The Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) is a Catholic outreach program for American college students founded in 1997 by Curtis Martin and Dr. Edward Sri at Benedictine College. Using Campus Crusade for Christ as a model, the organization sends missionaries to campuses around the country at the request of the local Bishop. A typical missionary team consist of at least 2 male and 2 female missionaries who lead Bible studies and work with student leaders in discipleship relationships. FOCUS also holds a biannual national conference and has a number of mission trip opportunities during the summer months.
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The FOCUS Mission Statement is To know Christ Jesus and fulfill His Great Commission by first living and then communicating the fullness of life within the family of God, the Church.
"Answering the Church’s call for a new evangelization, FOCUS, the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, is a national outreach that meets college students where they are and invites them into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and the Catholic faith."
Through small group Bible studies, large group leadership training, and one-on-one discipleship, FOCUS's goal is to bring the "fullness of life and truth in the Catholic Church to college students", and equips them to share this good news with their friends. FOCUS is working to play a vital role in the “new evangelization” called for by Pope John Paul II.
FOCUS established its pilot program in January 1998 at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, with two staff members and 24 students. At the beginning of the fall 2000 semester, more than one-third of the freshman class signed up for the FOCUS program.
At the invitation of Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, Archbishop of Denver, a FOCUS program was established in the fall of 1998 at the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley. Archbishop Chaput has said, "No one does a more dynamic job of reaching college students for Christ than FOCUS."
Curtis Martin met with Pope John Paul II in 1998, and shared the vision of FOCUS with him. The Pope's words to Curtis were, “Be soldiers.” In just ten years, FOCUS now extends to 58 campuses in 22 states with over 300 full-time staff members. More than 2,000 students are involved in FOCUS on college campuses. FOCUS takes recent college graduates, trains them in the teachings of the Catholic Church, Scripture and practical aspects of ministry, and sends them out typically in teams of four to serve on college campuses. FOCUS staff members make an initial two-year commitment to this full-time work on campus. FOCUS works with the approval of the local bishop and the support of the local pastor, as well as existing campus ministries.
FOCUS missionaries and student leaders will identify students that they find to be Faithful, Available, Contagious and Teachable (FACT)[1]. A student accepted into discipleship must commit to leading a Bible study and discipling two other students. In addition a student leader must commit to attending all activities run by FOCUS at a campus that include speakers, invitation only dinners and invitation only retreats in addition to committing to attending national conferences and regional leadership summits (conferences held locally with other nearby FOCUS schools that are restricted to the student leaders and held in years when there is not a national conference). The structure of the discipleship is based on the method outlined by Robert E. Coleman in "The Master Plan of Evangelism"[2]. At first the disciple will concentrate on building their relationship with God[3]. Once a disciple has reached an acceptable level in their prayer life they will be instructed in "Win, Build, Send"[4] and allowed to start a Bible study from which they will find two students that they can disciple.
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