After a roughly 13-month vacancy–and just in time for Lent and Ramadan–Point Park has a new spiritual advisor, according to an email announcement.
Pastor Joseph Murdy, an associate pastor of the First Lutheran Church on Grant Street and chaplain of the U.S. Army Reserve’s 328th Combat Operational Stress Control (COSC), filled the position. He began serving as the university’s spiritual advisor on Tuesday, March 4.
Murdy said it is his privilege to continue a legacy of caring for the Downtown community, which includes the students and staff of Point Park.
“For many years my predecessor, Pastor Jennifer McCurry, provided pastoral care, religious support and a faith-based presence on campus,” Murdy said. “It is a great joy to carry on this legacy of care.”
McCurry, also an affiliate of First Lutheran Church, left Point Park for a full-time position at Carnegie Mellon University in February 2024. She established the Interfaith Meditation room on the second floor of the Student Center during her time at Point Park.
Murdy will be deployed with his Reserve unit in the next few weeks for roughly nine months.
“I didn’t want to wait until next year,” Dean of Student Life Michael Gieseke said. “We’ve been sort of putting this together for a few months, and once it was finalized, I wanted to move forward.”
Murdy plans to keep in touch despite the distance.
“While deployed, I will still have access to my phone and email,” Murdy said. “So, I do hope to remain connected to the Point Park community and share my experience with those interested.”
Murdy’s job while deployed will consist of providing care, support and resources for those in need, which doesn’t just include the soldiers. It also includes supporting the commander, providing religious services, confidential counseling and religious support for those of any faith tradition, Murdy said.
Having a pastor on campus is something Point Park has had for a while, according to Gieseke. The university works specifically with the First Lutheran Church because of its mission of local community outreach.
“That relationship built and grew into becoming more, so we’re hoping to do the same thing here,” Gieseke said.
Murdy is hoping for a similar outcome.
“My hope is to build strong connections and relationships with the Point Park community. Relationships are so important,” Murdy said. “So often in life we can feel alone or uncertain. One of the joys of being a pastor is developing relationships so that people feel loved, acknowledged and seen.”
Additionally, having a pastor on campus gives students and staff a resource for spiritual care, Murdy said.
“As a Lutheran pastor, my number one calling is to share the love of God and to ensure that others know that they are loved and valued,” Murdy said. “At a school which itself is not religious, it is important to have a pastor available to provide care in unique circumstances, support those seeking a faith-based connection and offer opportunities to serve, learn and grow in a pluralistic environment.”
Point Park has two Christian-based student organizations: Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO) and Point Park Bible Study for Athletes/Students. Each group holds separate weekly bible studies.
Shalom Club is no longer listed on PointSync, and there are no clubs for any other religious denomination.
Christian Reid, a sophomore media production student and track athlete, said that he has become more religious since transferring to Point Park last fall.
Reid said his sprint coach, Oronde Sharif, invited him to church.
“I didn’t start putting my religion first, God first, Jesus Christ first, until I’d say a few months ago,” Reid said. “I was just tired of falling short [and] backsliding. I wanted to live for him; dedicate my life to him.”
Reid hasn’t met Murphy yet, but said, “I love that they are doing it [hiring a spiritual advisor], but if they didn’t, I wouldn’t feel a type of way because there’s many churches around here.”
Reid attends Six Mount Zion Baptist Church in Larimer about 20 minutes away from campus.
He also runs a Christian TikTok account with over 100,000 followers. However, Reid’s account didn’t start off faith based.
“My first ever video — it was me and my friends — we were at work. We used to work at Moe’s in North Carolina, and [my friend] accidentally fell in the sink, and it blew up.” Reid said. “It hit like 20 million views, and I just started posting from there like two or three years ago.”
Now, he gets the ideas for his videos by writing down verses from his Bible that speak to him while he reads.
Murdy served 13 years at Ascension Lutheran in Robinson Township, which is also roughly 20 minutes from campus, before serving at First Lutheran.
In his current position, he leads worship, visits and cares for the sick, and teaches and engages in the community as one of two full time pastors at the First Lutheran Church. There are some variances in his responsibilities, such as overseeing youth ministry, education, social ministry, visitation and campus ministry, Murdy said.
Currently, efforts are underway to get Murdy a Point Park phone number and email address, and the campus community will be notified when that happens, Gieseke said.
Anyone interested in worship at First Lutheran Church, the church is generally open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. for prayer, Wednesdays at 12:10p.m. for 20-minute service with Holy Communion, and worship with Holy Communion is held on Sundays at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. All are welcome.
