Loyola to celebrate Jesuit heritage and longstanding Maryland Day tradition during Mission Week

Loyola University Maryland will host Mission Week, a series of events and activities related to Loyola’s mission, to celebrate the University’s Jesuit and Maryland heritage from March 14 – 20.

Loyola will celebrate Maryland Day on Friday, March 19, honoring staff and administrators who have achieved key milestones for years working at the institution. 

Maryland Day Convocation

The Maryland Day Convocation will serve as the cornerstone of events and activities taking place during Mission Week.

This year's Convocation will feature the Rev. Bryan N. Massingale, the James and Nancy Buckman Professor of Theology and Social Ethics at Fordham University. The Maryland Day Convocation will be livestreamed on Friday, March 19, at 2–3:30 p.m. Limited in-person attendance for members of the Loyola community who are part of surveillance testing will also be available for the Maryland Day Convocation. However, registration is required. Fr. Massingale, who is also the Senior Ethics Fellow in Fordham’s Center for Ethics Education, will receive the University’s Ignatian Citizenship Award. 

A scholar-activist, Fr. Massingale is a noted authority on issues of social and racial justice, having addressed numerous national Catholic conferences and lectured at colleges and universities across the nation.

Fr. Massingale is a leader in the field of theological ethics. He is a past Convener of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium and a former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of Christian Ethics and serves on the editorial board of Theological Studies, one of the premier Catholic journals of theology. Fr. Massingale is the recipient of four honorary doctorates and has held the Bernard J. Hanley Chair at Santa Clara University.

Rev. Timothy Brown, S.J., special assistant for Mission Integration and associate professor for law and social responsibility, will preside over Mass on Sunday, March 14, at 5 p.m. in the Alumni Memorial Chapel to launch Mission Week 2021. The Mass will be livestreamed and have limited in-person attendance.

Other Mission Week events include:

Monday, March 15

• Rev. Stephen Spahn, S.J., will present “From Inigo to Ignatius: The Transformation of a Heart” at 1 p.m. via Zoom. 
• The Center for Community, Service, and Justice will host “Equity in the Classroom with Strong Schools Maryland” at 6 p.m. via Zoom. Registration is required.  

Tuesday, March 16

• An interfaith panel discussion, “Finding Common Ground: Cultivating Beloved Community in a politically fractured moment in American History,” led by Rev. Scott Adams, assistant director of Campus Ministry, will be held via Zoom from noon–1 p.m.
• The Mission Week Examen will be held in the Alumni Memorial Chapel at 8:30 p.m. via Zoom. Registration is required for in-person attendance.

Wednesday, March 17

• Cheryl Moore-Thomas, Ph.D., chief equity, and inclusion officer, will present “Living the Mission: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Loyola” at 1 p.m. via Zoom. 
• The Center for Community, Service, and Justice and the Jesuit Volunteer Corps will host “Jesuit Volunteer Corps: Living the Mission Beyond Loyola” at 6 p.m. via Zoom.

Thursday, March 18

• Loyola will host a Greyhounds Give Virtual Campaign
• The Campus Ministry Café honors First Magis Mentors at 1 p.m. via Zoom.
• Loyola welcomes Jose Antonio Vargas, author of Messina’s 2020-2021 Common Text, Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen, via Zoom at 7 p.m. 

Friday, March 19: Maryland Day

• Maryland Day Mass will be held at 12:10 p.m. The Mass will be livestreamed and have a limited in-person attendance. Registration for Mass is required. 

Saturday, March 20

• A Lenten Ignatian Reflection offered by Rev. Thomas Roach, S.J., and Seán Bray, director of Campus Ministry, will be held in the Alumni Memorial Chapel from 9–11:30 a.m. This is an in-person event and registration is required. 

For more information and additional events that will held during Mission Week, go to www.loyola.edu/missionweek.