Campus Ministry-A Broad View

Boone Turchi

Given its proximity to the campus, the Chapel of the Cross has had an intimate relationship with the University of North Carolina since the nineteenth century. In recent decades that relationship has included a specific ministry to the University usually embodied in a chaplain. Earlier, the chaplain was wholly funded by the Diocese of North Carolina, but in the late 1970s the chaplain became a full-time member of the parish staff, with the Diocese's contributing one-half of the position's cost.

The 'Chapel of the Cross model' for university ministry has enjoyed some success over the past two decades and others in the diocese have looked to it as a template for campus ministry in other locations. Bishop Curry's emphasis on renewing the diocese as a missionary diocese led the Mission Strategy Commission to consider the role of campus ministry in the overall missionary endeavor. We found that role to be potentially very important along a number of dimensions:

• An effective campus ministry can preserve the connection between the Church and Episcopal youth whose connection to their home parishes weakens when they leave for college.
• The Episcopal Church is a particularly attractive option for students whose religious backgrounds are not compatible with the intellectual growth that they experience while at college.
• The Episcopal Church also offers particular attractions for students with little religious background whose university experience leads them to seek spiritual growth or guidance.
• The campus offers a wonderful environment for the Church to address the leading moral, socioeconomic and political issues of the day. Too often, the 'Christian perspective' on these issues is represented by groups whose views are far from those held by many Episcopalians.

For all these reasons, I expect that campus ministry will be an integral part of the Diocese of North Carolina's mission strategy, and I predict that the Chapel of the Cross's ministry to UNC will be a major contributor to that
effort.