Freshman Field Trip Includes Three Religious Sites

Elisabeth Bolin, Staff Writer, Advanced Journalism

As the leaves change colors and the air grows crisper, it comes the time for the annual freshman field trip.

This field trip was a little different from the previous four years, with the inclusion of the Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier along with the Shrine of our Lady of Good Help and the Abbey.

“I think the cathedral was a great addition,” said Daniel Kriegl, the director of campus ministry. “I go to the cathedral for Mass, and I always look at all the paintings and stuff, but I never really knew what they were about.”

Kriegl was one of the chaperones on this trip and the ones before.

The first stop was the St. Norbert Abbey, where Father Jim Baraniak held Mass before a tour was held.

Grace Balison enjoyed the tour of the Abbey and the museum held in the basement.

“I thought the Abbey was really cool,” she said, “because we got to see all of the first-class relics they have in the basement. It’s amazing to get to see something that was once a part of a saint.”

The cathedral was definitely a hit as well, along with the history lesson about its creation and decoration.

Chloe Capomaccio, one of the freshmen on the trip said, “I think that my favorite part of the whole field trip was the cathedral because it was really interesting to hear about all of the artwork and the history behind the whole building. I especially thought it was cool how the beatitudes were all represented in the stain glass windows.”

Kriegl agrees with her: “I think it’s really neat how the beatitudes are right in the sanctuary of the church.”

Abby Meyer appreciated the cathedral for a different reason. “My favorite part about the cathedral was the Saint Cecilia plaster on top of the choir loft and the huge mural of the crucifixion.”

The trip consisted of three stops over the whole day that held different religious meaning for everyone. Students and chaperones could agree that overall the outing was success.

The last stop was the shrine, where students got to pray a walking rosary as a group as well as learn about the history of the site. The walking rosary was Karli Borth’s favorite part of the trip.

“I hadn’t prayed a rosary with my class before and I thought it was really cool to be able to pray for specific people as we walked around the field,” said Borth.

Kriegl shared his favorite parts of the day.  “I don’t get out to the shrine as much as I like to, and this is a good way for me to get to know some of the freshmen a little bit more.”

He confessed that his favorite part of the entire excursion is the crypt at the shrine of Our Lady of Good Help.

“When you go down there and kneel under the statue, it [feels] like she’s looking at you, and when you’re praying, that’s powerful.”

For people unfamiliar with the stops on the trip and those who have visited them multiple times one thing can be agreed on. Kriegl describes the atmosphere perfectly:  “It’s hard to explain but there’s just something about that place that’s special.”