While its mission, identity and core values remain the same, Campus Ministry at Augustana University will now be known as the Office of Faith & Spiritual Life — a reflection of the broad scope of work that is already taking place.
“For decades, AU Campus Ministry has supported the work of faith integration on campus — centering the community in daily worship, gathering students and staff to study holy scripture, reaching out to serve in places both locally and globally, and caring for others through prayer and conversation,” said Rev. Ann Rosendale ‘04, campus pastor. “We, as campus pastors and student leaders, plan programming that garners robust engagement across campus — inviting people of all ages, departments and disciplines to consider how faith makes a difference in their living, working and learning together.”
Augustana is and will remain a university affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) — continually embracing its Lutheran identity with Christian being the first of its core values. The Office of Faith & Spiritual Life will also continue to hold worship at the Chapel of Reconciliation three times a week, as well as offer Bible studies, email devotionals and service opportunities.
“A shift to the Office of Faith & Spiritual Life more accurately describes the way Augustana serves a community of increasingly diverse spiritual, religious and worldview identities. We hope the name change makes our office and programming more accessible to Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Buddhists and Secular Humanists alike,” explained Rosendale.
As religious diversity grows and spiritual needs broaden, Augustana is called to remain faithfully rooted in its Lutheran Christian identity, while also accommodating and learning from changing perspectives. As a reflection of this, Augustana hired its first interfaith chaplain, Jen Dreiske, in Fall 2023, and will begin the search for a second full-time campus pastor in Spring 2024.
“We believe that serving and learning from our neighbors of other faith traditions is how we live faithfully as Christian people,” added Rosendale.
Accompanying the name change is a new logo — a tree with deep roots and wide branches — serving as a symbol of life and faith across religious traditions.
“The image reminds us to stay anchored in our own faith, while also bravely and boldly stretching our openness,” said Rosendale. “The Bible is filled with stories of people and places receiving new names. We hope and pray that this new name will serve to invite more people into the story of God unfolding in their lives. And, we trust God to walk with us as we journey into all that is to come.”
To learn more about the Office of Faith & Spiritual Life, visit augie.edu/faith.