Mission Statement:
To serve the Rutgers community by spreading the Gospel of Christ and creating a welcoming environment where people from all walks of life can come to experience Him.
History:
In 1996, a group of Coptic students felt a need for an on-campus fellowship in which to meet with one another in support and discussion of daily college struggles. These students became the founders of Coptic Orthodox Fellowship, a support group and safe haven that offers students the opportunity to reflect on themselves and share in fellowship with one another. From a small gathering of a few students in a dorm room to becoming a fully accredited and recognized on-campus student organization, COF has grown immensely over the past years. In 2015, COF evolved to become part of the Orthodox Christian Campus Ministries, a national organization across many college campuses that consists of Oriental Orthodox Christians.
Our mission through the years has refined and repurposed to make us an evangelical arm of our Church. OCCM’s primary goal is to serve the Rutgers community by spreading the Gospel of Christ and creating a welcoming environment where people from all walks of life can come to experience Him.
With our mission in mind and through the strength of our Lord Jesus Christ, we strive to spread the urgent and good news to our fellow classmates. We serve the Rutgers Community by sharing our faith and informing our peers of the depth of the Oriental Orthodox Christian Church through various organized on-campus events. With open doors and a comfortable meeting environment, we can reach out to our fellow Rutgers peers and develop beneficial friendships that prevail over lifetimes.
The Patron Saint of Orthodox Christian Campus Ministries is the Archangel Gabriel.
The commemoration of Archangel Gabriel, the “Announcer of Good News,” is on the twenty-second day of the blessed month of Kiahk. He was the angel sent to the Virgin Mary to announce to her the glorious Birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. He came to her and said, “Rejoice O full of grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women” (Luke 1:28). He also announced the birth of John the Baptist to Zacharias the priest, (Luke 1:11-22). As much as we experience great joy and gladness for his annunciations, we should also rejoice in his feast and pray attentively with supplications, asking for his intercessions before God, to preserve us from being ensnared by the devil and to grant us salvation from our sins.
May the intercessions of this honored angel be with us all. Amen.