Summer 2014 Christian Union The Magazine

PRINCETON

YALE

‘Redress’ Exhibit: Hookup Culture’s Pain

Pennington Center Grand Opening

Christian Union the magazine :: summer 2014

Faith & Work

Bearing the Name of the Lord—in Every Sphere of Our Lives page 8

Q & A An interview with Pulitzer-nominated author D. Michael Lindsay Ivy League Spiritual Climate The latest from Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton & Yale Seeking God Frequent and Fervent Prayer

1

Pairing intellectual rigor with spiritual formation, Gordon-Conwell equips students to take the gospel wherever god leads them.

Our 20+ degree programs include: Master of Divinity Master of Arts in Counseling Master of Arts in Biblical Languages Master of Arts in Theology Master of Arts in Ethics and Society Master of Arts in Spiritual Formation Master of Arts in World Missions and Evangelism

Learn more at www.gordonconwell.edu/degrees

130 Essex Street, South Hamilton, MA 01982 1 800 428 7329 | info@gordonconwell.edu www.gordonconwell.edu

table of contents

volume xiii issue iii

Christian Union

the maga zine :: summer 2014

in e ach issue Letter from the President / 3

13

Five Minutes with author D. Michael Lindsay / 5 Donor Profile / 30 What’s Next / 32

10

16

6 Faith & Work

summer 2 014 fe at ure sec t ion Bearing the Name of the Lord / 8 Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action / 10 Social Justice Seminars / 12 Work and Cultural Renewal / 13

14 From the University to the City

This Magazine is published by Christian Union, an independent Christian Ministry.

............

cover photo iStockPhoto

cit y chris tian union New York City Christian Union / 29

34 The Spiritual Climate in the Ivy League

updat e s fr om e ver y iv y l e ague univer si t y Facebook Fast (Brown) :: Intellectual Engagement of My Faith (Columbia) :: Summer Christian Fellowship (Cornell) :: Prayer Tent Revival (Penn):: Dr. William Lane Craig Lecture (Yale) :: News-in-Brief from each university, and more

christianunion.org

the maga zine

::

............

univer si t y chris t ian union updat e s Dartmouth / 19 Princeton / 20 Penn / 22 Columbia / 23 Harvard / 25 Harvard Law / 26 Brown / 28

2014

ChristianUnion.org Twitter.com/ChristianUnion Facebook.com/Christian.Union

summer

on the web

Christian Union Dedicates Yale Ministry Center / 16 For Cornell Student, No Place Like ‘Home’ / 18

1

Christian Union T H E

M A G A Z I N E

volume xiii issue iii summer 2014 editor-in-chief

executive editors

Matthew Bennett

Dan Knapke Lorri Bentch

managing editor

creative director

senior writer

staff writer

field reporters

Tom Campisi Patrick Dennis Eileen Scott Catherine Elvy Luke Foster

Brian Zhang Molly Michaels Pam Traeger

photo editor

contributing editor

proofreader

Rachel Mari

art director

Michelle Taylor

production

Sarah Camp

Bethany Wakeley

feedback or subscription changes

240 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ 08542 or via e-mail: TheMagazine@ChristianUnion.org new subscriptions

Do you know someone who would enjoy a free subscription to this magazine? Please use either address above to pass along their names.

commemorating the launch of a ministry at brown—the

Eighth of the Ancient Eight ivy league universities where christian union develops leaders

in dallas

By God’s power and with the help of other ministries, Christian Union’s mission is to transform the world by developing and connecting bold Christian leaders. The ministry was founded in 2002 in Princeton, New Jersey.

Learn more at ChristianUnion.org

10.28.14

hilton dallas/park cities

in new york city

new date to be announced soon at: www.christianunion.org/events

©2014 Christian Union. All rights reserved. Christian Union: The Magazine is published quarterly. Its goal is to encourage and inform Christian alumni, students, parents, staff, faculty, and friends about Christian Union’s work—and about other spiritual activity—at eight of this country’s most influential colleges, and in key cities.

Our desire is that this publication would inspire readers to seek God, to use their influence for the cause of Christ, to pray, and to give financially to Christian initiatives that are bringing about culture change for God’s glory.

To request an advertising rate card, please e-mail Tom. Campisi@ChristianUnion.org. postmaster: Send address changes to: Christian Union, 240 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ 08542

letter from the president

Fasting Again?

“Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!”

—Psalm 105:3, 4

F

heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory!”

Psalm 105:3, 4 (ESV): “Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!”

The answer to humanity’s problems, collectively and individually, has always been God Himself. He is the reigning King to whom we look, and He is the one we seek for strength and His presence.

Please join us in this season of fasting and prayer, even if you’re not joining from the very beginning. Christians across the United States are participating in a variety of ways and for different lengths of time. Please visit www. christianunion.org/40days for more information. If we keep diligently seeking Him with our whole hearts, He will answer! He always does!

2014

Sincerely in Christ,

summer

::

Matthew W. Bennett matt bennett is the president and founder of Christian Union. He earned undergraduate and MBA degrees from Cornell, and launched Christian Union in 2002 in Princeton, New Jersey.

christianunion.org

or the second time within a year, Christian Union is promoting a 40-day season of fasting, prayer, and repentance, and we invite you to join with us in this important effort.

As before, we are seeking God to bring sweeping spiritual renewal to our nation and individual lives. We believe that by more fully abiding in our Savior, Jesus Christ, we can produce fruit as His dynamic sons and daughters. God is the hope of the world, showing favor to His children in increasing measure when we cry out to Him for more intervening grace. Psalm 142:1 (ESV) says, “With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord.”

Christian Union focuses on a handful of the nation’s most influential universities, and, increasingly, on the alumni of these schools and their peers in strategic cities. However, Christian Union has also launched Doxa (pronounced “docks - a”) as an initiative with other Christian leaders, desiring the promotion of a culture of seeking God wholeheartedly for national revival. This 40-day fast − starting Monday, August 11 and extending through Friday, September 19 − is an initiative of Doxa.

The name Doxa, Greek for “glory,” is inspired by Psalms 24 and 105.

