Georgetown University Chaplains Reflect on Jesuit Values at New Student Orientation

Moderating the inaugural “NSO Jesuit Values Panel” was a very special honor for me. After all, who wouldn’t want to hang out with our amazing chaplains? But apart from that, this panel was special in that it was the first time we were able to integrate an interfaith discussion of Jesuit values into the New Student Orientation experience. I look back on my own NSO – just a few years ago – and remember quite well how daunting concepts like “interfaith” and “Jesuit values” seemed to me. I came from a public school background, so a faith-based school, particularly one rooted in Jesuit values and dedicated to interreligious dialogue, was a very new experience for me. But over my time at Georgetown, these Jesuit values have come alive. This commitment to interfaith dialogue has manifested itself all around me. This is why the NSO Jesuit Values Panel was important to me. We had the opportunity to provide a glimpse of that experience to our newest Hoyas. We had the chance to break down some of the walls of unfamiliarity – to make these ideas and values more relatable and approachable, right from the very start.

Cura personalis is a part of my every day here at Georgetown. Am I taking the necessary steps to care for myself – beyond the physical aspects of well-being? How is Georgetown supporting me – in my beliefs, passions, and abilities? I wasn’t asking myself these questions during my first year on the Hilltop. But now, these are just some of the questions that I ask myself, and they flow directly from our Jesuit values.

Contemplation in action has concrete, personal meaning for me. Often I think that we as Hoyas don’t take enough time to stop – to stop and acknowledge the many amazing experiences we have each day. I know I don’t. Moreover, we may not take the time to reflect on those experiences – to hone in on what energized and inspired us, or perhaps challenged us each day. Am I missing the meaning behind my experiences? I didn’t ask myself this question before coming to Georgetown.

I say all of this because it is these questions that make the NSO Jesuit Values Panel special for me. I don’t know what questions our newest Hoyas are asking themselves this week. But I do know that our Jesuit values will come to play a part in their daily lives – irrespective of faith tradition – over their time at Georgetown. In knowing that, I hope that the NSO Jesuit Values Panel helped to kick-start that process in a thoughtful and meaningful way. The amazing people next to me on that panel engaged this process. I’m just glad I was able to be along for the ride.

Written by Connor Maytnier, C’17