Ring, John M.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 35 | Number 1 Article 28February 1968A University ParishJohn M. RingFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationRing, John M. (1968) "A University Parish," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 35 : No. 1 , Article 28.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol35/iss1/28A -qniversity Parisl1 REVEREND JoHN .M. RING . St. John of God New·man Cen-ter, serving the University of Cal-ifornia .Medical Center in San Francisco, was recently established as a University parish by Arch-bishop Joseph T. l\1cGucken. \Ve . feel that this is newsworthy be-cause it is another indication of the importance of the Newman apostolate in bringing the Church to secular campuses. The territory of the parish is the same as the campus of the medical center it- . self. In other words, it has not interfered with the parochial boundaries of the neighboring par-ishes. It is more 1:ealistically a "per-sonal' ' parish and this is what makes it so unique and so interesting. There are many dimensions to this Newman parish: it serves a hospital with close to 700 beds; it is a Newman Center serving the various schools on campus: nurs-ing, dentistry, pharmacy and med-icine; it is a family parish with its own community of married couples and their children-i.e. the resi-dents, the interns and students who are married; it includes members of the faculty and their families; it is a center for the Catholic nurses who work in the t\YO hospitals on campus; it also serves the Langley-Porter Psychiatric Institute. It is truly a "people" parish with a great variety of parishioners who repre-sent the various activities of a large medical center. 30 This new parochial plan to take shape in the sum 1966 when a Lutheran ( situated only three block the U .C. l\~Iedical Center, \ '1 for sale; fortunately, the A cese was able to purchase th . erty. This included a chapel seats some 200 people, a and a well equipped paris Very few changes were nc< -1 cgan .-r of urch, from 1t up clio-prop--;hich ctory hall. .sary. The chapel with its be ttiful stained-glass windows and \·ood-paneled interior and pews, ··hich had been the place of worsi P for devout Christians before, n . 1' be-came the religious setting fot S ath-olics of the U. C. Medical ( 'ntcr. 'Ve added the special li t · ·gical signs and symbols of our ' '" ' ship. An altar facing the people fi t nice-ly into the sanctuary. A tabl nacle was placed on the old altar. . con-fessional, stations of the eros , holy water fonts and sanctuary <.lmps were added and Christ Lu · 1cran Church was transformed ( or should I say "converted") in -d the St. John of God Catholic hapcl for the U. C. Medical Cen t··: . The popular Mass for ' oun g and old on our Sunday sche(: ..~ le is our l\1ass with guitar accq1 • ani-ment. A dental student and •mrse with their guitars lead the assembly in the new folk-hymns: H ere We Are ... , Tahe Our Breatl vVe Ash You, Sons of God, etc. T here is no rushing home after \ lass. LINACRE QuARTE RLY Most of the people go to the hall . for coffee and pastries. It is an ex-cellent way for the members of the parish to get acquainted. Another Sunday morning feature is operation "play-pen" a baby-sit-ting service. The parish hall mi Sunday mornings becomes a nur-sery where parents can safely leave their tots while they attend l\'1 ass. A dental · assistant and some nurses provide the tender - loving - care while the parents arc at l\fass. The University p arish not only provides the setting where m.embers of the Medical Center can expe-rience the meaning of Christian community religiously, liturgically and sociallv, it must also speak to the minds . and consciences of its people . on serious issues of the times. It must provide through lec-tures, courses , disc ussions and li-brary service the means to develop a deeper awareness of the current religious and social problems, to express a Christian point of vie\r about them and to achieve a great-er Christian m aturity. One of our programs that seeks to analyze and discuss the provok-ing issues of the tim es is a Sunday evening lecture series. In October We considered the summer riots that befell the major cities of our country. The topic for discussion was: "Race, Riot and Reconcilia-tion." In November the subject for discussion was: "\ Vh en Does Hu-tnan Life End?'' In December Rob-FEBRUARY crt l\IcAfee Brown spoke on the Vietnam issue: "Vietnam, Is the Price Too High"? The program will extend into May 1968 and will consider a varietv of issues : the ethical problems .of medicine, the social problems of our cities and the psychological problems of people. Our University parish is just a year old. It is an exciting project which is a reflection of the new spirit of renewal that is alive in the Church today. People may be critical about the changes within the Church-too rapid for some, too slow for others, but the life of the Holy Spirit is m anifesting itself in man y ways quietly, humbly, definitely. One great reflection of this is in the way the Ne\Ym an Apostolate throughout the country h as developed and matured since Vatican II in its mission to the secular campus. \ Vc hear too much these clays about far-out happen-in gs, about the oddities, the weird sports, i.e. the peculiar variations from type that shoot up here and there , the odd mutations in the life of the Christian Community. But there is a " ·onderful new spirit alive in the Catholic centers at the m any colleges and universities throughout the country. \ Ve feel that such a spirit exists at our Uni-versity parish serving the U.C. l\1edical Center in San Francisco. [Fa ther Rin g is Pastor of University Par-ish serving the University of Galifornia, San Francisco Medical Center.] 31 •· •' . ,•. ~-. . ~ .. ·. t . .. . ~· .. : .:· ·' ~·· : .. 