Psalm 24:7-10 (ESV): “Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle! Lift up your

3

seeking god

Frequent and Fervent Prayer by chris matthews

D

evote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

—Colossians 4:2 Frequent and fervent prayer is an essential part of our relationship with God. It is the natural product of genuine faith in God and His promise that He will hear and answer us. Though the practice of prayer is simple enough for a child to perform, prayer is also a complex discipline in which every Christian continues to grow and develop throughout life. Just as Jesus’ disciples, we all continue to cry out, “Lord, teach us to pray.” It is a prayer that God loves to answer through His Word and a lifetime of abiding in Him. As it says in Colossians 4:2 above, we should be devoted to prayer. Devotion to prayer means that we will pray frequently, multiple times a day, and fervently, honestly opening our hearts to God with faith that He will respond. There is great freedom

at times, benefit greatly from structure or formality in our prayers as well, praying through passages of Scripture, using written prayers from others, keeping regular prayer lists, or following patterns for prayer. Praying in structured ways can help us grow in the discipline of prayer and help us keep our focus in prayer for longer periods of time.

We should regularly pray both alone and with other Christians. We have a personal relationship with God that needs to be enjoyed and maintained alone with God. Praying alone allows us to focus fully on the needs of our own soul and keeps us from worrying about what others think of our prayers. At the same time, praying with other Christians inspires us to pray

“Prayer is the easiest and hardest of all things; the simplest and the sublimest; the weakest and the most powerful; its results lie outside the range of human possibilities—they are limited only by the omnipotence of God.” —E. M. Bounds

christian union

::

the magazine

“

4

in how we can pray, and our prayer lives will be marked by great variety and manners of prayer.

We can pray very freely and openly from our hearts, without any pretense or formality. We should never feel like our prayers need to be impressive or conform to some strict pattern. But we can,

about new things and to pray more fervently as we listen to their prayers. It can also hold us accountable to persist in daily prayer.

Devotion to prayer means that we will schedule uninterrupted times each day to focus fully on prayer as our first priority.

Outside of our scheduled times of prayer,

we should also regularly and spontaneously be engaging God through prayer as needs arise during the day or as occasions arise to express our praise, confess our sin, or intercede for those we encounter.

We should pray authentically according to the state of our hearts before God. Our tone, our body posture, and the emotional content of our prayers should be an honest reflection of our hearts before God. Sometimes we will be broken and desperate before God, feeling the weight of our sin, the pain of suffering in this life, or the absence of warm fellowship with Him. Sometimes we will be joyful and delighted in God and how He is working in our lives. God welcomes us to come as we are and let our prayers and our posture before Him reflect the true state of the heart. As we read through prayers in the Scripture, we see examples of contrite prayers, desperate prayers, fearful prayers, joyful prayers, and confused and questioning prayers. God welcomes all of them as they are expressed with faith in Him and His promises.

As we grow in our faith in Christ, so should our commitment to prayer. God calls us to experience rich and fulfilling communion with Him as we pray freely and formally, alone and assembled, spontaneously and scheduled, desperately and delightedly. He will hear. He will answer.

He will be gracious to those who trust Him. Will we take Him at His Word? | cu chris matthews is Christian Union’s ministry director at Yale University.

Q & A | interviews with culture changers

Five Minutes with D. Michael Lindsay Characteristics of Powerful, Platinum Leaders

C

hristian Union: The Magazine recently interviewed D. Michael Lindsay (Princeton Ph.D. ’06), the president of Gordon College and a Pulitzer Prize-nominated sociologist. Dr. Lindsay’s latest book, View from the Top: An Inside Look at How People in Power See and Shape the World, is the culmination of an unprecedented Platinum Study of 550 top CEOs and senior officials.

cu: Your first book was entitled Faith in the Halls of Power: How Evangelicals Joined the American Elite. Even though View from the Top is about leaders from various backgrounds, did faith and achievement again intersect in any way?

of young leaders. It is essential for providing access to well-connected networks and also for passing down wisdom and experience. In the stories of many leaders, I found a series of mentoring chains. For example, Harvard Kennedy School professor Dick Neustadt invested in the life and career of young NAACP lawyer Vernon Jordan, in particular by inviting him to join the Bilderberg Conference. Years later, Jordan invited his friend and protégé Bill Clinton to the conference, introducing him to other global leaders.

Indeed, we all benefit from mentors who take an interest in our lives and help us become all that God wants us to be.

In View from the Top, one of your chapters is entitled “Lead With Your Life: Because It’s Much More than a Job.” How do we lead with our lives? Who is someone that embodies this trait? cu:

The conceit of the Internet age is that now anyone with a wireless connection has the capability to influence millions— through a tweet, viral video, or Tumblr feed. Though widespread, these ephemeral forms of communication are not nearly as weighty as major institutions such as Harvard University, Procter & Gamble, the Wall Street Journal, or the Supreme Court. Events such as the Arab Spring of 2011 demonstrate that social media can precipitate revolutions, but they cannot maintain and organize the revolutionary impulse for long-term change. For that, society relies on institutions. By becoming part of these influential entities, students can begin to leverage their God-given talents for the widest impact. | cu

ml:

:: christianunion.org

As I quickly learned after becoming the president of Gordon, institutional leadership is much, much more than a 9-5 job. The CEO or the president is so closely associated with her organization that their very life must reflect the institution’s values. Every leader who aspires to make a significant difference in her firm, industry, or in society must inspire her constituents, not only with her words, but with

ml:

cu: Talk about the role that large institutions play in shaping culture and why you encourage your students to embrace, not avoid large institutions when they look for jobs.

2014

As a leadership development ministry, Christian Union has a vested interest in mentoring. In View from the Top, cu:

ml: Mentorship is key for the development

her actions, habits, and traits. The quickest way to bring down a political opponent is to uncover marital infidelity; voters surmise that a politician unfaithful to his wife will be unfaithful to his political promises.

Similarly, when CEOs institute layoffs and pay cuts, while simultaneously raking in millions, employees, shareholders, and the general public resent the hypocrisy. One of my favorite examples (of leading with your life) is Colleen Barrett, the former president of Southwest Airlines, who really embodied the friendly and helpful persona of the airline.

summer

I found Christ’s example of sacrificial leadership modeled again and again in the lives of what I call “platinum leaders,” those who have risen to the top of their institutions and are able to catalyze change. The relational dimension of leadership requires those who seek influence to think carefully about the ways their personal values and faith commitments intersect with their responsibilities. View from the Top was written for a general audience, but I think faith is so essential to good leadership that I added a conclusion to the text that seeks to explain how the two relate. Luke 12:48 says, “Unto whom much is given, much is required.” The key idea of the book is that responsibility accompanies leadership. We must use the blessings we are given to bless others. The highest and best use of power is when it is put in the service of those who have none.

ml:

you indicate the important role mentoring has played with some top executives.

