Each semester, Fordham offers multiple opportunities for staff, faculty, and students to reflect and give back to the community. Volunteer events, such as sandwich making for community fridges, conclude with a moment of reflection. One-hour retreats provide a chance to take a break during the workday.
All of these Ignatian programs have one thing in common: they bring faculty, staff, and students together while also making it easy to tap into Fordham’s Jesuit spirit. If you’ve considered joining one of these events, read on to see why attendees find them so valuable.
Living the Mission IRL
Director of Online Learning Veronica Szczygiel has sampled almost every type of Ignatian program at Fordham, from Storytime with Neighborhood Kids to the one-hour retreats that focus on topics like managing adversity.
“For me, what’s really reaffirming is that these events help me remember that I am connected to a greater community and a greater mission at Fordham University. And it’s a fundamentally Jesuit mission in which the emphasis is on social justice, and on the holistic care of the whole person, cura personalis. I mean, I can bring out all these buzzwords, but really when I feel like I’m being cared for and valued, I can pass that along to the faculty and students that I work with.”
All of the University’s Ignatian events, which take place during lunchtime, in the late afternoons, or on weekends, are planned by Director of Ignatian Mission Initiatives Robert Parmach, often with colleagues across the University like Campus Ministry.
“Even if it’s for one hour or a brief period of time, you can still make a meaningful impact on the development of your interior life, sense of deeper connection at Fordham, and in helping others in practical ways,” said Parmach.
“As a Jesuit institution, I think it’s important that we learn from and challenge one another in order to be those women and men for others, grounded in thought, critical reflection and a discerning spirit. And you never know how someone can brighten your day. Gratitude is a gift as well.”
Some events draw more students overall, presenting a unique opportunity to impact the way that they see Fordham or what they choose to study. “Last year a student came up to me afterwards and said, ‘I’m a first semester, first-year student. I didn’t realize for the last half hour I was working with a law professor hand-in-hand making sandwiches. Halfway through it, I came to recognize that I have an interest in law.’”
‘Everyone Is Welcome’
Though Fordham’s Ignatian events are inspired by Saint Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order, they’re nondenominational in practice, said Graduate School of Education Student Success Counselor Michael Taylor, who often attends these programs.
“One of the things that activities with Rob have taught me is that everyone is welcome, and that is the goal of creating a strong community,” said Taylor, who is Jewish. He said that Ignatian events at Fordham “transcend religious affiliation.” Last year for example, in partnership with Parmach, he helped coordinate a tour for staff, faculty, students, and alumni of Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan.
Many Ways to Reflect
Elizabeth Gil, professor of educational leadership, administration, and policy at the Graduate School of Education, attended last year’s staff and faculty retreat in Goshen, New York (to be held on March 12 this year). She said there were lots of opportunities for inward reflection—through walks in the woods, listening to music, and artmaking—and for talking with faculty and staff she wouldn’t have met otherwise. But what really impressed her was how non-prescriptive the whole experience felt.
“There’s a sense that there are options—that there’s not just one way to reflect, that it doesn’t have to look one way. And I think that that’s important in terms of people being able to meet their needs in different ways.”
Upcoming Ignatian Events
Following is a selection of upcoming service projects and retreats for faculty and staff. You can find all of Fordham’s Ignatian events here.
Tuesday, Feb. 11: One-Hour Retreat: Many Faces of Love (1 – 2 p.m., Lincoln Center)
Wednesday, Feb. 12 Mission-in-Action Sandwich Making (11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Rose Hill)
Thursday, Feb. 13, Valentine’s Reflection with Jesuits (3 – 4 p.m., Rose Hill)
Sun., Feb. 24 Xavier Mission Welcome Table Service Project in Chelsea(11:30 a.m. – 4 p.m., Lincoln Center)
Weds., March 12: Staff and Faculty Retreat in Goshen, NY (9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Ram Van rides from Rose Hill and Lincoln Center)
