STUDENT LIFE
in Belfast,” Hopkins said, “dividing Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods - which they lock at night to separate the communities. But our students learned that the real walls are in people’s hearts and minds.” After their time in Northern Ireland,
the group enjoyed touring the beautiful city of Dublin, the ancient monastic city of Glendalough, and the “Royal Mile” of Edinburgh, Scotland. Each of these cities provided exciting learning experiences and fun-filled tours. The final days of the trip were spent on the
CLASS LOCATION... THE BRITISH ISLES?
L JESSUP STUDENTS COMBINE MINISTRY, COURSEWORK, WORLD TRAVEL
ast May, Jessup professors Portia Hopkins and Linda Sommerville led a group of 19 students and alumni as they expanded the walls of their classrooms to Ireland, Scotland and England. The dedicated pair offered three courses including Theology of Celtic Christianity,
Travel Writing and Celtic Folk and Fairytales. The courses allowed students to earn credit while gaining a unique cross-cultural perspective. “But our participants were much more
than merely students,” explains Sommerville. “We were also pilgrims.” One place of pilgrimage was an ocean side retreat center called Corrymeela, Northern
Ireland’s oldest ecumenical peace and reconciliation organization. For more than fifty years, Corrymeela has worked to bring healing and reconciliation in a country that has experienced deep cultural, political, economic, and religious division. Through hands-on training sessions, Jessup students were given new understanding of the process of conflict resolution and how to really listen to and care for those who are different. Corrymeela also has a ministry in the urban center of Belfast, where Jessup students were able
to observe first-hand the deep divide that still exists today between Catholics and Protestants, Loyalists and Nationalists. Police drive armored vehicles and streets are lined with murals depicting both past and current clashes between these groups. “There are 27 miles of walls
18 JESSUP MAGAZINE
Holy Island of Lindisfarne off the Northeast coast of England. Ray Simpson, author of one of the class texts and founder of a modern-day Celtic Christian Community, served as their host and teacher. Through his leadership, students received fresh insight into the deep faith and spiritual practices of early Celtic Christians, and how their biblical practices can be lived out today. A lesson student Mikayla Hankins learned is that, “Every day is a pilgrimage in life, and I should be constantly journeying toward the heart of God.” There is no doubt that inside the classroom,
students can read, listen and discuss some important concepts but there are unique and distinctive qualities about the opportunity to study outside the classroom. Sommerville put it this way, “Experiences and lessons like the ones learned on this trip are more than educational, they are transformational.”
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