Chad Aubert of Baton Rouge, took top honors at graduation and is now headed for life as a Benedictine monk. He was named the Outstanding Ignatian Senior Man of 2014. He also won the Venerable Bede Medieval Studies Award and the Reverend Karl Rahner, S.J., Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Religious Studies. He graduated magna cum laude. Post-graduation, he will be completing a pre-theology program at St. Joseph Seminary for one year, after which he will begin formation at St. Joseph Abbey, a Benedictine monastery near Covington, LA. His honor's thesis focused on pilgrims who have dedicated their lives solely to God. At Loyola, he has served as rector with the Awakening Retreat and Community, a program of University Ministry, and has also been an active participant in Christian Life Communities, Loyola Life, Alpha Sigma Nu and Loyola’s Honors Program. He said, “My life after graduation may include teaching or spiritual writing. My education in the Department of Relgious Studies has taught me to think critically and creatively, and to consider ideas in great depth and with thoroughness. I have also learned the value of having reasonable information to back my conclusions. I expect to continue to practice these skills as a way of challenging myself and others to more fully understand the weight of religious subject matter.”

The Clarion-Herald published a piece on Aubert detailing the inspiration for Chad's honor's thesis about pilgrims:

http://www.clarionherald.info/clarion/index.php/parks-home/3406-a-pilgri...