Prayer Breakfast invites Bryant community to reflect, pray
13th annual event features an inspirational message from Christopher Corry ’10.
Christopher Corry ’10 (St. Charles, IL) says it was a leap of faith of sorts for him to come to Bryant. It’s not that he was hesitant to enroll here, but he was unsure, he says, why God was calling him to New England, a place he had never visited.
Once on campus, it didn’t take long for him to become comfortable. He met members of the Bryant Christian Fellowship during the Organization Fair that took place his first week on campus, and he knew he had made the right decision.
“I realized quickly that God is alive on this campus,” says Corry, who is now the president of the Bryant Christian Fellowship. “I got involved because I wanted to deepen my relationship with Jesus and spread His message to the Bryant community.”
Corry shared his story at Bryant’s 13th Annual Interfaith Prayer Breakfast earlier this semester. The event is patterned after the National Prayer Breakfast, which is held each February in Washington, D.C, and is replicated throughout the United States. The Bryant program included music, reflection, and readings from the Psalms, the Bhagavad-Gita, the Scriptures, and the Koran.
“Events like the Prayer Breakfast help students realize that God does exist, and that he is working in our lives,” says Corry.
Sandra Keating, associate professor of theology at Providence College and recognized expert on Muslim-Christian relations, gave the keynote address. It is of paramount important to improve relationships among religious people, she says, as that is the only way to realize the ultimate goal of world peace.
“We are all on a journey to a deeper understanding of who we are, and who God is,” says Keating. “Do we see the image of God in every person that we meet? Do we make it easy for people to see God in us?”
Spiritual growth
A recent study from the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA reports that more students are experiencing spiritual growth during the college years. At least 50 percent of college juniors rated “integrating spirituality into my life as a “very important” or “essential” goal, up from 40 percent as first-year students.
At Bryant, Campus Ministry is committed to the spiritual development of all students. Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish chaplains are available to every member of the University community as sources of support, guidance, and spiritual development.
The University’s Interfaith Center, which is slated to open this summer, will further enhance this commitment by providing a special place for people of all perspectives to come together to express their spirituality and learn from one another.
"Bryant’s Interfaith Center will be so much more than a building,” says Bryant President Ronald K. Machtley. “It will become a campus landmark and an inspiration to the entire Bryant community."
The essence of the “Character of Success”
In pursuing professional and personal goals, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking only of oneself, says Corry. True success, he contends, is measured by how many people you impact in a positive way.
“God defines the “Character of Success” not by your high paying job but by how many people you loved, cared for, respected, and built relationships with on the path that He has already laid out for you,” says Corry.
“Spirituality is an essential part of the ‘Character of Success,’ ” says Rev. Joseph Pescatello, Bryant’s Catholic Chaplain. “Whether or not students have a specific religion they adhere to, we all have a spiritual dimension. This facility will provide a place for worship and a center for learning about diverse religious traditions in an ecumenical spirit."
Once on campus, it didn’t take long for him to become comfortable. He met members of the Bryant Christian Fellowship during the Organization Fair that took place his first week on campus, and he knew he had made the right decision.
“I realized quickly that God is alive on this campus,” says Corry, who is now the president of the Bryant Christian Fellowship. “I got involved because I wanted to deepen my relationship with Jesus and spread His message to the Bryant community.”
Corry shared his story at Bryant’s 13th Annual Interfaith Prayer Breakfast earlier this semester. The event is patterned after the National Prayer Breakfast, which is held each February in Washington, D.C, and is replicated throughout the United States. The Bryant program included music, reflection, and readings from the Psalms, the Bhagavad-Gita, the Scriptures, and the Koran.
“Events like the Prayer Breakfast help students realize that God does exist, and that he is working in our lives,” says Corry.
Sandra Keating, associate professor of theology at Providence College and recognized expert on Muslim-Christian relations, gave the keynote address. It is of paramount important to improve relationships among religious people, she says, as that is the only way to realize the ultimate goal of world peace.
“We are all on a journey to a deeper understanding of who we are, and who God is,” says Keating. “Do we see the image of God in every person that we meet? Do we make it easy for people to see God in us?”
Spiritual growth
A recent study from the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA reports that more students are experiencing spiritual growth during the college years. At least 50 percent of college juniors rated “integrating spirituality into my life as a “very important” or “essential” goal, up from 40 percent as first-year students.
At Bryant, Campus Ministry is committed to the spiritual development of all students. Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish chaplains are available to every member of the University community as sources of support, guidance, and spiritual development.
The University’s Interfaith Center, which is slated to open this summer, will further enhance this commitment by providing a special place for people of all perspectives to come together to express their spirituality and learn from one another.
"Bryant’s Interfaith Center will be so much more than a building,” says Bryant President Ronald K. Machtley. “It will become a campus landmark and an inspiration to the entire Bryant community."
The essence of the “Character of Success”
In pursuing professional and personal goals, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking only of oneself, says Corry. True success, he contends, is measured by how many people you impact in a positive way.
“God defines the “Character of Success” not by your high paying job but by how many people you loved, cared for, respected, and built relationships with on the path that He has already laid out for you,” says Corry.
“Spirituality is an essential part of the ‘Character of Success,’ ” says Rev. Joseph Pescatello, Bryant’s Catholic Chaplain. “Whether or not students have a specific religion they adhere to, we all have a spiritual dimension. This facility will provide a place for worship and a center for learning about diverse religious traditions in an ecumenical spirit."