Could you elaborate?

5

christian union

::

the magazine

feature section | faith and work

6

feature section :: summer 2014 Bearing God’s Image through Daily Work / 8 Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action / 10 Social Justice Seminars / 12 Work and Cultural Renewal / 13

Faith work

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it. genesis

2:15

“subdue the earth.” That work can bring praise and glory to God and

2014

impact the culture and our communities.

summer

Since the beginning of time, we have been given a mandate to work and

::

and articles that will point readers to the intersection of faith and work and encourage them to see their vocations not merely as a means to an end, or a paycheck, but as a divine calling.

the sterling law building

(left) at Yale Law School

christianunion.org

In this special section, Christian Union: The Magazine presents columns

7

feature section | faith and work

Bearing God’s Image through Daily Work His Story Becomes Our Story by nick nowalk

christian union

::

the magazine

C

8

hristians who are serious and well-intentioned about their faith often experience angst-filled perplexity when they ponder the significance of the Gospel for what many of us inevitably spend most of our waking adult lives doing: working. What does following Jesus have to do with one’s career? What does it actually look like to do everything in life to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31)?

How can someone do everything he or she does at work in the name of the Lord Jesus (Eph. 5:20, Col. 3:17), working heartily for the Lord and not for human beings (Col. 3:23)? Endless sermons and books on this freighted topic are, of course, readily available and worth pursuing.

I want to begin by (briefly) insisting that to talk about ethics (what am I to do with my life?), we must first consider story (who am I? what’s wrong with the world? what am I here for? etc.). Whatever ideology or worldview or moral vision we may find ourselves giving allegiance to, all of us do so only insofar as we inhabit—consciously or not—a story that provides direction and meaning for our lives. As the philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre once famously wrote in After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory: “Man is in his actions and practice, as well as in his fictions, essentially a story-telling animal…I can only answer the question ‘What am I to do’ if I can answer the prior question ‘Of what story or stories do I find myself a part?’ …Deprive [human beings] of stories and you leave them unscripted, anxious stutterers in their actions as in their words. Hence there is no way to give us an understanding of any society, including

our own, except through the stock of stories which constitute its initial, dramatic resources.”

The depth and richness of the Christian story and its ability to make sense of the complexity, the frustrations, and the yearnings of human existence accounts in large part, for the perennial attraction by which so many are pulled toward Jesus. The many-side contours of the Christian narrative cannot be pursued here in full, but I will content myself with highlighting three crucial strands of our story as it relates to work—all with an eye on Paul’s magnificent letter to the Colossians.

The story of the Gospel reminds us that our work is (new) creational, that it is missional, and above all else, that it must be Christshaped. Let’s look at each of these in order.

First, the Gospel teaches us to approach our work within the framework of creation—and, more particularly, God’s commitment to renew creation’s goodness through His Son. Colossians 1:15, clearly echoing Genesis 1:26-28, portrays Jesus as the “image” of the invisible God and the “firstborn” (i.e. ruler) over all of creation.

The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, in other words, were no de novum arising in a historical vacuum; they were the fulfillment of God’s original purposes in the creation of humanity. And central to those purposes, according to Genesis 1:26, 28 and 2:15, was work. God has not given up on the goodness of work in the lives of human beings—those in Christ still have work to do (Col. 1:10, 3:23)! Indeed, the shape and goal of the Christian life as a whole is to be

renewed in the “image” of our Creator (Col. 3:10), transformed to reflect His character through our deeds once more. Salvation is not merely or mainly about the forgiveness of our sins or an amoral guarantee of bliss in the afterlife. Rather, as James Dunn points out in Christology in the Making: A New Testament Inquiry into the Origins of the Doctrine of the Incarnation, “[Paul] understands salvation as the fashioning or reshaping of the believer into the image of God.” This is what the early church theologian Irenaeus meant by his favored (and strange) term “recapitulation.” In Christ, God has launched a redemptive “do over” of the human drama. Jesus has become what we were supposed to be all along as genuine, God-reflecting human beings, doing for us what we can no longer accomplish because of sin. This is wondrously true, but incomplete. All of this took place in order that we might become what Jesus now is, conformed to His image through the grace of the Spirit and following in the footsteps of our forerunner (cf. Rom. 8:29, 1 Cor. 15:49, 2 Cor. 3:18, 4:4, Phil. 3:20-21). And that means, among much else, bearing God’s image through our daily work as God always intended in creation.

Second, the Gospel orients us missionally toward our work. Since Jesus is the new Adam (Col. 1:15) who renews us in God’s image (Col. 3:10) to work (Col. 1:10, 3:23), it should come as no surprise that Paul depicts the shape of the Christian life—both in conversion (Col. 1:6) and holy service (Col. 1:10)—as “bearing fruit

extent that we engage in it with transformed, Spirit-driven character. Which leads us to our final point.

Third, if our daily work represents God’s renewal of creation’s original goodness and if it subsequently sends us out into the world in mission to bear fruit and multiply, Colossians also insists that everything we do must be Christ-shaped. At this point in the story, there is no going back to creation except through the cross (in the profound phrase of Oliver O’Donovan), and no mission that is not patterned after His death and resurrection for the life of the world. How else could it be if Jesus

Therefore, as Colossians 3:1-17 demonstrates, the “work” which we do “in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col. 3:17) and for His sake (Col. 3:23) must participate in the way of life that Jesus engaged. That means being united to both His death and resurrection (Col. 3:1-4), fleshed out in unavoidably tangible ways in Colossians 3:5-11 (the cross) and 3:12-17 (the resurrection). We must die to all that is self-centered, idolatrous, and false—self-denial, as B. B. Warfield once quipped, is not about me. It is rather about preparing me to actually be useful to others in love, something I simply cannot be unless I am first stripped

We were given the dignity and awesome responsibility of taking up where God had left off when He rested on the seventh day. Our work has always supposed to matter.

christianunion.org

is a Christian Union teaching fellow at Harvard University.

nick nowalk

::

of all that tarnishes His image in me. Likewise, we must be reborn to self-giving love and humility, to truth telling and mercy.

