This school year, Michael Goldsmith, a revered and tenured Xavier teacher, introduced a new impactful service learning class titled, “Called to be Saints.” The goal of the class is to have students learn how to better help Immaculate Conception Church minister to the homeless population in Cedar Rapids. According to Goldsmith, “‘Called to be Saints’ is a theology elective focused on Catholic social teaching. In short, it tries to do what Saints do: Pray and focus on your interior life, and then go serve others. Our class meets in the basement of Immaculate Conception Church, and then typically walks to downtown nonprofits where we work and learn from people there.”
The inspiration for this course came from an interesting perspective, “I felt my own personal faith life lacked action, and commitment to the Church’s social teachings. I wasn’t going where Jesus wanted me to go, and doing what He wanted me to do”, said Goldsmith. He also gave a summary of what a normal day looks like, “On a typical day, we take vans to Immaculate Conception Church, where our class meets in their church basement. We have organized prayer activities, and learn about the lives of the Saints. Then we would walk to a local nonprofit, and work for about 90 minutes before returning to Xavier.” In its inaugural year, the class includes eleven senior dedicated students who want to learn more about how they can grow in their faith. “We all became friends which was really cool,” said senior Marissa Rushton (X23), “…we were able to talk about our own faith and opinions and learn from each other.”
Students, teachers, pastors, and organization leaders are collaborating to lay the groundwork for a permanent relationship whereby Immaculate Conception is seen as a parish where the homeless feel welcome, and the face of Christ is seen in all. Under the guidance of Goldsmith, the class periods consist of hands-on work throughout the community, while also being a great way for students to develop in their faith life. Students have experienced new forms of leadership and new ways to cope with different situations that were not always the most comfortable to step into. Goldsmith offered his perspective in saying “I think the biggest thing is to not only accept, but to seek some nervousness and lack of comfort in your faith life. Our students entered several situations that were new to them, and came out better people because of what others taught us.”
As a final project for the semester, the class worked with Immaculate Conception (IC) to try to bridge the gap between the church and their relationship toward the homeless of Cedar Rapids. Students led meetings with the heads of businesses and nonprofits in Cedar Rapids to increase a better understanding of our homeless population. Goldsmith stated, “IC has been such an amazing partner for us, giving us space and support from their pastors, Fr. Dennis Conway (X09) and Fr. Aaron Junge (X08). We wanted a larger project that took our students from study into activism. The priests at IC shared with us that they were looking to better minister to the homeless in their neighborhood, and would be open to our class assisting them in that process. After several meetings and interviews, students held a larger forum where representatives from IC, Willis Dady Homeless Services, and Metro Catholic Outreach (MCO) all discussed possibilities to make IC a place of welcome for the homeless. IC made a couple of very generous donations to Willis Dady, and Willis Dady shared expertise and contact info that would help IC better deal with issues in the future surrounding the homeless.
We feel like their connection has really gotten stronger, and will continue to work toward greater goals in the future. When you put a lot of good people in the same room and they talk to each other about how to solve problems, good things usually happen.”
Goldsmith also created the course “Why am I Catholic?” several years ago, and when asked about the course and how it may have helped to create the course “Called to be Saints”, Goldsmith said “I learned that the Catholic faith is one of the most logical things you will ever study. All of the sources of information are right there in front of you. You just have to care enough to look for them.” He summarized the course by saying “Why Am I Catholic” is an apologetics course. Goldsmith was a co-creator of the course, along with Dr. Phil Drey (a former Theology teacher at Xavier, now Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Mount Mercy University.) According to Goldsmith, “The mission of “Why Am I Catholic” is to explain and defend the Catholic faith. We only talk about ‘big topics’ such as the logic of believing in God, how the Bible was put together, the Eucharist, and concerns surrounding death.”
Goldsmith and his wife, Pam, are the parents of four Xavier graduates; with their youngest graduating in 2021. “Being a Xavier parent and teacher allows you a very unique perspective. The results are typically empathy for the lives of students, and gratitude for the tremendous people who work here and the mission of the school. On a personal note, my kids were fantastic in dealing with having Dad at their school. Teaching them was the time of my life.”
It is Goldsmith’s hope that this service learning class will continue to grow in numbers and scope as time goes on. According to Goldsmith, “There are always logistical challenges in transporting students to downtown Cedar Rapids, but if something is important enough, you always find a way. I would like to see the social teachings of the Church come to life in a way that takes our students out of Xavier and into the community. And if you really want to dream big? What about a satellite campus for Xavier located in downtown Cedar Rapids? That would send a clear message that in order to live out the Catholic faith, you need to serve others in a consistent, tangible way that forms a relationship.”
This growth is amplified by the fact that in February, the course became the recipient of a $2,500 grant (pictured below) from The Catholic Foundation in the Archdiocese of Dubuque (CFAD). The grant will be utilized to solve the transportation issue addressed by Goldsmith. The grant was presented by the CFAD Operations Manager Michael Becker, and was received by both Goldsmith and Mrs. Laura Zeckser, who aided in the course as well as being a driver for students. Goldsmith also received recognition as the 2022 recipient of the National Catholic Educational Association’s ‘Lead. Learn. Proclaim’ award for excellence and distinguished service in Catholic education.
In more ways than these courses, Goldsmith helps students to think more deeply about their own faith lives and about the commitment to their own faith. Goldsmith recently exclaimed in a speech at the annual Discover Xavier Night for prospective eighth grade families that
The “Called to be a Saint” course truly emphasizes how true that statement is. According to Goldsmith, “People have such a limited view of the Catholic faith. The more we can explain and model the logic, the joy and the life of active service that pursuing Jesus involves, the better we all are. If we actually go where He told us to go, and do what He told us to do, our lives become better.”
A phrase often made by Goldsmith in class is to have a reason for why you believe what you believe; a philosophy that teaches students to think more critically about their opinions. The “Called to be Saints” class is one that changes the way that we view teaching and learning, by applying new perspectives and important challenges into the course. It is one that truly will teach students how to be more like the saints that we are called to be, while also teaching leadership skills, and critical thinking. The course is one that will only grow and expand, helping more students to become more Christ-like.