BYU Carillon bell tower at BYU by Aubrey Odom / Unsplash
Despite attending a predominantly Latter-day Saints school, determined Catholic students at Brigham Young University in Utah have managed to re-establish a Catholic club, evangelize to their peers, and bring Mass to campus, all within just a few years.
The Salt Lake Tribune reported July 22 that Fernanda Romero, a Catholic student from El Salvador, arrived at BYU in 2022 and found almost no opportunities for Catholics to practice their faith on campus. At BYU, non-LDS students make up less than 2% of the university’s entire student population.
Searching for a Catholic community, Romero emailed BYU’s university chaplain, who suggested that she revive the Catholic Newman Club, which had been founded in 1997 but later shut down. The club was named after St. John Henry Newman and had offered Catholic students the opportunity to find others who were also trying to live out their faith on a non-Catholic campus.
Romero eventually reached out to other Catholic students and asked them to join. Through their efforts, the club grew and began evangelizing to other students, often passing out rosaries and inviting others to the club’s events.
However, the club’s main goal was to bring Mass to campus, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. Javier De Los Reyes, the club’s president, said that he had no way to get to Mass during his freshman year. After presenting the idea to BYU and overcoming several challenges, such as finding a priest and obtaining the university’s permission to have Mass and use candles indoors, Mass was celebrated on campus January 16 for the first time in years.
According to The Salt Lake Tribune, De Los Reyes said he thought about 150 students would come to Mass — but 350 ended up attending, the majority of them LDS students.
De Los Reyes told the outlet, “It was an insanely packed room. People were standing everywhere. There were no empty seats, which was super cool to see.”
Romero shared that the club plans to continue expanding next school year, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
Noting that she wished the Catholic club had been available when she was a freshman, Romero added, “I hope that it also continues to stay. I’m having a great time practicing my religion on campus, and I’m glad that other people are having the same singular experience, too.”