Our service to the world, which is finally what our “work” must be about if we take the the narrative framework of the Gospel seriously, means bearing the image of the God who is known supremely and irrevocably in the face of the crucified, risen Lord Jesus. His story must now become our story before the eyes of a watching, dying world. The work of every Christian, whatever tasks each of us may spend our days and years laboring after, means the imitation of Christ. | cu

2014

is the true “image” of the invisible God? What other ideal is possible when the image we are being refashioned into is His image? Irenaeus summarized his hugely important “recapitulation” theory with exactly this logic: “Christ was in these last days, according to the time appointed by the Father, united to His own workmanship, inasmuch as He became a man liable to suffering ... He commenced afresh the long line of human beings, and furnished us, in a brief, comprehensive manner, with salvation; so that what we had lost in Adam—namely, to be according to the image and likeness of God—that we might recover in Christ Jesus.”

summer

and multiplying,” again indisputably evoking the language of Genesis 1. Work meant mission in the story of creation, with human beings called to extend God’s glory and presence and wise order to the four corners of the earth. In other words, creation was “good,” but it was not finished.

We were given the dignity and awesome responsibility of taking up where God had left off when He rested on the seventh day.

Our work has always supposed to matter.

In the same way, the work of the Gospel in us and through us is the form that the original mandate to work now takes in the world. As we live out every area of our lives under the lordship of the crucified and risen Jesus, God’s presence and rule are being subtly extended to the still-dark edges that pervade our lives east of Eden.

However, this does not mean ministry, per se. Everything we do, all activity that Christians engage in, is meant to be our “work” of bearing God’s image as we bear fruit and multiply spiritually throughout the world. Mission is a much larger category than ministry. Yet, we also must take note that the manner in which we now engage in our work requires holiness and virtue—walking in a manner worthy of the Lord (Col. 1:10). In After You Believe: Why Christian Character Matters, N. T. Wright provocatively argues: “All Christian virtue is located within that vocation [of bearing God’s image in the wider world]…

Ultimately, God does not want human beings as perfected individuals, all clean and scrubbed, but with nothing to do.

Morality, surprisingly to some, is part of mission. Cleansed vessels are to be put to fresh use; conversely, fresh use requires cleansing.” Our work is effective in accomplishing God’s purposes, then, only to the

9

feature section | faith and work

Faith, Action, and Vocation Ivy League Congress Draws Nearly 400 Students

A

t the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action this spring, one of the resounding themes was “to whom much is given, much will be required” (Luke 12:48).

the founder of Ariba Technologies and Inmac Corp; Charles Gilmer (Penn ’81), president of Impact Movement; Baroness Caroline Cox, a human rights advocate and former deputy speaker of the House

photo credit: Brian Henderson

christian union

::

the magazine

Worship at the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action

10

Nearly 400 students gathered in New Haven, Connecticut, from March 28-30 for the triennial congress, hosted by Christian Union and sponsored by various ministries and organizations.

Students were prompted to think about the ways they would serve their schools, the nation, and God’s Kingdom. They were challenged to be good stewards of their Ivy League education and use their gifts and talents to glorify God. To help unpack the issues around faith and vocation, panelists from government, law, the arts, media, medicine, and other sectors presented their testimonies and field experiences, while engaging in question and answer discussions with students.

Plenary speakers included: Ken Eldred,

of Lords; Nick Nowalk, a Christian Union teaching fellow at Harvard; and Matt Bennett (Cornell ’88, MBA ’89), founder and president of Christian Union.

Eldred, an author and philanthropist, has researched the impact of business leaders around the world on the economic, social, and spiritual fronts of developing nations. He also established Living Stones Foundation and serves as chairman of the advisory board to Parakletos Ventures.

At the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action (ILCFA), he shared his experiences regarding the integration of faith and economics.

“When we live integrated lives we can change the world,” he said.

Following his graduation from Penn,

Gilmer and his wife Rebecca, Penn ’80, put their faith into action and launched Impact, Cru’s sister ministry aimed at African-American students (www.impact movement.com). Today, Impact has touched more than 20,000 African-American participants, and has a presence on about 70 college campuses.

Gilmer likened Christian students in the Ivy League to the prophet Daniel, who also received a premiere education, yet despite persecution, his unassailable character enabled him to remain faithful and to honor God. The young, aspiring leaders at ILCFA were exhorted to live in a likewise manner.

“It’s tragic to watch and observe those who conduct themselves in a way that brings disgrace to the name of Christ,” said Gilmer. “All kinds of [leaders]—politicians, businessmen, pastors, entertainers—have given testimony; later, we find them in ruin because of the compromises made in their personal lives.”

Gilmer asked students how they are being asked to defile themselves and to

photo credit: Brian Henderson

A student reads the Word in between sessions of the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action.

photo credit: Brian Henderson

The government panel at the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action featured (left to right) Fernando Cabrera, a New York City councilman and pastor; Marlise Streitmatter, former Deputy Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Transportation; and Scott Turner, a member of the Texas House of Representatives and former NFL player.

:: christianunion.org

each day and throughout the nights.

At the Saturday morning session of ILCFA, Lorri Bentch (Princeton ’91), vice president of operations at Christian Union, led the students in prayer and acquiescence to the Holy Spirit, encouraging them to let go of burdens and exhorting them to pray for friends and peers not in the room.

“Present the Lord with your greatest desires for your campuses,” she told them.

From beginning to end, the ILCFA was a monumental gathering that strengthened the next generation of Christian leaders.

“It was extremely powerful,” said Taylor Enoch-Stevens, Dartmouth ’15. “To see thoughtful people all in the same room, grappling with the same issues, was very comforting, very refreshing, very empowering.” | cu

2014

not to take the Lord’s name in vain by being false image bearers to a watching world. On Sunday morning, Bennett— who founded Christian Union 12 years ago to develop strong Christian leaders that will engage and transform the world around them—encouraged the students to bring glory to God by embracing their call and advancing the kingdom of God. “My deep desire this weekend is that as you go on in your friendships and studies and after college, that you will keep this hope alive—that Jesus will always strengthen you, so that you can turn and be a blessing to others,” he said.

