Take a moment and imagine a class that is not defined by papers and books but by how well students learn about themselves and who they are. The class is called “Creativity” and Father Bede Cameron is the man behind the magic, helping students learn about who they are and what it means to be creative.
Both an accomplished musician and a professor, Father Bede was introduced to music as a child in New York City, and it has since become an important part of his career. A self-proclaimed “weird kid,” Father Bede had a passion for reading as well as learning new languages and was reading Charles Dickens by the time he was eleven.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree from Dowling College in Long Island, NY, Father Bede continued to earn a master’s degree in French Literature from Stony Brook University, a master’s in Theology from Saint John’s Seminary, as well as a master’s degree in Music Education from Westminster Choir College.
Music started to become a larger and larger part of Father Bede’s life as he began to work in Church music while also teaching organ-playing and conducting. His experiences helped him to grow in his faith; Bede explained that one of the most important epiphanies of his life was realized while listing to “Passacaglia and Fugue” by Bach. “It’s when I knew that I had to become a monk,” Father Bede said.
Since coming to Saint Anselm College Father Bede has been able to put all of his experience and creativity to good use in the Fine Arts department, finding great success and reward in his creativity class. Described in the college catalogue as a course on the study of creativity through scientific, artistic, and spiritual approaches, Father Bede emphasizes that “it’s unlike any class students have ever taken.”
One of the most unique classes on campus, the goal of Father Bede’s creativity class is to allow students to figure out who they really are as human beings and to become more in tune with themselves and their minds.
Heavily based in the ideas that meditation, introspection, and breathing exercises are just as important as conventional methods of instruction, Father Bede says that he is not looking to merely show students how to be creative: “You can teach people to work on themselves and on the choices that they make,” Father Bede explained, “then it will allow their creativity to come forward.”
The student response to the class has been a positive one, and one that shows results. Students who have completed the course find themselves with newfound passions for silence, downtime, and introspection. “In some ways, I’m teaching a counter-cultural lifestyle,” said Bede, “the average student has too much to do and not enough time to do it.”
Using and applying what they have learned in his class on creativity, Father Bede’s students generally feel that they have the least stressful semester of their college careers, a phenomenon that he attributes to a growth in spirituality. “The values that they discover on their own through my class are very in-tuned with the monastic lifestyle.”
Music plays an essential role within the class, and Father Bede’s musicality is also reflected in his other passion, the Saint Anselm College choir. For over two decades, Father Bede has headed the choir program, keeping music as an important presence on campus. “Music has a special way of touching people that words simply cannot,” said Father Bede.
When asked about how he got started, Bede explained, “from the very beginning the goal was to provide calming and healing music that was in touch with spirituality.” Bede has done that, with all of the choir’s hard work culminating in their upcoming Spring Concert on April 13th.
The choir will be performing some of the student’s favorite pieces. The goal, says Father Bede, is to provide people with powerful music to heal and to create a spiritual experience with this annual event.
Whether you find him teaching in the classroom or conducting in rehearsal take a minute to stop by and say hello to Father Bede. His kind words and warm personality create an easy atmosphere. And who knows; maybe he’ll ask you to try out for the choir.