A View from Gaming

A blog post by Joe White, Fall 2011          

  Greetings, all. Being an internet blog, I’m not exactly sure who this all will be read by—maybe no one at all—but I hope this finds you well. It certainly finds me well. Nestled in my expansive “dorm” room on the ground floor of 14^th century Carthusian monastery which itself is nestled in between something like five enormous hills, I am certainly in an agreeable mood. Upon our arrival to the Kartause, my reaction was similar to many others’: “Is this real life?”

Here is the place I had heard about for four years at every Steubenville Youth Conference, seen friends’ photographs of, watched people return from glowing, et cetera et cetera; now I beheld what they had once beheld. As with many things related to this university, my expectations were blown away. Most people questioned “Austria? Why Austria? You’re not even in Vienna? Wouldn’t you rather be in some big European city?” Stepping out of that bus for the first time and then looking out over the valley halfway up one of the hills a week later cemented the fact: there is no place I would rather be than here. Untouched by the hands of marketing, Gaming is an authentic slice of European life, with their triangular roofs and multi-colored houses and bank attendants who speak next to no English (praise the hand of Providence for my 5 years of German study).

            Gothic archways and Baroque ceilings (adorned with beautiful frescos) showcase the artistic/man-made beauty that spreads itself across this fair city. As mentioned before, one can walk down a neighborhood road and see a red house, yellow house, orange house, and tan house all peacefully coexisting together. Cobblestone paths lead the way to the city center where one can find the grocery store, drug store, tobacco shop, and tavern. Beautiful stone bridges ford the creek that runs through the town and stone archways serve as an entrance to the intramural field.

This beauty hewn by man lags behind the pure natural beauty that surrounds the town. As mentioned before, a beautiful clear creek runs through the town.[1] There is plenty of greenery to go around: a large, wooded field lies next to Kartause for pick-up games of frisbee and the like along with gorgeous gardens in the houses next to the Kartause. Natives of Gaming have their own plum and apple trees, adding lovely, natural cover to the land. There is a waterfall some 45 minutes away from campus as well as a popular cave about an hour away. My favorite part, however, lies outside my window, behind me, and to my sides: the hills. Carve out four hours in your day and you can overlook the valley atop a gorgeous alpine foothill. I have yet to make it to the tippy top of one the hills[2] but having made it about 3/4ths of the way there I know it is well worth it.

            Oh, I suppose now that I’ve introduced where I am writing from you may want to know the writer.[3] My name is Joe White; I am a sophomore here at Franciscan and study social work. I come from Rockford, Illinois although I tell all of the Austrians I meet “Ich komme aus Chicago” because, well, it’s close enough. I look forward to being able to document time here for you and I honestly hope that these posts will benefit you in some way—especially if you are considering coming to Franciscan University to study. I remember getting emails containing posts from students in Gaming and that certainly having an effect on my decision. So here’s to a successful semester, and here’s to you, the reader. Prost!

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[1] Which itself is popular attraction for students: right across from the Kartause is about a ten foot drop into a deep part of the creek that students—myself included—jump into (some even daily)

[2] My first venture was cut short by a hunter busy stalking prey and a fall down a rock face.

[3] My narcissism prevails again

Initial Impressions

A blog post by Chelsea Graham, Fall 2011


Hey everyone!

I am just starting my semester here in Gaming, and it’salready been incredible. I’ve heard so many fantastic things from past students about their experiences here in Gaming, but I did not really know what to expect for myself. Everyone I talked to had good things to say about their time here, but they were all different.  I’m still not sure what the next 3 months have in store for me, but I am wicked (yes I’m from the Boston area!) excited to see what the Lord has planned.

Franciscan University offers its students so much spiritually on main campus in Ohio, but in my opinion, it pales in comparison to what is offered here in Austria, and the rest of Europe. This is my first time in Europe, and to me, it feels like a completely whole new world. I can’t compare the town of Gaming to anything I’ve heard of or seen in the United States. It is a quaint, small town, where everything still closes at 6:30 p.m. or earlier, the public schools start off the school year celebrating a religious service, and everything is closed Sundays. In addition, we are surrounded by incredible scenery, in which my only response thus far has been amazement. We have the opportunity to go creek jumping, climb mountains, bike everywhere, and so many other things that just let us appreciate what the Lord has given to us.

Additionally, the classes offered here are incredible. While talking to a friend here with me, we came to the decision that the university did not just choose random classes to offer here, but must have really put a lot of thought into them. Each theology and philosophy class is offered at the Gaming campus for a reason, to help the students grow and find out who they really are.

Being away from the home is hard, and it makes me appreciate what I had when I was there, but I personally believe that in order to really know who you are as a person, you have to take away everything that “defines”you and see what is left. Who are you? What makes you, you?

I can’t answer those questions now, but I am wicked excited to continue my journey here to find the answers.

“All I Wanna Do…”

A blog post by Leanna Praetzel, Fall 2011

Greetings fellow blog readers!  I’m very excited to be posting this (my very first blog) from GAMING, AUSTRIA!!!  It’s only week two of the semester and we’ve already done so many fun things: climbing castle ruins, swing dancing in the rain, petting a neighborhood cat, jumping in the creek across the street, and chasing bats around campus. 