Time for prayer and seeking God was integral to the conference. Each session began and ended with powerful worship

by Reilly, a Christian band. Additionally, a 24-hour prayer room was well attended

summer

think about how they are tempted not to live a distinctly godly lifestyle. He encouraged them to stay rooted in the Word of God, even after graduation.

“My prayer is that you not just read it, but apply it. Make it the grid through which you filter all of life,” Gilmer said.

Baroness Caroline Cox spoke of unfailing faith through persecution, taking the students on a virtual journey through the jungles and barren places of the world where Christians are martyred today. As audience members wiped away tears after seeing the faces of malnourished children and defiled women, the Baroness challenged them to pray for the persecuted church and to remember the souls who suffer for the sake of Christ.

In his lecture Saturday night, Nowalk captivated the audience by telling them

11

feature section | faith and work

Social Justice Seminars

‘Defending the Downtrodden’ by luke foster, columbia ’15

A

christian union

::

the magazine

s nearly 400 students from across the Ivy League descended on the Omni Hotel in New Haven, Connecticut this spring, there was a palpable excitement in the atmosphere. It was a time to renew friendships and form new ones and fellowship with students similarly eager to see God’s Name honored in their life’s work. Inspiring Bible teaching and radiant worship sessions energized everyone in attendance.

12

Dr. Carol Swain, in a talk entitled “Race, Abortion, and the Law: An Insider Perspective,” addressed a packed audience of about 60 students. She told her life story, a narrative of repeated miraculous triumphs. Born into an impoverished African-American family as one of 12 children in rural Virginia, she became a professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University. But she emphasized that her real triumph was not over poverty, but over sin. For decades, she bore crippling guilt from aborting her child when she was a young woman. Only when she became a Christian and experienced God’s grace did she overcome that pain.

From that opening, Dr. Swain emphasized that the decision to abort a child has lifelong emotional consequences for mothers. She challenged her audience to see abortion as a matter of social justice, noting that 56 Ryan Anderson, Princeton ’04, speaks on “The Meaning of percent of aborted babies in Marriage” at the Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action.

America are black and that Planned Parenthood founder, Margaret Sanger, had a racist and eugenicist agenda. She underlined that But at the breakout times on Saturday, Christians must not just oppose abortion three seminars presented a sobering view in the abstract, but work methodically for about working for social justice in society. its legal abolition.

The speakers reminded them that ChrisIn the afternoon, Baroness Caroline tians are under a clear-cut biblical mandate Cox, Peer of the United Kingdom, shared to speak up for the marginalized and opstories from her work with Humanitarian pressed, highlighting the plight of fatherAid Relief Trust. Baroness Cox showed less children, the unborn, and Christian pictures and presented harrowing anecdotes martyrs. As future leaders in positions of from decades of speaking up for the human influence and privilege, Christians who are rights of some of the world’s most opattending leading universities ought to pressed people, denied a voice by their own carry that calling into every decision.

governments. She traced two overriding themes from her experiences in conflict zones in Armenia, Burma, Sudan, Uganda, and Nigeria: aid must always be given following the wishes of people on the ground, not an external agenda; and God’s people are resilient even amid horror and devastation. Her packed, spellbound audience asked her how she could have remained so compassionate and generous amid the suffering she had seen, and she left them with the maxim: “I cannot do everything, but I must not do nothing.”

Finally, Ryan Anderson, co-author of What Is Marriage? Man and Woman: A Defense, articulated “The Meaning of Marriage” to over 100 students. He presented a natural law argument that marriage is fundamentally an institution designed to ensure that children are raised with a mother and father who are committed to one another for life. Redefining marriage to include “same-sex marriage” would be the most radical change to this institution since the introduction of no-fault divorce and prioritize the emotional and romantic desires of adults over the needs of children. Defending marriage as the lifelong union of one man and one woman is therefore a social justice priority for Christians in a nation where fatherlessness is a debilitating source of social dysfunction.

In the question and answer session, Anderson, Princeton ’04, addressed students’ concerns about the utility of this philosophical argument for Christians concerned for a biblical vision of marriage. Philosophy and theology are allies, Anderson argued.

Faith and reason are complementary approaches to finding one truth. Christians can and should speak up boldly for the voiceless in the public square. | cu

Work and Cultural Renewal Serving the Common Good by tim keller Editor’s note: The following article is reprinted with permission from The Center for Faith & Work, the cultural renewal arm of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City (www.faithandwork.com).

I

summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

am often asked: “Should Christians be involved in shaping culture?” My answer is that we can’t not be involved in shaping culture. To illustrate this, I offer a very sad example. In the years leading up to the Civil War, many southerners resented the interference of the abolitionists, who were calling on Christians to stamp out the sin of slavery. In response, some churches began to assert that it was not the church’s (nor Christians’) job to try to “change culture,” but only to preach the Gospel and see souls saved. The tragic irony was that these churches were shaping culture.

Their very insistence that Christians should not be changing culture meant that those churches were supporting the social status quo. They were defacto endorsing the cultural arrangements of the Old South. (For more on this chapter in American history, see Mark Noll, The Civil War as a Theological Crisis.)

This is an extreme example, but it makes the point that when Christians work in the world, they will either assimilate into their culture and support the status quo or they will be agents of change. This is especially true in the area of work. Every culture works on the basis of a ‘map’ of what is considered most important. If God and His grace are not at the center of a culture, then other things will be substituted as ultimate values. So every vocational field is distorted by idolatry.

Christian medical professionals will soon see that some practices make money for them but don’t add value to patients’ lives. Christians in marketing and business

will discern accepted patterns of commumanner, it will ultimately produce a different nication that distort reality or which play kind of culture than the one in which we to and stir up the worst aspects of the hulive now. man heart. Christians in business will ofBut I like the term “cultural renewal” ten see among their colleagues’ behavior better than “culture shaping” or “culture that which seeks shortchanging/transforming.” term financial profit at The most powerful way the expense of the comto show people the truth pany’s long-term health, of Christianity is to serve or practices that put fithe common good. The nancial profit ahead of monks in the Middle the good of employees, Ages moved out through customers, or others in pagan Europe, inventing the community. Chrisand establishing acadetians in the arts live and mies, universities, and work in a culture in hospitals. They transwhich self-expression is formed local economies photo credit: Nathan Troester an end in itself. And in and cared for the weak most vocational fields, believers face workthrough these new institutions. They didn’t worlds in which ruthless, competitive beset out to “get control” of a pagan culture. havior is the norm.

