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Paul71
Guest
I also wonder why financial aid and scholarships are out of the question. There are many, many scholarships out there, and I think that just about every college or university has a financial aid office that you can at least check with, that may possibly be able to give you some financial help. I understand about the loans though. Starting off your working career with a huge pile of debt is not a good idea in my opinion.
My advice would be to start with the Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College. All of the colleges recommended there are faithfully Catholic, and their online guide has a large amount of information about each college, such as percent of students and faculty that are Catholic, tuition rates, majors offered, etc. And please note that they list a number of non-residential or online colleges as well.
If none of the Newman Guide colleges will work for you for whatever reason, then perhaps the best thing to do is to find the college that is best for you academically and financially, and find a way to meet good Catholics other than meeting them through your college. (Or you may find that there are some good Catholics at your college.)
Some options for meeting college-age Catholics outside of college might include a young adult retreat, a “Theology on Tap” gathering, a young adult pilgrimage, or a trip to the annual March for Life. (Many dioceses, parishes, and schools send groups to the March for Life by bus, so you could potentially travel with other young adults.) Or if you are closer to the west coast of the U.S., then you could attend the West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco. (All of this assumes that you are in the United States. If you are in another country, then I apologize for my U.S.-centric view.)
Another option would be to try to meet young Catholics at a more traditional parish in your area (e.g., one that offers Latin Mass and older forms of sacred music, or at least a more reverent and traditional liturgy than the average parish). I don’t mean to imply that all faithful Catholics are traditionalists. However, it is usually true, in my experience, that people at a more traditional parish tend to be more serious and intentional about their faith than the average person at any randomly-selected Catholic parish – because usually they have sought out that parish specifically, rather than attending it by default just because their parents or grandparents attended that parish.
You could even start a campaign on a site like “GoFundMe,” to raise enough money for you to attend a faithful Catholic college or university. It’s not likely that you would generate enough money this way, but if you have the skills and the connections to promote your campaign, and to get others to promote it for you, it’s possible. I wouldn’t put all my hopes on this option, but you never know.
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