As students flooded back into town for the fall semester at UW-Madison, they were not the only ones.
Fr. Enan Zelinski arrived on UW-Madison’s campus this summer following his assignment to Saint Paul’s Catholic Student Center with Fr. Eric Sternberg, pastor, by Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison.
Like the students, Father Zelinski will have classes to go to. Each week he will teach a discipleship course to a classroom of students at Saint Paul’s.
These classes focus on teaching young adults in Madison how to live as missionary disciples of Christ, both now and for the rest of their lives.
Saint Paul’s has more than 150 students attending one of four courses offered.
Father Zelinski spoke about the unique demographic that Saint Paul’s ministers to.
“Unlike a typical parish, we only see people for four to six years, he said.
“It is a quick turnover, but while they are here they are very willing to do everything — and radically available to do so. Students have more free time than most demographics within the Catholic Church. The student center has a lot more people circulating through it on a given day. Between the students and the employees, there are a lot more individuals within the Church here than in your typical parish due to the nature of being on a college campus.”
In his first week of the school year, 1,500 students attended Mass and 300 people came to Saint Paul’s weekly Newman dinner. Following dinner and a band performance on State Street by a few of the students, Father Zelinski had the opportunity to share a little bit about who he is and his journey to the priesthood with his new parishioners: The students.
Speaking about his intention for his time here, Father Zelinski shared, “My life and my faith changed in college due to the witness and counsel of other men. My hope is that we can do the same for the students who are here.”
When asked about how this new college experience was going for him, Fatherr Zelinski highlighted how even in the midst of Madison, a Catholic community can change your perspective, “I would say Saint Paul’s is far from your regular college experience.”