Donation protected
Hey y'all, my name is Cameron Bailey!
I'm a sophomore at Arizona State University, and I was just received into the Church this past Easter (praise God!) after growing up Protestant all my life. This semester, I have the opportunity of my life to make a pilgrimage to Rome through Mary College at ASU.
Like many converts to the Catholic faith, my journey was marked by a profound realization of truth of the Church's historical claims. It took me a while to understand that, unlike secular history, the history of the Church is dynamic—animated by the Holy Spirit, full of life, and very powerful. As the prophet Isaiah says, her vindication goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a burning torch (Is. 62:1). Century after century I saw that fire, and God tore down misconception after grievous misconception. Glory to Him, I am home—in the City of God, in Zion—and it's my turn to carry the torch.
Rome is a place where I can encounter our living history and fan the flame of love even more. In fact, it is the place where the Catholic sacramental imagination shines the brightest. In the words of Gerard Manley Hopkins, "The world is charged with the grandeur of God. / It will flame out, like shining from shook foil..." Where could this be more realized than in the Sistine Chapel, where the beauty of the human body is on display, or in the bones of St. Peter, through which God still performs countless miracles? Where could this be more realized than in the heart of the Church—the Eternal City?
At ASU (and in our faith today in general), there are far too many people who just go through the motions. But we cannot let Christian dogma remain merely a logical conclusion in our heads. It must begin to captivate our imaginations, become a living reality, pierce the innermost depths of our hearts. As St. John Henry Newman says, “Persons influence us, voices melt us, looks subdue us, deeds inflame us. Many a man will live and die upon a dogma: no man will be a martyr for a conclusion.” The whole world needs sacramental beauty!
So, I invite you: please consider partnering with me in bringing the Catholic imaginative vision to ASU in a deeper way! With your prayers and all of heaven's, I can make a massive impact through the FOCUS Bible study I'm leading, and in so many more ways in our Newman Center community.
The cost of the pilgrimage is $2,700, plus $1,200-$1,500 for flights, so I'm estimating ~$4,200 for the total cost of the trip. However, because this is an estimate, any money that I do not strictly need will go towards my SEEK26 fund, which is another big way that I can grow in my faith this year!
If you cannot donate, please pray for me and for our whole group. Also, I would love to pray for you in Rome; leave a prayer request and I will write it in my journal!
Laudetur Jesus Christus!
Organizer
Cameron Bailey
Organizer
Tempe, AZ