Different Perspective

Annaliese grew up in a church environment that limited her view of God and the Bible. That community was important to her, but she decided that it was time to make faith her own when she came to college. 

"There was a lot of confinement where I grew up and college was breaking me out of that. I think it's important, even if it makes me uncomfortable."

She found Jacksonville Campus Ministry during her freshman year and began attending Food for Thought on Tuesday nights. Initially, she was uncomfortable with the fluidity of Food for Thought. "I was like: 'I don't know. It's interesting, but I don't know.'” She was a little uncomfortable about the loose structure of the gatherings and conversations about other religions and freedom within students’ own religions.  

Annaliese kept showing up, though, because she felt welcomed into the community. "People knew my name and said ‘hi’ to me when I walked in. I could have a conversation with people and feel like I was friends with them."

She recalls one such instance of this welcoming.  "I haven't been able to go to Food for Thought this semester because of class conflicts. But one time my class got out early and I came in. Everyone shouted ‘ANNELIESE!,’ and I was like ‘Oh, we are family even though I am not here. I still have connections in this group even if I am not physically present. It was such a delightful moment. I was like ‘Oh, I am loved.’”

Annaliese started going to Queer Bible Study her freshman year too. Unsurprisingly she was hesitant about that gathering as well, even though it was more structured. "At first I thought 'I don't know how I feel about this. We're talking about passages that I know so well and I've never looked at them this way.'  But I want to be able to see things from a new perspective. It's worth talking about things I've never talked about before or looking at things from a completely different perspective."

Even though she was initially hesitant about the community, she has really become a vital part of who we are and it has strengthened her faith this past year. "JCM has made me more open to interfaith experiences and more firmly affirmed in my own faith. I've definitely found my people."

Your generosity to campus ministry allows us to offer programs that broaden the perspectives of students and counsel them as they experience new lenses. We could not do this important ministry without you.