John Donaghy never expected to spend nearly 20 years as a campus minister for St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 2210 Lincoln Way.

In fact, if you had asked him what he wanted to do after finishing his doctorate in philosophy at Boston College, he would have said with a hearty laugh that his “plans were to become a college teacher of philosophy and bore students to death.”

“God led me where I didn’t expect to go,” Donaghy said.

He does not regret making the trip from Boston College to Iowa State.

He said although he did not plan on being where is today, he finds great joy in what he is doing. Donaghy said he is continually amazed at students’ commitment to faith and the time they give to the church.

He said he enjoys seeing “students who take faith seriously and live it out.”

“Often, they take it more seriously than I did at that age,” he said.

He challenges his students to live faith out in their daily life, in work and in what they do. He believes that God works in people, showing values of truth, love, justice and peace.

Katie Elbert, senior in psychology, met Donaghy during her sophomore year through the church, although she had heard of him since she had been at Iowa State.

“He exemplifies [the thought] that living out faith is a lifelong journey,” said Elbert, who now is one of the church’s four peer ministers. “He is an amazing man who is very passionate in what he does and the way he lives his life. He is simple and devoted.”

Donaghy said he is not set back by students of different faiths, however. He thinks it’s “good to be in a class with more than one view.”

When he teaches philosophy or religion, his goal is “to get people to start thinking critically.” He challenges himself to “cross over the divide between people of different beliefs.”

He enjoys students who challenge him as a teacher.

“If I had never been stumped, I would wonder if I had not given them enough information to think for themselves,” he said.

He replied to the often-used criticism of the Catholic Church not being flexible to modern times, saying he doesn’t “want to be molded by a society of consumerism, violence and exploitation of others. Within tradition [there is] a wholeness of understanding of humans beings, [especially] as a follower of Christ.”

Elbert said “[Donaghy] has done a lot of reflection about the theological aspects of faith. He has a good perspective on different religions and addresses different arguments.”

Donaghy looks down upon intolerance, especially in the instance of recent attacks on the Muslim religion as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“It’s easy to get secure [again] by treating the other as an outsider,” he said. “Intolerance is a reaction of fear. Nothing can be restored by talking about it or by war — we must find ways to cross the bridges.”

The fear that washed over the nation after Sept. 11 reminds Donaghy of the pain he has seen in his multiple trips to El Salvador, in particular a seven-month sabbatical during wartime.

“Sept. 11 was a tragic thing and terribly wrong, but other people in the world have seen tragedy,” he said.

“There are different ways to deal with violence, pain and frustration.”

He leads student service teams, hoping to connect students with people in need.

Michael Bishop, chairman of philosophy and religious studies, said Donaghy is “a gentle man who is very committed to peace and concerned with issues of justice. He has spent a lot of time working to help [the needy], especially in Central America.”

Elbert, who hopes to travel with Donaghy in a spring break trip to El Salvador, said Donaghy is “involved with what goes on with the community and politics.”

Donaghy remains humble. He said that he “owes a lot to a lot of different people,” with his colleagues, pastors and community members in particular.

He said he’s “experienced God’s wealth” by collaborating with other campus ministers. Donaghy also believes that questioning faith is human and normal.

“If I didn’t doubt my faith, I would wonder if it is real,” he said.

Donaghy tells students doubting their faith to go work with the poor, telling them: “Don’t sit around — share your doubts, connect with others. Go and see what is happening.”

The path that he took after answering an advertisement he saw while still in Boston was not one he expected.

He does not know where he is going from here, nor is he worried.

“Faith called me to the work of love, justice, and peace; where it leads me from here, who knows?”