They let the Gospel change how they There are two opposite mistakes that did their work and that meant they Christians can make in addressing the idols worked for others rather than for themof their vocational fields. On the one hand selves. Christians today should be aiming they can seal off their faith from their work, for the same thing. laboring according to the same values and As Roman society was collapsing, St. practices that everyone else uses. Or they Augustine wrote The City of God to remind may loudly and clumsily declare their believers that in the world there are always Christian faith to their co-workers, often two “cities,” two alternate “kingdoms.” One without showing any grace and wisdom is a human society based on selfishness and in the way they relate to people on the job. gaining power. God’s kingdom is the human At Redeemer, especially through the society based on giving up power in order Center for Faith and Work, we seek to help to serve. Christians live in both kingdoms, believers think out the implications of the and although that is the reason for much Gospel for art, business, government, media, conflict and tension, it also is our hope and entertainment, and scholarship. We teach assurance. The kingdom of God is the that excellence in work is a crucial means to permanent reality, while the kingdom of gain credibility for our faith. If our work is this world will eventually fade away. | cu shoddy, our verbal witness only leads listeners to despise our beliefs. If Christians tim keller, a best-selling author and apologist, live in major cultural centers and simply do is the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyteritheir work in an excellent but distinctive an Church in New York City.

13

14

christian union

::

the magazine

from the university to the city

Leaders Matter

culture will be transformed for god’s glory as the lives

universit y

of our future leaders and the educational institutions they attend are

chris tian

transformed by God. Specifically, as students who are well-positioned

union

to ascend to roles of influence learn to seek God, grow in their faith,

updat e s

and develop a thoughtful, Christ-centered worldview, they will be

page 16

prepared to engage culture effectively. This is at the heart of University Christian Union’s work at Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton, Yale, and—starting in the fall—Brown.

take the next step. By developing networks of like-minded believers

union

in key cultural centers, starting in New York City, their impact will be

updat e

multiplied. This model was used by the Lord to bring sweeping change

page 29

to England through William Wilberforce and the Clapham Circle in the early 1800s. Pray that God will bring similar change to the U.S. as new networks of leaders emerge and engage today’s culture.

christianunion.org

chris tian

::

its alumni and their peers—City Christian Union—will help them

2014

cit y

summer

as these students graduate, christian union’s ministry to

15

university christian union

A Glorious Dedication Ministry Center Named for Yale’s First African-American Student by catherine elvy, staff writer

christian union

::

the magazine

This spring, Christian Union celebrated the opening of its fourth ministry center, marking a major milestone in the organization’s efforts to provide impactful resources to believers at top universities.

More than 60 people attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 26 for the commissioning of the James W.C. Pennington Center next to Yale University. In January, Christian Union purchased the historic building on Whitney Avenue.

During the ceremony, Christian Union Founder and President Matt Bennett, Cornell ’88, MBA ’89, highlighted Yale’s rich spiritual roots and noted Christian Union passionately desires for the university to “send men and women out into the world [who want] to see the name of Jesus Christ adored and praised.”

16

Other speakers included Margarita Mooney (Yale ’95, Princeton Ph.D. ’05), an associate research scientist in Yale’s sociology department. Gian-Carlo Ochua (Yale Ph.D. ’00), founder of Gudpod Corp., offered a prayer, and Ian Oliver, senior associate chaplain for Protestant Life at Yale, delivered the commissioning prayer following the ribbon cutting.

Funding for the ministry center came through private donations. The 5,347-square-foot facility features office and meeting space for biblical teaching, prayer, and other Christian activities. The center offers a reference room containing a range of Christian apologetic books, biblical reference works and commentaries, biographies, and other materials, providing the community with scholarly Christian resources for robust intellectual and spiritual development.

In a d d i t i o n , plans call for the first floor of the mixeduse building, which is currently being leased, to be renovated into reception space that will be available to other Christian campus organizations. Christian Union also operates ministry centers at Brown, Cornell, and Princeton universities.

In New Haven, the Pennington Center will “do extraordinary things to help the mission of Christ advance on this campus,” said Christian Union Founder and President Matt Bennett (center), Yale ministry leaders, and guests celebrate the grand Bennett. opening of the James W.C. Pennington Center.

summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

Also during the ceremony, As for the building’s namesake, Chris Matthews, Christian Union’s Pennington was a leading aboliministry director at Yale, expressed tionist and the first African Amergratitude for his organization’s ican to attend classes at Yale. explosive growth. From its humble Born in 1807 in Maryland, beginnings with eight freshmen in Pennington trained as a blacksmith 2010, Christian Union at Yale and carpenter, but escaped his hosted more than 100 students plantation at age 19 and fled north. who participated in 13 Bible A Quaker family in Pennsylvania courses this past academic year. assisted the fugitive slave, even “Every class gets bigger,” said teaching him to read and write, Matthews. according to historical accounts.

Along those lines, Josh GinsLater in Brooklyn, Pennington James W.C. Pennington borg ’16, a leader with Christian landed a position as a coachman Union at Yale, told the Yale Daily to a wealthy lawyer and used some News that the Pennington Center provides muchof his earnings to pay tutors. The eager student taught needed space for meetings and events. “It will be a himself Latin and Greek and later secured a teaching gathering point where we can come together to study post on Long Island. the Bible or hang out at night,” he said.

Eventually, Yale accepted Pennington as its first As for the stately property, it was built in the black student, under the conditions that he sit in 1850s on Elm Street before being moved via rails the back and not ask questions. in the 1970s to its current location at 31 Whitney After completing studies at Yale, Pennington Avenue in the heart of New Haven’s downtown became an ordained minister and penned an account district, according to Yale Daily News. of black history. An activist and preacher, Pennington also traveled widely in the British Isles and Europe, speaking and fundraising to support aboAfter completing studies at Yale, Pennington litionist causes. became an ordained minister and penned As well, in 1849, Pennington documented the an account of black history. An activist and story of his escape from slavery in The Fugitive Blacksmith, leading to an honorary doctorate from the preacher, Pennington also traveled widely in University of Heidelberg, according to published the British Isles and Europe, speaking and materials.

