The University of Dallas is happy to welcome our new chaplain, Fr. Jerónimo Espinosa, who’s come to us all the way from Colombia. Fr. Jerónimo is a member of The Association of Saint Joseph, which is an organization composed of clergy and laity who, under the patronage of St. Joseph, lead children, teenagers, and young adults to encounter Christ and His infinite love. Fr. Jerónimo said that being sent to UD was “a great surprise, in the best way possible”, and that his community has “long wanted to collaborate with the Diocese of Dallas”.
Fr. Jerónimo previously worked in southern Colombia, in the city of Cali, ministering to youth in five dioceses. This is his first time serving as a university chaplain, but he said that UD differs from universities where he’s studied in that “conversations tend to go deeper and flow more naturally. You don’t have to ‘pull’ everything out of students; they’re more open to talking and engaging.” Fr. Jerónimo also remarked that he was struck by the richness of the Catholic environment: “It’s a blessing to see how faith is alive and integrated into the culture of the university.”
Fr. Jerónimo told us that several major differences between Texas and Colombia include weather, geography, and food. In Colombia, the climate depends on altitude and there are no seasons (in Cali it’s around 90° year round). Moreover, the country is crossed by the Andes mountains, which “make travel difficult but also breathtakingly beautiful,” whereas in Texas “everything feels so flat!” Finally, Colombian food “tends to be more natural” and includes “a lot of rice, plantains, arepas, beans, and fresh produce.”
When asked what he hopes to achieve during his first year at UD, Fr. Jerónimo replied that he wants “to learn, and actually remember, all the names,” but more seriously that his main goal is to “foster a real sense of community and discipleship, where every student feels welcome and at home.” He added that the only way to do that is through “presence and relational ministry, just as we should nurture divine intimacy with the Lord.” Additionally, Fr. Jerónimo said that he’s excited “to continue meeting the students, building trust, fostering community, and journeying together toward heaven”, and that he hopes “to remain here for a long while”. Fr. Jerónimo would like to tell the UD community these four things:
- “The more we truly believe that Jesus is our Lord and Savior, the more fully alive our lives will be.”
- “Fostering divine intimacy with Him is the key. Not because He instantly “fixes” everything, but because He gives us the strength and His perspective to recognize His presence even in the messiness of our lives.”
- “Our lives are not about ourselves. The more we go out of our comfort zones to serve others and evangelize, the more we will transform our city, our state, our country, and even the world. We need concrete, practical ways to evangelize, especially among the poor and the forgotten.”
- “I humbly ask for your prayers, that I may be a true father to all of you in the way God intends. And please continue to be patient with my broken English. God will repay your generosity!”
We’re very happy to have Fr. Jerónimo here as our chaplain and spiritual father, and we hope that this year and years to come will be fruitful for the whole UD community. Welcome, Fr. Jerónimo, to the University of Dallas!