Graduation: Sunday, Baccalaureate Service

Hey, what’s going on here, where’s my brother? Graduation at Columbia isn’t really a single event, it’s a string of events culminating in the main campus graduation. The chain of events is started by the Baccalaureate service on Sunday. Originally started in England, it was the tradition for each graduating scholar to deliver a sermon in Latin (since most universities began as religious institutions). So this service/ceremony is specifically for honoring the undergraduates at Columbia. The ceremony was held in the chapel on campus, and has evolved into an interfaith service where a couple of students from the graduating class get up and read from various texts. (If I remember correctly, the four faiths represented at this service were Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Hinduism). The great part about this day was that my good friend Emilio. He chose to read from the prologue of John’s Gospel, which is my hands-down favorite section in the entire Bible, and I believe is among the most beautiful sections of writing, in English or any other language. Afterwards everyone piled out and was greeted by the University chaplain and several other professors and faculty, including the Dean of Students and the College Provost. The great part about this was that my brother Mark had already arrived in the city and was able to be there at the service with me (although he wasn’t sitting with me). He managed to mise and sneak in the back in the midst of the confusion. His presence, both there and throughout the week, made that time so much richer for me. I’m grateful that he came.