a $100,000 grant<\/a> to launch \u201cWaymarks Toward Reunion: Beauty, Sacred Art and the Road to Freedom.\u201d Chosen among a highly competitive field of applicants, the project will run through December 2026 and will feature numerous elements, many of which will be executed in Dr. Beldio\u2019s \u201cReligion and the Arts\u201d course this spring at The University of Scranton.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cThis project responds to today\u2019s wilderness of fragmentation, loneliness and ecological crisis through shared practices of making, discernment and dialogue,\u201d Dr. Beldio said. \u201cWe\u2019re exploring how beauty becomes a pathway \u2014 equal to truth and justice \u2014 for encountering the divine, even within suffering.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nIn addition to holding multiple workshops, where the focus will be on treating various artistic media as spiritual practices, and public lectures convening Christian and interfaith voices, the project will support the selection of one student each from Scranton and Georgetown as Waymarks Student Fellows. The selected students will receive dedicated studio time, leadership responsibilities and enhanced mentorship from Dr. Beldio, who brings 30 years of professional sculpture experience alongside his scholarly expertise in comparative theology.<\/span><\/p>\n\u201cPatrick represents the best of Jesuit education,\u201d said Cyrus Olsen, Ph.D., associate professor of theology\/religious studies at Scranton, who encouraged Dr. Beldio to apply for the grant. \u201cHe brings rigorous scholarship, creative excellence and genuine interfaith sensitivity to his teaching and research.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nAfter piloting the program in the spring at Scranton, Dr. Beldio plans to offer the same course at Georgetown in the fall, extending the model to a second Jesuit university while deepening alignment with the Berkley Center\u2019s mission and the Franciscan Monastery\u2019s pastoral witness. The initiative culminates in a Capstone Symposium in Washington, D.C., celebrating student work and gathering voices from both universities alongside Jesuit, Franciscan and interfaith communities. Future phases will expand to institutions serving underserved students, ensuring broad access and reciprocity.<\/span><\/p>\nDr. Beldio possesses a unique expertise in Hindu-Christian studies, which he will leverage in this project. His own monumental interfaith sculpture, \u201cThe New Being,\u201d a 40-foot, 11-ton bronze work completed over 10 years, exemplifies this vision of bridging traditions through sacred art.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n