The Campus Ministry Internship Program is open to junior and senior students of the College who have demonstrated leadership potential within the retreat program either as team leaders or as team members. These students see this internship program as an expression of their desire to minister with their peers in retreat and post-retreat experiences at Loyola and with the youth participating in retreats at the O'Dwyre Retreat House.

The ministry experiences are placed within a context of prayer and reflection, expressed both communally and individually in the spirit of Ignation discernment. Further, ministry interns will participate in continuing instruction in spirituality, program development, adolescent psychology, community building and other aspects of youth ministry and faith development.

First- and second-year students are invited to participate in the pre-ministry program, which presently consists of bi-weekly meetings and scripture reflections. As sophomores, this group will be invited to observe at the retreat house and offer their assistance to the interns as program aides for their specific retreats and receive initial instruction in youth ministry. As juniors, they will be invited to become interns.

The following behavioral objectives define the program:

1. To promote spiritual growth of program participants through encouragement of daily private prayer (including the examen), participation in community prayer (especially Eucharist and Evensong), and regular conversation with program mentors as part of the process of ongoing discernment.

 

2. To involve the ministry interns in the program for a time commitment not to exceed ten hours a week. Included in these ten hours are: weekly attendance at Evensong; bi-weekly team meetings; bi-weekly one-on-one sessions with the director, and participation in the assigned retreat programs.

 

3. To participate in orientation sessions, group observations, and classes as directed by Rev. Michael Thornsberry, Director of the O'Dwyer Retreat House.

 

4. To assume directed leadership roles in the O'Dwyer youth retreats at the conclusion of orientation and instruction sessions with the permission of the Retreat House Director in consultation with the Loyola College Retreat Director.

 

5. To participate in the Loyola peer ministry phase of the program by involvement in one of the following aspects of the program: post-retreat experiences, mentorship of the pre-ministry candidates, the freshman retreats, and the sophomore retreats.

 

6. To participate in a systematic instruction in aspects of youth ministry in bi-weekly classes.