Why am I here? What was I made to do? These are the existential questions that many students grapple with during their college years. In his experience as assistant director for Pastoral Care, Tyler Conway has found that students at Baylor have “a desire to connect with God or a community of people to find a sense of meaning and belonging.” And as an unapologetically Christian university, Baylor strives to help them make those connections.
“There is a beautiful tapestry of ministers, staff, and students whose dedication enhances the spiritual environment at Baylor and that ultimately has resulted in increasing numbers of church attendance,” said Charles Ramsey, associate chaplain and director of Campus Ministries & Church Connections. “Can we track the numbers of students in church? Not yet. But from what we see and hear, there is a vibrancy of faith in our Baylor community, and this is translating into increased Christian commitment and church participation.”
Austin Murray, the College Pastor at Antioch Community Church in Waco, sees a “fresh hunger for God” among the 300 to 350 college students who attend church on Sunday and take part in the college service, which welcomes anyone 18 to 25 from 7 to 9 p.m. each Wednesday evening.
“I think they come for a variety of peripheral reasons—community, good worship, good Bible teaching—but they’re also hungry for God himself,” he said. “They’re coming to be with their brothers and sisters in Christ and because we prioritize the Word of God and a true encounter with God.”
The students who attend Antioch have not been enticed to do so by auxiliary methods. “The days of being popular instead of potent are over,” Murray said. “If we have to offer all kinds of extras to get them here, then we’ll have to do more of that to keep them.” Instead, he strives to offer an authentic experience of Jesus in an authentic space.
While his fear is that young people have almost become desensitized to the mass shootings, bombings, and natural disasters in the news every day, he is convinced that the church has a role to play in their lives, which may be to offer hope. “Ultimately, the local church is the hope of the world,” he said. What’s important to remember is that “as the darkness in the world gets even darker, the light is going to get a lot brighter.”
“Studies show that people who attend Baylor and are part of a Christian community thrive while they’re here. … They feel like they belong, and they keep that going after they graduate.”
Dr. Ramsey has observed an excitement about faith among Baylor students, faculty, and staff that he finds to be reflective of the “big tent Christianity” that Baylor seeks to cultivate. “Though our largest groupings continue to be Baptist, Catholic, and non-denominational,” he said, “Baylor has students from many different Christian traditions and faith commitments.”
Indeed, since the 1970s when most of the student body was from Texas and Baylor was 61 percent Baptist, demographics have shifted considerably. Burt Burleson, University Chaplain and Dean of Spiritual Life, points out that as a world-class university, Baylor attracts students from all over the world, about 18 percent of which are Baptist, 17 percent Catholic, 10 percent mainline Protestant, a little over 20 percent non-denominational, about six percent that doesn’t identify with any particular religion, and another four percent that identifies as Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, or Buddhist. Historically, the two largest non-Christian groups of students have been Hindus and Muslims.
The hub of spiritual activity at Baylor is the Bobo Spiritual Life Center, which has been described as a place where the couches are comfortable, the coffee is free, and the conversations are life changing. It’s home to the Office of Spiritual Life, which offers programs and resources to nurture theological depth and spiritual wholeness.
“It is important to remember that the Office of Spiritual Life at Baylor has grown dramatically over the past decade,” said Ramsey, who remembers being an undergraduate himself in the mid to late 1990s when there was basically a chaplain, an administrative assistant, and the Baptist Student Union staff. “Now there are about 50 individuals who are directly engaged in providing spiritually formative opportunities for Baylor students, including about 60 different chapel opportunities that go from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.”
A long-standing tradition at Baylor, Chapel began as a daily prayer service for faculty, staff and students but has evolved over the years to meet the needs of 20,000 students who are at different steps along their faith journey. The ideal chapel – and there are dozens of them – is a combination of content and experience that takes students beyond the classroom. Some chapels require attendance as well as other activities or assignments, and each of them offers a different experience. University Chapel Worship, for example, is a multicultural service that brings in top preachers and musicians. Wilderness Spirituality Chapel explores how nature and creation can enhance your spiritual life. Last spring, the first Catholic Chapel opportunity at Baylor was inaugurated, and the section of 40 slots not only filled up immediately but also pushed daily mass attendance to well over 100 students.
Aside from chapel, there are 39 campus ministries (chartered student organizations) that collaborate with 61 local churches to nurture and support the student body. “We know that two-thirds of our students come here because of our Christian mission,” said Burleson. “So from the get-go they’re likely to be involved with a campus ministry.”
They certainly have plenty of options. Baylor Cru, for example, leads some excellent small group Bible studies and hosts lots of great events, retreats, conferences, and summer mission opportunities. Established in 1988, Heavenly Voices is Baylor’s very own gospel choir. Members travel throughout the state performing and doing community service. Asian Ministry InterVarsity desires to see Asian Americans transformed as they explore what it means to follow Jesus together, gathering in groups both large and small and participating in intramurals to foster community and fellowship. Vertical Ministries, which meets on Monday nights, exists to ignite a passion in college students for Jesus, his church and his mission around the world. With so many options, students are sure to find one that’s a good fit for their denomination and interests.
The Office of Spiritual Life offers plenty of resources to help students find a local church that’s a good fit for them. To help discern where they belong, they are encouraged to consider church size, denomination, theological tradition, worship style, preaching, and pastoral leadership. They may want to “look around” and learn from and about other traditions. Or, they might look for an experience that is more intergenerational instead of choosing a church because it’s easier to go there with a group of other students.
“One way we explore the spiritual climate at Baylor,” said Dr. Ramsey, “is through the Faith and Character study.” In August, 2018, an interdisciplinary research team began collecting data to track changes in religious belongings, beliefs, and behaviors in order to measure outcomes of faith and character. Using surveys and interviews, researchers gathered data at three points in time: a student’s first semester at Baylor, a student’s final semester at Baylor, and 10 years after degree completion. The findings from 2020 revealed:
- 93 percent of new Baylor students and seniors identify with a religious tradition.
- 50 percent of Baylor students attend religious services at least once per week compared to 30 percent of the U.S. population.
- New students and seniors also reported high levels of being spiritually moved by nature, talking with others about their faith, and their commitment to God, applying their faith to political and social issues and seeking opportunities to grow spiritually.
- New students are lower on Bible belief and reading than seniors or alumni.
- 74 percent of alumni, 69 percent of seniors and 61 percent of new students agreed that the Bible is inspired by God.
- On average, new students attended religious services about weekly but read the Bible less than once a month, while seniors and alumni read the Bible two to three times a month.
“Every being is a spiritual being,” said Conway, who defines spirituality as “making meaning and finding purpose in our lives.” In that respect, Baylor provides an academic environment that creates self-awareness and builds character. “Studies show that people who attend Baylor and are part of a Christian community thrive while they’re here,” said Burleson. More important perhaps, “they feel like they belong, and they keep that going after they graduate.”
