Office. In applying to CSTM, I knew that I was interested in the school's many graduate assistantships because I wanted to take advantage of all the learning opportunities possible and gain as many ministerial and professional skills as I could during my time in graduate school. Receiving a graduate assistantship felt like an affirmation that the school recognized and believed in my potential as a future minister, and it has been a joy to be able to work with such a thoughtful, insightful, and caring team to practice ministry through an administrative lens and support prospective students in their discernment from the other side of the application process.

Why CSTM?
CSTM has been the right place for me to study because of its holistic view of theology and ministry and its commitment to forming the whole person, which have left a mark on me academically, spiritually, socially, and professionally. I have grown so much from the intentional application of academics to ministry, investment in cultivating the spiritual and religious life of students (like through our weekly community liturgy), kind and supportive community, and opportunities through the M.A./M.S.W. dual degree program.

Hometown
Middletown, Pennsylvania (PA)

Undergraduate Institute and Major
New York University (NYU), Philosophy Major and Religious Studies Minor

Most Meaningful Experience
My most meaningful experience at the CSTM has been the openness and availability of the faculty. Whether it is support during challenging times or a conversation about an interesting idea, the CSTM faculty wants to sit down with you about it. They want to hear your voice, get to know you, help you, see where a thought leads. With that, the CSTM has created a crucial space for the Church’s next generation of scholars and ministers to develop their self-confidence, maturity, and wit.

My Experience
The CSTM works for me because I feel free to pursue my intellectual and personal projects with the resources of the CSTM at my back. I feel comfortable to grow, ask questions, and entertain topics, knowing that my peers and professors will assist me in that venture. I know that I will be a better version of myself as a scholar at the end of my time at the CSTM. And this all occurs within a top-tier institution, at that.

Hometown
Rifle, CO

Undergraduate Institution and Major
Regis University; English, Religious Studies

My Experience
I have made wonderful friends through graduate assistant positions, as well as in the hallway in between class periods, in the library during finals week, and in the happenstance of sharing the same path as others when walking home from school. Although I can't fully name how this process works, it points to a desire among CSTM students to live a shared life of community and service to and with one another that is intangible, yet obvious and powerful once you experience it.

Why CSTM?
STM is grounded in the realness of the church and world: the intersecting contexts of the Catholic church, Boston, academia, diverse neighborhoods, and more, create an atmosphere where students are invited to comprehend theology and ministry as necessarily connected to the realities in which we hope to minister in the future. While this can present unique challenges, students experience the realness of joy and conflict in ministry, which are essential in our formation as ministers who can serve a church grounded in the real.

Hometown
Jakarta, Indonesia

Undergraduate Institute and Major
Southeast Asia Bible Seminary, Bachelor in Theology

Most Meaningful Experience
CSTM has a very dynamic and diverse learning environment. I love how each professor has their own distinctive way of imparting knowledge in a way that is not only educational but also beneficial to my spiritual formation. The assignments give me the flexibility to make the connection with my own research interests. Also, as an international student in the class who speaks English as a second language, I value the professors' consideration for me and how they give me an opportunity to voice my opinions.

My Experience
As a foreigner who just came to the US, I found CSTM to be a warm and welcoming community. My most memorable experience was the GA orientation, where it was the first time I met some good friends of mine. Also, I particularly enjoy the weekly mass and community lunch because it allows me to meet different kinds of people, including the faculty members, who turn out to be really approachable.