Loyola graduate students got to experience a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in Rome, according to assistant professor of pastoral studies, Emily Jendzejec. Six students and one faculty member went on a pilgrimage in Rome to experience a Catholic Synod.
The Synod is a council that comes together and helps make spiritual decisions on the Catholic Church, Jendzejec said. Catholic leaders and invitees come together to discuss current issues facing the Church. Members of the Synod are Catholics chosen by Pope Francis.
Jendzejec teaches a class about Synodality and what it means for people of Catholic faith. She said observing and participating in conversations not only benefited her students but also offered her experience and knowledge.
“I think that being part of this trip, and going on this trip with, like, once in a lifetime opportunity, but also a once in a kind of church opportunity,” Jendzejec said.
According to Jendzejec, the trip has been in the works for about a year. The group joined several other Jesuit institutions and created a space for students to experience the Synod through communion, participation, and mission, Jendzejec said.
“I think it’s an incredible opportunity,” Jendzejec said. “And what is amazing really, too, is that we collaborated with 14 other universities, and we’re kind of thinking about this too.”
Milissa Else, a student of Jendzejec, said the experience was something that helped her grow as a Catholic. According to Else, she took the class in order to help her understand the Synod on a different level, especially helping her in her pastoral work within the church.
“It was a deeply spiritual pilgrimage to sacred sites and locations throughout Rome,” Else said.
Else and Jendzejec met the delegates in the Synod to ask questions and converse. They said those conversations stood out to them the most on the trip. According to Else, they visited sacred places like the Vatican and St Peter’s Basilica that were personally significant to them as Catholics. Else and Jendzejec said being able to see these places helped them grow a connection through their faith.
“It was just so exciting to be able to kind of go past the Swiss Guards and to walk up to the Senate hall and to walk in there, an iconic space, a space that we’ve all seen,” said Else.
