By Priscilla Greear, Staff Writer

ATLANTA—Christ the King Singles brings together hundreds of young adults—many transplants to Atlanta, united by their Catholic faith—helping them to embrace or reconnect with their Lord and church.

Michael Preissler, a project leader at Delta, is one of those who moved here in 1999 after earning his MBA from Yale and found a new project and passion in ministry. He has felt the Gospel light in Atlanta much more than he did in the country’s largest archdiocese, Los Angeles, where he grew up.

“In southern California, church for young adults was a once-a-week effort. That’s where church began and ended,” said Preissler, 28. “The church here in Atlanta is part of your daily life, who you are and the community that you live in. It’s something you actively participate in beyond Mass once a week. Whether it’s perpetual adoration or actively participating in the singles group, it’s a part of who I am, rather than a chore once a week.”

At the Cathedral of Christ the King, Preissler joined a small Christian community and friendships led him to become involved in the singles ministry.

“I passionately believe in the community of young people who actively participate in the variety of events that we sponsor on a monthly basis,” he said. “We have built a community that focuses on all aspects of life, with our Catholic faith as the foundation for everything we do.”

Co-president Helen Snyder has made it a priority to welcome visitors into the flock of friends. The volunteer-led group for singles ages 21-35 now has over 400 active members, an increase of over 100 new people from last year. Participants are mainly professionals and members of the Cathedral, but they also include people from other parishes and non-Catholics. One board member converted last year.

The group holds a monthly wine and cheese social where visitors are welcomed and leaders announce upcoming activities. The ministry, founded in 1987, offers the “trinity” of spiritual, social and service activities to create a family environment for singles who don’t have families of their own with whom to attend church.

“Because CTK is such a big community, we really do provide singles with an area to feel at home. We certainly provide a lot of activities we do on a regular basis, especially for new people who come to Atlanta to get involved and get comfortable in Atlanta and specifically at the church,” Snyder said.

As membership increases, the group’s executive board is getting more directly involved with the church. Spiritually, members participate in activities such as Monday night Bible study, To Encounter Christ retreats and two of their own annual retreats. An archdiocesan “Thank God It’s First Friday Mass” and social was held at the Cathedral April 6. Social events on the March calendar, which only had two event-free days, ranged from hearing The Clarks at Smith’s Olde Bar and a movie night to paintball, camping and beach trips.

Snyder said people typically get involved in social events the first year and then move into spiritual and service programs.

“We’re not trying to make a head count. It’s a good environment. We want to share it and get more people involved, especially in working on the board and in the church. CTK has at least 50 different ministries you can get involved in,” Snyder said.

Snyder hopes to create a community of Catholic singles involved in their religion. Yet it’s also an environment where people can pick and choose what to participate in.

“It’s really great because a lot of our members are more spiritually inclined and are able to go to the spiritual events that the parish does. Some people are more interested in service. There are a good number of people that are just interested in social events, which is fine. It’s whatever you like to do. Our group does a little bit of everything,” she said. “It’s really very little commitment. You can give your time as you like, which is very attractive to young professionals because they have busy personal lives but are still able to stay in touch with the parish through our events.”

Snyder, 31, noted that some “lukewarm Catholics” need time to warm up to the church, as young adults often drift away from it after college.

“It’s a tough time when you come out of college starting up on your own. They don’t think of their faith as first and foremost in priority. The most important thing is to get out and get an apartment and a job . . . Through our singles group, we really bring people in and get them comfortable and that makes it a lot easier to go to Mass and get in touch with their faith and even grow in their faith.”

Reaching out to their Buckhead neighbors, the group has also begun sharing activities with single Christians at Peachtree Presbyterian Church and may collaborate with members of a Jewish temple.

“It’s cool to be able to interact with other church groups no matter what the denomination.”

Interparish sports score high with the ministry. The group participates in interparish leagues in softball and flag-football, organizing up to four teams per sport, and has added basketball and soccer this year.

They work with other Atlanta parishes, including St. Jude the Apostle Church and Holy Spirit Church, to plan young adult events for the archdiocese. Their annual Christmas party draws singles from other churches.

“Last year we had about 500 Catholic people attend the thing and we (collected) at least 400 toys because everybody brought unwrapped toys which we donated to the CTK Hispanic mission.”

Matt Gardner, a co-coordinator of the community service committee, tries to spread that charitable spirit by increasing service activities at places such as a nursing home, women’s shelter and the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception’s soup kitchen. Last year 40 volunteers served a Thanksgiving luncheon for 80 seniors. And his committee is planning several community service activities with the Presbyterian group this year that they hope will “stick for the future.”

