RELIGIOUS LIFE

The London Program takes very seriously its commitment to foster the spiritual growth of its students while they are in London. We recognize that our students come from a wide variety of religious backgrounds, so all members of staff in the Program are glad to use their considerable knowledge of religious life in London to provide each student with personal assistance in locating a house of worship that best suits the student's individual needs. Students may also locate houses of worship by visiting the websites maintained by various religious organizations.

The Program encourages its students to participate in religious services in a variety of ways, from attending services to assisting with setting up and providing music. Our Catholic students are particularly encouraged to worship with our local Catholic parishes so that they involve themselves as much in the religious life of the country as in its cultural life. We are keen that all our students should use London to enrich their faith life and share it with others in new settings rather than lead an isolated spiritual existence while they are here.

Our Catholic students are especially well provided for in this respect. The student residence is close to the local parish church of Our Lady of the Rosary, and the London Centre is near to St Patrick's, Soho Square and Westminster Cathedral. From time to time, mass is also celebrated in the London Centre, sometimes in the St Anselm Chapel (a beautifully appointed space for prayer and reflection which the London Centre acquired as a generous gift from Jill Anna Cobley in memory of her father George Harris Cobley) and sometimes in the Gallery, where the entire student body can gather together for worship. At these celebrations students serve as acolytes, musicians, lectors and Eucharistic ministers.

Students in the Program also benefit from the support and guidance of Andrew Hoyt, the Director of Campus Ministry Outreach. Representing Notre Dame Campus Ministry in Europe, Andrew plans retreats at sites of special religious significance in England, such as the Marian Shrine at Walsingham, as well as pilgrimages to Rome.

He also helps to organize prayer groups and Bible study groups in the student residence. Andrew is also a valuable source of information for students wishing to participate in service projects run through our local parishes.

In these ways we seek to develop a distinctive yet inclusive faith community in the London Program, which draws its inspiration from the religious life of the city itself.