Nourishment on campus

by the Rev. Ray Ranker

Free food!  That’s often a primary advertisement for the Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) sites around the country. And it’s true; most have good, home-cooked meals.  Most also offer a strong, tight-knit community that is loving and accepting.

“In a college atmosphere of competition and an intense focus on individual performance, Jesus’ words of love and grace are even more important for students to hear and embody,” says Chaplain Ranker (photo right).

But many campus groups can offer similar things.  Food and fellowship, even good service projects are something a lot of fraternities and sororities and other campus clubs offer.

Jesus is what makes us different, what makes us unique.  In a college atmosphere of competition and an intense focus on individual performance, Jesus’ words of love and grace are even more important for students to hear and embody.  And as we understand that unconditional love and amazing grace, together we live out what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ and to share that love with the world.

We ask tough questions, have real conversations, and communally discern God’s will.  We go beyond the surface level to get at those deep questions, which often have to do with meaning and purpose.

Campus ministry walks with these young adults through some of the most formative years of their life.  And we can do all this thanks to your support.
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Connect yourself or students in your life and your congregation to campus ministry. Our guest blogger, the Rev. Ray Ranker, is a chaplain of LCM at the University of Maryland in College Park. He draws our attention to several local active campus ministries in addition to the “Lutheran Terps”: Northern Virginia Community College (part of the Northern Virginia LCM) and American University (LCM connected with the congregation at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church). A national listing of LCM at institutions of higher education can be found at www.elca.org/Our-Work/Related-Ministries/Campus-Ministry.