St. Mary's Catholic Center, the Catholic community at Texas A&M University, has been considered one of the best Catholic student communities in the USA for several years. At Texas A&M University, approximately 650 people are currently preparing to join the Catholic Church, more than ever before.
The St. Mary's Center released: This fall, more than 650 people are connected to OCIA across two groups. More than 380 attended the group that began on September 1, 2026, while more than 270 began formation in January and are now entering their second semester, with those who are ready preparing to receive the sacraments on November 21, 2026.
OCIA at St. Mary’s is a two-semester process of prayer, formation and discernment. Because new groups begin in both January and September, two groups are moving through that process at the same time.
OCIA brings together people whose relationships with the Catholic Church vary when they first arrive. A student who has never been baptized may sit at the same table as someone raised in another Christian tradition, or even someone who grew up Catholic but never received First Communion or Confirmation.
In many parishes, those baptized Catholics would be placed in a separate Confirmation program. At St. Mary’s, experience has shown that sacramental history does not necessarily tell us where someone is on the journey of faith. A student baptized Catholic as an infant may be wrestling with many of the same questions as the friend beside them who is considering Catholicism for the first time. For that reason, they go through much of their formation together.
Even then, not everyone arrives equally certain about where the process will lead.
The information students fill out on their first night reflects that. They are asked to describe honestly where they are with the Catholic Church: whether they are interested in learning, seriously considering becoming Catholic, or already believe this is where God is leading them. Baptized Catholics still needing First Communion or Confirmation are there, too, along with Catholics who want to learn more or support a friend.
That freedom is important to how St. Mary’s approaches OCIA. More than 650 people are not being moved toward a predetermined conclusion. They are being given time to pray, learn, and, discern.
Kevin Pesek ’10, St. Mary’s Director of OCIA and Marriage Preparation, puts it this way:
“A student should not become Catholic because they feel pressured into it, or argued into it. They should not become Catholic because I want them to or their table leader wants them to or their friend wants them to. They should only become Catholic because they feel God is calling them to do so.”
The reason goes deeper than simply avoiding pressure.
“God wants you to become Catholic because you love Him,” Kevin said. “Love requires freedom.”
St. Mary’s can provide formation, answer questions, create opportunities for prayer, and surround a person with Catholics willing to accompany them. What we cannot do is manufacture faith or make someone’s decision for them.
That movement helps put another set of numbers into perspective. During the 2024–25 year, St. Mary’s celebrated 121 Baptisms and Professions of Faith. In 2025–26, that number grew to 204.
Those numbers are different from the 650+ currently connected to OCIA. They represent people who made the free decision to enter the Catholic Church.
For now, they are asking you to pray.
We do not know where every story beginning or continuing in OCIA this fall will lead. What we do know is that more than 650 people have brought serious questions about God and the Catholic faith to St. Mary’s.
For a time, the Lord has entrusted these men and women to our care.
We are grateful for that and we do not take it for granted.
It is a privilege to have hundreds of people come through our doors with questions about Christ and His Church. It is also a responsibility to receive those questions well, to teach faithfully, and to give each person the freedom to listen for the Lord's voice.
Our priests and deacons, staff, and more than 200 student leaders will spend this year walking with them. We will teach what the Church teaches, answer their questions, invite them into prayer, and give them the freedom to discern what God is asking of them.
And we are asking the larger St. Mary’s community to accompany them, too.
Please pray for them!
Pray that each person in OCIA will come to know Jesus Christ more deeply and recognize His voice. Pray that they will have the freedom and courage to follow wherever He leads. Pray for the student leaders walking beside them, and for the priests, deacons, and staff whom the Lord has asked to care for them.
There will be time later to count how many receive the Sacraments.
Right now, more than 650 people have come to St. Mary’s with questions about Christ and His Church.
We are grateful the Lord has invited us to walk with them while they seek the answer.
St. Mary’s OCIA process was developed in collaboration with the Diocese of Austin and operates with diocesan approval. As a personal parish uniquely constituted to serve a university community, St. Mary’s makes use of the pastoral flexibility the Church provides while preparing each person appropriately for the sacraments he or she needs.
Interested in OCIA? If you or someone you know is interested in becoming Catholic, receiving First Communion or Confirmation, or simply learning more about the Catholic faith, there is still time to join the group beginning this fall. Learn more and get connected at aggiecatholic.org/ocia
Source: https://www.aggiecatholic.org/stories/more-than-650-people-are-in-ocia-at-st-marys-what-does-that-actually-mean
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