Called and Sent: Leadership in Lay Ministry
“God, what do you want me to do in my life?” asks Mark Erdosy, MTS ’95. That is the one question Mark has consistently asked throughout his education and career. “I certainly heard a call to do ministry,” he says.
An alum of Indiana University and Saint Meinrad, Mark has spent 29 years in service cultivating the faith of college students, from the IU Newman Center to Marian University.
From 1993 to 1995, Mark completed a Master of Theological Studies degree in preparation for lay ministry while residing at Saint Meinrad.
Mark says, “I got to Saint Meinrad and thought, ‘These are my people. I finally found a place where I belong.’ The faculty, the students, and the monks were very welcoming and wanted to know my story.”
As part of Mark’s education, the monks and lay faculty at Saint Meinrad helped to form him as a pastoral leader integrating human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation. “That whole rhythm of prayer, study, and work suited me well,” he says.
Upon graduating from Saint Meinrad, the St. Paul Catholic Center (the Newman Center) at Indiana University invited him to return to Bloomington to interview as a campus minister.
“Once I said yes, everything lined up,” he explains. “Ever since, I have loved working with college students.”
Mark shared a love for Christ and the Church with the Catholic IU students. He cultivated a dynamic retreat ministry, bringing students to Saint Meinrad four to six times a year.
He says, “Saint Meinrad opened their arms to us, and students absolutely loved it.”
One of his student leaders was Daniel Raab who later discerned a monastic vocation at Saint Meinrad and took the name Christian. The spirituality of discernment that Mark originally learned at Saint Meinrad shaped his campus ministry at IU.
After eight years of service, Mark moved on to work at Marian College (now Marian University) to found the San Damiano Scholarship Program. The program forms students to be pastoral leaders sharing the Gospel and serving in the world. Mark felt called to accompany college students as they explored life’s big questions and discerned what the next step would be.
The formation he received at Saint Meinrad proved pivotal to the San Damiano Program. The program started with 15 students and after Mark’s 18 years of directing the program, it had over 170 students. Now, over 800 students have passed through the program, growing as pastoral leaders.
Mark’s focus on mission would prove valuable to the wider university community as well. He was asked to move into Marian’s Office of Mission Integration as executive director.
He says, “Marian wanted to be more intentional in helping new faculty and staff live out the Franciscan values of the university.”
Saint Meinrad trained him in leadership for lay ministry that has guided his career as a campus minister at IU, and as director of the San Damiano Program and executive director of Mission Integration for Marian University. Today, Mark is lending his expertise to the Office of Institutional Advancement for the success of Marian University’s capital campaign to ensure a bright future for the Marian community.
Reflecting on his formation at Saint Meinrad, the primary theme for Mark is gratitude.
“Attending Saint Meinrad was still one of the best decisions I ever made,” he says. “I am ever grateful for the time I had at Saint Meinrad, the liturgies and prayer opportunities, the friendships made, classes attended, and the beauty of being on the Hill in scenic southern Indiana. Saint Meinrad has made a deep imprint on my mind, heart, and soul. It’s why I keep them in prayer daily.”
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