“I decided to roll into congress because I needed a little shot in the arm,” said Loyola Marymount University alumnus Gino Altamura ’13, a middle school religion teacher at St. Rita School in Sierra Madre, California. “I knew I needed to fill my cup and that’s exactly what happened. I wanted to go to a place where I was known and loved. Being around so many people especially LMU people made me feel that love.”
Altamura was among dozens of LMU students, alumni, faculty, and staff who gathered in Anaheim for the 70th annual Religious Education Congress, the largest annual gathering of Catholics in the United States. Hosted by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, congress brings together thousands of educators, ministers, theologians, and lay leaders from around the world for a weekend of prayer, formation, and community.
This year’s congress theme, “Wrapped In Mercy, Hope Renewed,” resonated deeply with attendees. “Religious Education Congress 2026 in Anaheim renewed each of us in the mercy of our God,” said Rosemarie Nassif, S.S.N.D., executive director of the Center for Catholic Education at LMU. “It brought together thousands of Catholics from around the world to forgive, uplift, and walk forward in hope together.”
Now in its seventh decade, congress has long been intertwined with LMU’s own history. The university has participated since its earliest years, when it was still Loyola University and Marymount College, and this year served as an official sponsor.
“LMU was proud to sponsor the Religious Education Congress, the largest annual gathering of Catholics in the United States,” said John Sebastian, senior vice president for Mission. “Congress celebrates faith and the future of the Church and LMU has sent students and faculty to participate since the beginning.”
Throughout the weekend, LMU’s presence could be felt across the convention center, from the university’s exhibition booth to liturgical celebrations supported by LMU musicians and ministers, to an alumni reception made possible through the generosity of the Dzida family.
For longtime attendees, like Allen Deck, SJ, Congress continues to offer a unique window into the life of the Church both locally and globally. “For more than 40 years, Congress has provided me one of the best opportunities in our country to experience the reality and emerging trends in the Catholic Church,” said Deck. “In many ways, it concretely exemplifies the intercultural reality of community that makes the Catholic Church truly catholic — an extraordinary example of communion in faith among a remarkable diversity of people, cultures, languages, and experiences.”
LMU has maintained a notable presence at Congress for decades by showcasing university programs, services, and personnel contributing to religious and social justice leadership throughout Southern California and beyond.
“If we’re not about the transformation of the world, then we’re wasting our time,” said Steve Dzida, whose family helped support a luncheon for LMU alumni, staff, faculty, and friends attending congress. “At LMU, we study history, business, film, and more but ultimately, we do so in order to transform the world.”
For Donal Noonan, campus minister for music and liturgy, that sense of shared mission took on a deeply personal form during the closing liturgy on Sunday, when a song he composed opened the celebration. “It was written as a prayer of welcome — an expression of the unconditional love God offers to every person,” Noonan said. “In that moment, music became what it is meant to be at its best: a space where people could hear themselves called, included, and held within the love of God and the embrace of the community.”
Elsy Arevalo, director of the Center for Religion and Spirituality, reflected on the impact of reconnecting with alumni, ministry partners, and current students throughout the weekend. “I was struck once again by the beautiful diversity of the Church — different cultures, ministries, vocations, paths, and stories all gathered in one place,” Arevalo said. “From current students to alumni now serving as leaders across a wide range of ministries, LMU’s presence was tangible. I left feeling grateful and proud of the ways LMU prepares its students for lives rooted in love and service.”
For many in attendance, congress offered not only professional development but also renewal — a reminder of the shared call to compassion and community that animates both the Church and LMU’s mission.
Sebastian encouraged the LMU community to remain “hopeful” in the work ahead, a phrase that captured the spirit of the weekend and the ongoing call to live out faith through action in service of others.