A University Parish

The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 35 | Number 1 Article 9February 1968A University ParishJohn M. RingFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationRing, John M. (1968) "A University Parish," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 35 : No. 1 , Article 9.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol35/iss1/9A -qniversity Parisl1 REVEREND JoHN .M. RING . St. John of God New·man Cen-ter, serving the University of Cal-ifornia .Medical Center in San Francisco, was recently established as a University parish by Arch-bishop Joseph T. l\1cGucken. \Ve . feel that this is newsworthy be-cause it is another indication of the importance of the Newman apostolate in bringing the Church to secular campuses. The territory of the parish is the same as the campus of the medical center it- . self. In other words, it has not interfered with the parochial boundaries of the neighboring par-ishes. It is more 1:ealistically a "per-sonal' ' parish and this is what makes it so unique and so interesting. There are many dimensions to this Newman parish: it serves a hospital with close to 700 beds; it is a Newman Center serving the various schools on campus: nurs-ing, dentistry, pharmacy and med-icine; it is a family parish with its own community of married couples and their children-i.e. the resi-dents, the interns and students who are married; it includes members of the faculty and their families; it is a center for the Catholic nurses who work in the t\YO hospitals on campus; it also serves the Langley-Porter Psychiatric Institute. It is truly a "people" parish with a great variety of parishioners who repre-sent the various activities of a large medical center. 30 This new parochial plan to take shape in the sum 1966 when a Lutheran ( situated only three block the U .C. l\~Iedical Center, \ '1 for sale; fortunately, the A cese was able to purchase th . erty. This included a chapel seats some 200 people, a and a well equipped paris Very few changes were nc< -1 cgan .-r of urch, from 1t up clio-prop--;hich ctory hall. .sary. The chapel with its be ttiful stained-glass windows and \·ood-paneled interior and pews, ··hich had been the place of worsi P for devout Christians before, n . 1' be-came the religious setting fot S ath-olics of the U. C. Medical ( 'ntcr. 'Ve added the special li t · ·gical signs and symbols of our ' '" ' ship. An altar facing the people fi t nice-ly into the sanctuary. A tabl nacle was placed on the old altar. . con-fessional, stations of the eros , holy water fonts and sanctuary <.lmps were added and Christ Lu · 1cran Church was transformed ( or should I say "converted") in -d the St. John of God Catholic hapcl for the U. C. Medical Cen t··: . The popular Mass for ' oun g and old on our Sunday sche(: ..~ le is our l\1ass with guitar accq1 • ani-ment. A dental student and •mrse with their guitars lead the assembly in the new folk-hymns: H ere We Are ... , Tahe Our Breatl vVe Ash You, Sons of God, etc. T here is no rushing home after \ lass. LINACRE QuARTE RLY Most of the people go to the hall . for coffee and pastries. It is an ex-cellent way for the members of the parish to get acquainted. Another Sunday morning feature is operation "play-pen" a baby-sit-ting service. The parish hall mi Sunday mornings becomes a nur-sery where parents can safely leave their tots while they attend l\'1 ass. A dental · assistant and some nurses provide the tender - loving - care while the parents arc at l\fass. The University p arish not only provides the setting where m.embers of the Medical Center can expe-rience the meaning of Christian community religiously, liturgically and sociallv, it must also speak to the minds . and consciences of its people . on serious issues of the times. It must provide through lec-tures, courses , disc ussions and li-brary service the means to develop a deeper awareness of the current religious and social problems, to express a Christian point of vie\r about them and to achieve a great-er Christian m aturity. One of our programs that seeks to analyze and discuss the provok-ing issues of the tim es is a Sunday evening lecture series. In October We considered the summer riots that befell the major cities of our country. The topic for discussion was: "Race, Riot and Reconcilia-tion." In November the subject for discussion was: "\ Vh en Does Hu-tnan Life End?'' In December Rob-FEBRUARY crt l\IcAfee Brown spoke on the Vietnam issue: "Vietnam, Is the Price Too High"? The program will extend into May 1968 and will consider a varietv of issues : the ethical problems .of medicine, the social problems of our cities and the psychological problems of people. Our University parish is just a year old. It is an exciting project which is a reflection of the new spirit of renewal that is alive in the Church today. People may be critical about the changes within the Church-too rapid for some, too slow for others, but the life of the Holy Spirit is m anifesting itself in man y ways quietly, humbly, definitely. One great reflection of this is in the way the Ne\Ym an Apostolate throughout the country h as developed and matured since Vatican II in its mission to the secular campus. \ Vc hear too much these clays about far-out happen-in gs, about the oddities, the weird sports, i.e. the peculiar variations from type that shoot up here and there , the odd mutations in the life of the Christian Community. But there is a " ·onderful new spirit alive in the Catholic centers at the m any colleges and universities throughout the country. \ Ve feel that such a spirit exists at our Uni-versity parish serving the U.C. l\1edical Center in San Francisco. [Fa ther Rin g is Pastor of University Par-ish serving the University of Galifornia, San Francisco Medical Center.] 31 •· •' . ,•. ~-. . ~ .. ·. t . .. . ~· .. : .:· ·' ~·· : .. 

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A University Parish

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