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Photo by: courtesey of Office of Communications and Marketing

For the last 40 years there has been a vacant office at the University of Denver, and it has been waiting for the right person to fill it.

Rev. Gary R. Brower has recently been named university chaplain.

He is experienced in providing chaplain services to secular universities as an Episcopal Priest..

Brower was born and raised in Oregon, attended University of California, Berkley and received a doctorate from Duke University.

Brower claims to be “making it up as I go along” but building a post from the ground up is a challenge.

Brower said the Chaplain’s office has been put in place to “make sure that students, faculty, and staff make good connections with the faith of their choice.”

Brower also plans to facilitate “conversations across religious lines” to help “better understand religious diversity.” Brower is very optimistic about these new initiatives that are to be instituted by the chaplain’s office.

The chaplain will be coordinating programs to increase dialogue between faith groups through events on ancestry, and through sponsoring interfaith volunteer projects such as a habitat for humanity project.

Brower would also like to hold an event called the “souper bowl,” which would be a soup cook off to raise money for organizations like the Food Bank of the Rockies.

The reverend is also very optimistic about the state of spiritual life on campus. He believes that there is a “sizeable portion of people at DU that are active religiously.”

However, this program wouldn’t work if people were merely religiously active; the process is also based on people who are curious about different faiths, Brower said.

According to Brower, college students are eager to “try on different religious personas,” and he encouraged people to explore the different faiths and spiritual organizations on campus.

Brower also believes that the current generation is less likely to discount other religions as odd, and that they are more open to diversity.

Brower would like to encourage anyone seeking counsel, or just needing an ear to stop by.

His office hours are posted on his Web site at www.du.edu/religouslife, and his office is located in Driscoll South

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