Gardner said the group has put greater emphasis on social activities in the past, but he said it is now increasing emphasis on spirituality and service to balance the group. There are now four monthly events, plus a few special activities, which attract from three to 25 people.

“Since the new board has taken over, the participation in community service has increased substantially . . . I feel part of that is to change the perception of the group,” he said. “We’re more than just this social group. We span all aspects of a person’s life and the life within the church. The spiritual committee and service committee have stepped up their presence in the group this year. I do think communication is key in increasing participation in community service and a broad offering of events. We’re really excited about what we’re doing this year. The only way I feel it’s going to realize its full potential is if people know what we’re doing.”

One hot service project is taking refugee children out to lunch and to play soccer or other sports. Many are touched by the experience.

“Talking to kids, asking them what they think of America, the kids say, ‘Even though things aren’t so great where we’re living, we’re in America. We have opportunity and hope and we don’t have to worry about being killed,’” he said. “These types of events really put perspective on people’s lives and I think it’s why they’re kind of popular. Those who volunteer feel like they’re making a difference.”

While service builds the community at large, members “get to know a person at a different level,” Gardner said. He also promotes serving the archdiocese and larger community through organizations such as the St. Vincent de Paul Society and Hands On Atlanta, where he also volunteers. “If somebody has the excitement and enthusiasm to volunteer, I don’t want to limit them. There’s so much more out there.”

While soup-servers may be rising early on Saturdays, he said the big problem remains apathy toward community service by affluent young adults, who are typically very involved in themselves and their activities.

Gardner, who is 33, decided to start serving at 30, the age at which Jesus began his ministry, as an avenue to reconnect with the church. Jesuit voices from his Catholic college days in Connecticut came back to him, reminding him to be aware of where he fit in the community and his part in the greater whole. And he’s inspired by the Gospel call to use his talents and not bury them. He applies his talents for organization, sports, communication and computers as co-chair.

“When I was asked to take on that role, I hesitated at first and then said, ‘Why wait until tomorrow?’ It’s meant a lot to me and helped me to give back to the community that helped me settle here in Atlanta,” he said. “It’s clearly grounded me, put a different perspective on my life, in particular to all the blessings I’ve been given . . . I’ve got to use these talents to help as well. It’s kind of allowed me to live my faith, to have my faith as an active part of my life.”

Snyder said CTK Singles encourages Catholics to live all aspects of their faith, particularly tougher ones like teachings on chastity and birth control.

“It’s very difficult for young singles to grasp that and accept these rules. We’re all having difficulty with that. We all know in the back of our minds that the church teachings are there for our own good. They’re there to benefit us and not to hinder us,” said Snyder. “I’m slowly starting to understand these are good teachings. It’s very difficult to remain chaste and get yourself ready for that person God has chosen for you and think God has somebody out there for you.”

Although she went to Catholic schools straight through college, Snyder feels she “missed out on a lot” and has learned a lot about faith by making friends in the group with very spiritual people and attending church functions with them. Yet it was the sudden, traumatic death of her father last year that spurred a deeper search.

“Ever since then I’ve been wanting to get closer to my faith and what I’m supposed to be doing here. My friends from my church really helped me do it. I don’t think I would have had that spiritual support that way from friends at work and from college. It was a very special kind of support . . . It caused me to reassess everything. I don’t think I’d be doing as well as I’m doing now without their prayers and love. I don’t think I believed so much in the power of prayer before this. Now I’ve experienced it,” she said, explaining how the trauma has affected her spirituality. “To be raised Catholic doesn’t necessarily mean you’re raised spiritually. It isn’t enough unless it really affects your heart. That’s enough and once it affects your heart you naturally want to share that with other people.”

Parish secretary Andrea Merriman, who has worked at the church for 18 years and been a liaison to the group, has watched it grow both in size and mission after starting with a handful of faithful.

She noted that the 5:30 p.m. Sunday Mass the majority attend is standing room only. “It’s amazing, absolutely amazing, the numbers that come . . . I do believe the Holy Spirit has blessed that group.”

Preissler has begun praying weekly as a guardian in the perpetual adoration chapel in addition to serving singles. Like service, prayer gives him perspective.

“(It’s) something I wouldn’t have done before. We did it once a month (in Los Angeles). They could barely get enough people to sign up one day each month,” he said. “It’s helped me keep life in perspective. When you’re involved and have to put in the hours I do at work at the company I’m employed in, perpetual adoration is an opportunity in the middle of the week to recognize there are far more important things than work and trying to survive.”

What he thanks God for are his church friends. “While it’s somewhat easy to make friends, it’s always challenging to make friends with the same values that I have. Here I’m surrounded by people who love me and care about me and I have the same feeling likewise.”

For information on CTK Singles, visit the web site www.christtheking-atl.org/singles.