In recognition of Pennington’s faith, bold leadfundraising to support abolitionist causes. ership, and commitment to alleviating injustice, For Ginsborg, the facility will help unite believChristian Union named its newest ministry center ers across campus in their quest to serve others, after the preeminent abolitionist – a move welcomed enjoy the fruits of spiritual camaraderie, and reflect by alumni. the Gospel.

“James Pennington understood something was “You cannot do the Christian life without Chrisbroken in the society he lived in,” said Dexter Uptian brothers and sisters,” Ginsborg said. “God is shaw, a Yale alumnus of 2006 and senior pastor of doing great things here.” the Black Church at Yale. “He challenged the current Bennett echoed those sentiments, adding that cultural norms.” he is excited about the prospect of expanding ChrisAlong those lines, Upshaw noted how Yale students tian Union’s service and reach among Bulldogs and are being prepared to challenge culture far beyond seeing the wider culture blessed as well. the shadows of their Connecticut campus. “One “We want to increase the number of students cannot deny the legacy of leadership coming out of following and loving Jesus Christ,” he said. | cu Yale University,” Upshaw said.

17

university christian union

No Place Like Home Student Writes Heartwarming Essay about Christian Union at Cornell

christian union

::

the magazine

by eileen scott, senior writer

18

Home means different things to different people. For Amy Garza ’17, home is Christian Union’s leadership development ministry at Cornell.

Garza, a native of Laredo, Texas, was given an English assignment to write about one place on campus she affiliates with home. She chose to write an essay about her ministry “family,” her faith, and the importance of Christians engaging the culture for Christ.

“While I thought long and hard about what to write about, Christian Union at Cornell kept coming to mind. There was nothing else at Cornell that reminded me so much of home,” said Garza.

In the essay, Garza described the conflicts many Christian students face when entering a secular university.

“I came into college with the mindset that I would test out what it was like to be a Christian on a tremendously secular university, and if it didn’t work, I would simply trade in my Bible for the booze,” Garza Amy Garza, Cornell ’17, wrote an confessed in her essay. “Freshman year English essay about Christian started, I tested the waters of doing Union at Cornell. the college life as I saw it in movies, and I drowned. I was sinking…I was drowning… until a huge life raft rescued me and pulled me out of the water. This life raft was Christian Union at Cornell.”

With Christian Union, she not only found intellectual resources, in-depth Bible study, and challenging discussions, but also a loving community of peers and mentors. Garza said Jim Thomforde, Christian Union’s ministry director at Cornell, and Asha Garretson, a Christian Union ministry fellow, were like parents and fellow students were like brothers and sisters.

Garza was the only student in her class to write about a ministry or organization as a place she identified as home.

“There was a bit of hesitance in writing about the ministry, not only because I was going against writing about a physical aspect of home, but because I was worried if the readers could relate if they were not Christians,” said Garza. “I had a feeling that my professor would either love this essay, or not be able to relate to it at all, causing me to get a bad grade.”

Garza wrote about how her purpose for studying was to glorify God. “It goes against what culture says and I was not sure if non-Christians could even begin to understand that,” she said.

It was a risk she was willing to take as she became increasingly aware of the importance of Christian leaders engaging not only the campus, but the culture that lies beyond.

Quoting Christian Union’s annual report, Garza wrote about how 50 percent of society’s most influential people of power are Ivy League alumni.

“The significance each student carries is enormous. We have the ability to transform culture. With that comes great responsibility,” Garza wrote. And through Christian Union at Cornell, Garza has found a community to help take on that responsibility.

“Christian Union at Cornell is like no other,” Garza wrote in her essay. “It’s an organization that is motivated to change world culture for God’s glory. “ One aspect of the ministry that particularly resonated with Garza was the Bible course on the book of Philippians.

“This is where I grew tremendously in faith, maturity, and friendship.”

In the essay, she wrote about how the women in her Bible course held each other accountable and encouraged her every day.

Despite Garza’s hesitations about how her essay would be received, she received an A on the paper.

“Although I don’t know if my professor is a believer or not, I hope it gives her, along with any other readers, insight into the love of Christ that churches, youth groups, or ministries have to offer,” she said. | cu

In the Power of the Spirit Dartmouth Students Win spokenWord Challenge by catherine elvy, staff writer

2014 :: christianunion.org

of the Bible, including six verses from Ecclesiastes and seven from First Corinthians.

For Echebiri, the contest provided creative outlets for his twin passions of writing and acting, as well as an opportunity for the biology major to memorize Scripture with robust determination.

For his part, event partner Naman said he was touched as he probed Solomon’s contemplations of life, money, and meaning in Ecclesiastes and related passages throughout the Old and New Testaments.

Naman, a philosophy major and premed student, found the ancient king’s penetrating words refreshingly honest and timely as he also dealt with doubt stemming from intellectual contemplation of God. Ecclesiastes is “not just a happy account of following God,” Dartmouth students Joshua Echebiri ’14 and Luke Naman he said. Similarly, ’15 were the first place winners at Christian Union’s 2014 “being a Christian is Ivy League spokenWord Bible Memorization Challenge. not always easy and fun. You can face a lot of struggles.”.”

During Dartmouth’s winter term, Naman noted he pondered “fundamental principles of Christianity...

A lot of Christians wrestle with the big questions in college.”

Christian Union hosted spokenWord as a means to encourage students to embrace the value in memorizing Scripture.

In turn, Naman said he is encouraged now to possess powerful verses for quick recall. “It is really beneficial to have those verses memorized,” he said.

“I can call to mind those verses when I need them.”

The contest preparations also marked Naman’s largest accomplishment of memorizing Scriptures.

“This was a new experience for me,” he said.

summer

A pair of Dartmouth College students wanted to pay tribute to the power and comfort of the Holy Spirit.

Joshua Echebiri ’14 and Luke Naman ’15 crafted a poetic dialogue voicing the internal wrestling of the wisest, richest, and most powerful man in Scripture, as well as Spirit-inspired answers to life’s perennial questions voiced throughout the Old and New Testaments.

