by Giselle Rhoden
Bellarmine’s Office of Campus Ministry has created a podcast that sparks deep conversations between peer ministers and students.
At the beginning of the spring semester, the office asked the peer ministers to have spiritual conversations with students in the residence halls calling these conversations Agape Chats.
“This has evolved quite a bit over the academic year,” said Anderson Reeves, interim assistant director of campus ministry. Reeves and others in the campus ministry office decided to develop these chats into a podcast for everyone to listen, and the Agape Project was born.
“They’re called Agape Chats because it’s about that agape love, which is one of the highest forms of love,” said Grace Michels, a peer minister for Petrik and Anniversary halls.
The Agape Project’s first episode defines agape as “the highest form or love. Selfless, sacrificial and unconditional. Transcends worldly ties, persists without fail, always giving, devotes total commitment to see the highest and the best.”
Reeves said “agape” is Greek word and is a term that expresses God’s love of humanity. Although the word “agape” is rooted in Christianity, Reeves said the podcast has taken the word in a more “interfaith and secular direction.”
He also said it’s important to have both diverse backgrounds and diverse conversations for the Agape Project. Said Reeves: “That intersectionality isn’t dissonance, it’s beautiful…There are some really just incredible people no matter their backstories or some preconceptions that you had. We’re hopefully making people rethink.”
Michels said that the Agape Project has become a place where students can freely express their worldviews and talk about their “spiritual journeys,” and she said she has enjoyed these unique conversations.
“I’m a person where I love having those conversations and that’s kind of like my daily to be like, ‘oh, what do you think about this?’ like religion, god and spirituality, and not being able to just have those conversations in the quad gives me the opportunity to grow and explore that connection not just with others but with myself,” said Michels.
The Agape Project has given Michels the opportunity to speak to students of many different faiths outside of Catholicism, the religion with which the university is affiliated. She has spoken to people who identify as Muslim, Pagan, Protestant, Jewish and other religions.
“It was nice to be able to talk about my faith,” said Bilal Qazi, a sophomore Muslim student. Qazi was shocked that the university was even interested in talking about other faiths. He said he took this opportunity to not only discuss his faith but also debunk any misconceptions about what he believes. “The Agape Chat itself is a way to get a lot of different points of view around campus. I think it’s really valuable…It showcases how complex our campus is,” he said.
Qazi also said that the peer ministers have done a great job making students feel welcome during the Agape Chat. “She [Michels] really made a point that it was shaped by me,” Qazi said.
Michels said, each Agape Project participant gets a list of questions about their world views, vocation and prayer. The Peer Ministers will only discuss the questions that participants are comfortable answering. “I love those types of conversations on a deeper level, so I just thoroughly enjoyed doing them and being exposed to different beliefs that I am not as familiar with,” Michels said.
The Agape Project is available on all podcast streaming services, and it is available in four countries (the United States, the Unites Kingdom, Spain and the United Arab Emirates). A new Agape Chat is posted every week.
Michels said she is excited to continue this project next school year with the new peer ministers, and Reeves said he is very proud of what the Agape Project has become. “We have something really beautiful here,” he said.