Students Share Faith Experiences at BSM

Written by Marketing & Communications EPIC intern Katie Berthoud '25

During the 2023-2024 school year, BSM restarted its peer ministry program which had been on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the faith group has experienced many successes. “For the school year 2024-2025, we have added a peer ministry homeroom, a foundations class, and grown the program membership by about 50%,” said Nick Brady, director of faith and mission at BSM, who also serves as peer ministry leader. “I am grateful for our peer ministers from the previous school year who have chosen to continue in the program this year. It will be so helpful to have them supporting newer peer ministers during retreats and other events and programs.” 

This year, seniors in peer ministry have the opportunity to expand their leadership roles. A new class, Foundations of Peer Ministry, has been added to the theology department. Brady explained, “It was a natural next step with the last school year being a growth year to start the class. It provides another layer of structure and embeds peer ministry into the academic aspects of the school as well.” Seniors in this class serve as captains and receive hands-on experience, shaping the retreat agendas as student leaders. With a whole class dedicated to this, there will be more opportunities for students to participate in retreats this year. “I am extremely excited to get to know other students better,” said Scarlett Lira ‘25. “I will get the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations and grow in my faith along the way.”

To kick off the school year, Brady organized and led a two-day retreat for peer ministry captains in early August at St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN. The eleven captains spent the first day getting to know one another as peer ministers, and then enjoyed an evening hike at the Abbey, trekking to a chapel located on the university campus. These Red Knights were able to share their faith journeys and connect on a deeper spiritual and personal level. On the second day of the retreat, the peer ministry team members joined the captains for a day of training, discussions, games, and prayer. Brady shared, “There is truly something special about peer ministers serving each other and seeing Christ in each other.” The experience allowed the students in grades 10-12 to share the love of Christ with others and learn about the Benedictine charism of listening with the ear of our heart, a central theme for life at BSM.

The students met with two monastic brothers who live on campus at the university, who shared their life stories and how they live in the Benedictine tradition. It was interesting for the students to hear that the Benedictines have no possessions, but rather share all of their resources in the community. “It was very cool to hear from a different perspective and people who live so differently than me in many ways,” said Lira ‘25 who attended the retreat.

Peer ministry has a positive impact beyond the captains and participants, also affecting nearly every student at BSM. The work peer ministers do, such as planning the retreats and leading weekly morning prayer, is shown off during the grade-wide retreats that take place throughout the school year.  

While Brady is enthused about this year's peer ministry, he feels the students will have "the opportunity to grow their faith and inspire other students to do the same." If you are interested in joining the peer ministry team, contact Nick Brady to connect.