Where we live, the “Kartause”, is actually an old monastery that now serves as a hotel/FUS dorm/tourist attraction.  And I must say—with all its spiral staircases, twisting hallways, and secret rooms, the Kartause makes me feel like Nancy Drew!  So much has happened since I arrived here in Austria, but the story I am about to share actually took place before I even left the states.

The first and last time I rode an airplane (before August 27, 2011), I had a whopping one year under my belt.  Now after nineteen years with my feet planted firmly on the ground, I was suddenly going to up and fly over the ocean into the foreign lands of “Austria”?  Silly as it may sound, I was scared… scared that I would miss my flight… that the plane would go up and never come back down… that I wouldn’t get complimentary peanuts… things like that.  It’s okay, I thought, people ride planes all the time.  Everything will be fine!

Well.  When my ticket wasn’t working and the behind-the-counter-lady said, “This never happens!”… when I got yanked from my family with hardly a goodbye and pushed through security… when my plane was leaving in ten minutes and I still had to find Gate C19… things weren’t really fine.  In fact they were horrible. 

I was a wreck!  Does this happen to everybody?  How was I supposed to do this on my own?  I had convinced myself that things were hopeless when the most amazing thing happened.  The moment I stepped out of security and into the hallway, I heard the voice of Sheryl Crow: “All I wanna do… is have some fun!”  It was with this catchy tune that I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that God was with me, in me, and all around me.

What?  What did she say?  Sheryl Crow having fun helped this blog writer to find God?  Allow me to explain.  The song “All I Wanna Do” played over and over again on the radio wayyy back in the 90’s, and my little kid self would wander around the house singing along… or belting out random words, anyway.  Between my family and me, it has ever since been “my song.”

Hearing that particular song in that exact moment of desperation showed me just how God knows my heart inside and out, and that He’s the best friend I could ever have.  Not to mention, He knew that it was just what I needed to calm down, take Dramamine, find C19, and fly myself to Austria.  I am convinced that absolutely nothing else would have helped me in such a way.

So.  After 20 years I can finally say that I have started actually becoming friends with God.  Are you friends with God?  Did you know that He is an expert on the subject of you?  Psalm 139:23 says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart.  Try me, and know my thoughts.”  Even though he already knows you, He still needs to be let in.

Well, I guess that’s all for now, folks.  Tomorrow is a class trip to Vienna, and I can't wait!  Thanks for reading... Auf Weidersehen!   

Baby Narek

For all those former students who have been writing and wondering what baby Narek Michael is looking like, he continues to change by the day--we'll actually by the hour.

In general he is a good boy with a very lively personality.  He loves the fresh air and his brothers of course.

Recovering Tradition

 Another case in point: I took a group of students to a shooting range in the neighboring town.  In the introduction, they said it was a relatively modern shooting guild, dating back ONLY about 400 years.  Hello, that is how old our country is!  For us, that is recent but more on the ancient side of the timeline!

Inevitably, as students travel Europe and experience the awe and grandeur of its historic churches, architecture, folk customs and symbols, they are confronted with the meaning of tradition.  What is it?  What's in it for me?

When compared with today's global megapolis we can be tempted to think of tradition as a relic of the past, as a sad step backwards.  On the other hand, as Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira (one of contributors to the blog Nobility and Analogous  Traditional Elites) wisely points out,

In the midst of the whirlwind that is overthrowing all hierarchies and blowing away all clothing, tradition feels like stifling yoke. But when the triumphant vulgarity of an increasingly egalitarian world, the noisy, frantic, and hurly-burly rhythm of daily life, and the instability threatening all institutions, all rights and all situations cause neurosis, anguish and stress in millions of our contemporaries, then tradition appears to them as an elevated rest for the soul, good sense, good breeding, good order and, in a word, the art of living wisely.

What then should we make of tradition, and what is it properly understood? 

To answer, I will again quote from de Oliveira's article on Tradition: True tradition, in principle, is neither for the past as such nor for the present as such. It presupposes two principles: (a) that every authentic and living order of things has in itself a continuous impulse toward improvement and perfection; (b) that, therefore, true progress is not to break but to go on to the heights.  In short, tradition is the sum of the past plus a present that is akin to it. Today should not be the denial of yesterday, but rather its harmonious continuation.

He continues with a concrete example: our Christian tradition is an incomparable value that must rule the present. It acts, for example, so that equality may not be understood as the sweeping away of the elites and as an apotheosis of vulgarity; so that liberty may not serve as a pretext for chaos and depravity; so that dynamism does not become frenzy; so that technology does not enslave man. In a word, it aims to prevent progress from becoming inhuman, unbearable, and hateful.

Therefore, tradition does not mean to stifle progress, but to protect it from going absurdly far astray as to become organized barbarity.

Indeed as students travel Europe they are confronted with tradition and forced to grapple with its essence.  From my experience, this is one of the great "teachable moments" we have here in our study abroad program.  Through their travels, they directly experience the beauty of tradition in its positive sense.  They can inhale its continuity with the present and view the constant challenge it presents as they seek to live wisely and grabble with the impulse towards improvement and perfection. 

As we gear up to another semester, part of my hope and prayer is that the students will come to imbibe tradition and come away from this experience freer and more ennobled.