A new group geared toward the needs of Catholics attending Bismarck State College found early success with its debut this fall.
Mystic Catholics launched with 25 participants, according to staff sponsor John Carroll.
It hatched via generous support from Cathedral of the Holy Spirit Church in Bismarck and its rector Father Josh Ehli.
“College-age students are in need of community and encountering Jesus," said Fr. Ehli. "We are trying to provide both.”
It’s that desire to reach the college-age demographic that was the motivation for getting the Mystic Catholics group established.
"We have a pretty high Catholic population on campus, and we really didn't have any student groups or anything working with them for formation or activities," Carroll said.
So, on Sept. 13, he pitched the idea during the student organization recruiting day at the BSC Student Union. Personal invitations were also sent out to potential members. "We gave out black T-shirts with the Mystic Catholics logo. Fifty T-shirts were given out,” Carroll noted.
The group is included on the BSC list of student organizations.
"We've had quite a good turnout,” Carroll added. “We were hoping for a handful of students, maybe 10 and we’ve got 25 on the list. That is very good."
Mystic Catholics meets 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays on alternate weeks at the BSC Student Union. The group is a community of Catholic students at BSC to serve the formative needs of BSC students who are open to having a relationship with Jesus Christ, according to its mission statement.
"It's really for any student. BSC's average student age is 24-25. There are no age limits. In fact, we have students who are freshmen, and we have some students who are in their 30s attending. It is open to all students,” Carroll said.
So far, meeting itinerary consists of a mix of fun and comradery in the Catholic faith, but the agenda will evolve with members’ goals.
"We have a game night in the student union. We’ve done that a couple of times. We are just in the building phase. We will have guest speakers. We have an evening called ‘stump a priest’ where they can ask him any theologically related questions. Those who stump a priest can win a prize. Some things like that," he added.
Game prizes are funded through private donors not any appropriation or any state money, he assured. According to Fr. Ehli, Cathedral parish also provides resources such as staff, financial support and meals for events whenever needed.
Mystic Catholics aims to strengthen and evangelize the faith to Catholics and non-Catholics alike.
"We plan on having guest speakers and talking about anything Catholic or theological, certainly helping students in college become better Catholics or helping folks who are really interested in Catholicism, answering those questions, helping them understand what it means to be Catholic. It's for all students."
The organization is student-led and driven, and he foresees the potential for community or campus service projects as members see fit.
"It is really not only Catholic formation, but formation for the students to get leadership experience and those extracurricular benefits of participating in a group like this,” Carroll said. "We want to meet the formative needs of BSC students who are open to having a relationship with Jesus Christ whether they be Catholic or not."
Mystic Catholics is an officially recognized student organization with a president, a vice president, a treasurer and secretary. They have a constitution and bylaws. It’s like any other student organization, but with a focus on faith.
Ultimately, the goal is for the program to grow campuswide. "It's part of Cathedral's mission of evangelization. BSC is in our boundaries. It is part of outreach to our college-age parishioners, to all those in our area,” Fr. Ehli said.
"The idea is to bridge the gap from K-12 formation into adulthood," Carroll explained. “BSC has students from all over western North Dakota. It's not just the Bismarck-Mandan metropolitan area. The hope is to let all the parishes in the diocese know that if they have students attending BSC, that the group is available for them, and we hope to see them on campus."
For more information about Mystic Catholics, email [email protected] or call 701-335-6332.