The Catholic Student Association invites new members to join them for weekly mass and religious discussion.
Though inactive for several years, the group restarted through St. Francis Church, where members attend mass each Sunday.
“After mass each week, we stay at the church to eat doughnuts and talk,” said Juliana Elliott, dance management senior and CSA president. “We just restarted last semester, but we want to expand the group, start service projects and get together during the week to pray.”
CSA meets at 10:30 a.m. Sundays at the Team One Pavilion to walk to St. Francis of Assisi Church, 1901 N.W. 18th St. After mass, they discuss the students’ faith, their church communities at home and anything going on in their lives. They also talk about the day’s service and address questions about the Catholic Church.
“The Catholic Student Association is important because it gives us a sense of community,” said Molly Eder, dance freshman. “It’s nice having other young people to attend mass and talk about beliefs with.”
The club’s membership varies from five to eight students each week. Anyone is welcome to join the group on Sundays, regardless of their religion, Elliott said.
CSA members also invite the entire campus community to the Ash Wednesday mass, led by St. Francis Church’s Father Lance Warren, at 8 p.m. on Feb. 10 in the small chapel in Bishop W. Angie Smith Chapel. The time has not been decided yet.
In Christianity, Ash Wednesday begins the season of Lent with a day of fasting and a mass where the pastor blesses them with ashes to remind attendants of their mortality. Lent is 40 days before Easter. It is a time of prayer and penance, in preparation for Jesus’s resurrection.
“We don’t want to just be another club where people feel like it’s an obligation,” Elliott said. “We want it to be stress free and allow students to interact with the Catholic Church in an inclusive environment.”
Students can join CSA on Sundays at the pavilion, arrive at St. Francis Church at 10:30 a.m. for mass, or show up afterward for doughnuts and discussion. Email Elliott at jlelliott@my.okcu.edu or join the Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/221667387875077/?fref=ts for more information.
Leave a Reply