Appreciating the Bubble

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Students at the University of Dallas are incredibly privileged to experience the unique atmosphere our Bubble provides: one in which we can run into our professors on the Mall or in the Cap Bar and wind up speaking to them for hours on end, one in which we can see kindness beaming from our classmates’ faces.

We must be aware, however, that after constant exposure to this kindness and acceptance, we tend to take it for granted.

I’ve been fortunate enough, and I’m sure many others have been as well, to have an outlet that allows me to keep this tendency in check — for me, it’s the dance world. I often joke with friends about how I live a “double life.” I take classes at UD on weekdays, but on weekends I go to dance class or travel for competitions. I have my UD friends, and I have my dance friends.

Compared to UD, few in the dance world share my religious or political viewpoints, and it took me 15 years to learn how to comfortably defend my beliefs. Yet even now, I hesitate to defend the things I so strongly uphold as true.

It’s fascinating that no matter how firmly I stand by Catholicism and its teachings, when placed in a crowd of people with an entirely opposite opinion, I stumble. This test is extremely valuable, though. Not only does it allow me to more fully appreciate the Bubble, but it also forces me to actively practice defending my faith.

In Western Theological Tradition, we learn of Church figures who tirelessly defended Catholicism, even to the point of death. Realizing how difficult it can be to defend my faith among a group of friends, I can’t resist being thoroughly inspired by the saints.

Certainly, we must cherish what we have here, but we shouldn’t become too comfortable. Eventually, we will all face life outside the Bubble, and our commitment to Catholicism will be tested.

How prepared are we to defend our faith?

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