The duo’s compelling performance of their material resulted in their first place victory in Christian Union’s 2014 Ivy League spokenWord Bible Memorization Challenge.

“The motif was: the Holy Spirit in you. You are the chosen of God,” said Echebiri, who also delivered a riveting solo dramatization in 2013 to capture first place.

“Students face a lot of fears in college, and the truth is, we are weak. It is a hard season.” The selection of verses formed an encouragement: “God is saying, ‘I am with you.’ I was drawn to that,” said Echebiri, Teams from Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton, and Yale universities vied before an audience of 150-plus on April 12 at the Scholastic Auditorium in Manhattan. Dimas Salaberrios, president of Concerts of Prayer Greater New York, served as emcee. Christian Union timed the contest to coincide with Palm Sunday, given the heightened interest in spiritual matters.

Students were invited to memorize 25 or more Bible verses and present them within four minutes.

The Scriptures could be delivered in context or developed into dramatic renditions or thematic narratives from multiple passages.

“The students were creative, inspiring and encouraging,” said Jim Black, Christian Union’s ministry director at Columbia and the event’s organizer.

“The depth of materials was moving. They obviously put a lot of thought and reflection, theologically, into what they wanted to communicate.”

As for the Dartmouth entry, “The Man in the Mirror” reflected 35 verses taken from 13 books

19

university christian union

In other results, a freshman from Cornell University took second place, and the team from Columbia University secured third place. Cornell’s Nadia May ’17 powerfully combined Scriptures from Psalms, Isaiah, John, Hebrews, and Romans, while the team from Columbia offered a compelling biblical portrait of Jesus.

Of her experience, May noted, “there is such a difference between just reading the Word and actually speaking the Word.”

Tatianna Kufferath, Columbia ’15, echoed those comments about her contest preparations. By memorizing, “You’re really hiding God’s Word in your heart,” she said.

This year’s prizes included gift certificates, including top ones of $250 per person, to Christian Book Distributors.

At Dartmouth, Christian Union Ministry Fellow Zach Albanese marveled at the spiritual fruit he saw

in Echebiri and Naman as they poured through Scriptures to draft “The Man in the Mirror.”

“I am eager to see the level of competition that follows next year,” Albanese said. “It is amazing how much power can be displayed when coupling Scripture with well-crafted artistry.”

Christian Union’s ministry director at Dartmouth, Kevin Collins, echoed the comments. The Dartmouth team’s “passion and giftings for sharing of the Word has encouraged other students to spend more time exploring Scripture,” said Collins, Harvard ’89.

As for Echebiri, the Texas native simply wants collegiate believers to know the Holy Spirit offers them power as they encounter struggles on campus and beyond.

“The Holy Spirit is in you,” he said. | cu View all the spokenWord 2014 videos at http:// tinyurl.com/kdhzlrm.

.................................................................................

A Poignant Redress Exhibit Exposes the Pain of the Hookup Culture by eileen scott, senior writer

christian union

::

the magazine

An art show at Princeton University helped to lift the veil of the hookup culture and expose the inner hurt it

20

renders.

On April 25, The Alternative, a student organization supported and resourced by Christian Union, hosted an art exhibit entitled Redress at the Campus Club in Princeton. The exhibit was intended to give a voice to the unspoken emotional and psychological damage of casual sex and encourage a lifestyle of sexual integrity. The term redress literally means “to restore, remedy, or relieve from suffering or want.”

“Through the hookup culture, women and men alike are treated as means to pleasure rather than as individuals,” said Mark Linnville (Princeton ’13), a Christian Union ministry intern.

This kind of culture leaves young people questioning their worth and value.

“It is important to expose these harmful realities in order to encourage a [healthier] lifestyle,”

One of the exhibits at Redress

Linnville said.

Through a variety of mixed media works, including photographs, paintings, and spoken word, Redress was a powerful exhibit that put a spotlight on the consequences of hooking up. The featured artist was Liza Kuhn ’13, whose photography reflected

“This was based upon our ability to give visual confirmations that they are not alone in feeling the harms of the hookup culture,” he said. The Alternative is also continuing to work with eating club presidents and deans of the college to keep moving forward with a culture change in this area.

Redress was hosted by The Alternative, a student organization that seeks to expose the harmful realities of the hookup culture on Princeton’s campus and encourage students to pursue an alternative lifestyle.

2014 :: christianunion.org

However, Claiborne notes that the hookup culture seems to exist because of another unspoken emotion—the stress of academic life.

“The hookup culture at Princeton is so prevalent because students view it as a stress reliever, as a way to escape the pressures of academic success,” she said. “Also, many students seek to cover their insecurities by seeking social success, which is unfortunately very much defined by sexual promiscuity.”

Thus, continuing to lift the veils of insecurity, shame, and promiscuity—as they relate to the hookup culture—remains the mission of The Alternative.

And the cultural brokenness is what it seeks to redress.

“We believe that the hookup culture is one of the root causes of the high growth of sexual assaults and that exposing the hookup culture will really give an opportunity to radically improve the health of all students on this campus,” said Linnville. “If we can see the culture change here at Princeton, it can give us an opportunity to change the nation’s culture as a whole.” | cu

summer

the inner pain of the commonly accepted culture of meaningless relationships.

“The Redress exhibit is an attempt to visualize the unseen, the unspoken and the untold realities of our generation’s hook-up culture,” stated Kuhn.

Monique Claiborne ’17, the vice president of The Alternative, admitted that she was initially surprised by the idea of hosting the event.

“I do not think of art exhibits when imagining social events for college students,” said Claiborne.

“Nonetheless, I did think it was a great idea, especially when I learned that recent Princeton graduates would be the artists, and that current students would participate as well.”

Additionally, Claiborne said Redress was an important event because many students do not feel there is a safe space to discuss the dark side of this campus culture. Redress provided that venue and also stirred emotions suppressed by those previously resigned to the prevailing attitude toward hooking up.

One photo series depicted a person peering out from behind the iris of an eye. In another, students lying in bed appear alone and unfulfilled, seemingly after a casual encounter. In each of the photos, the art resonated on a deeply emotional level.

“The photos made me feel trapped,” said Claiborne. “I felt as if each photo evoked a feeling of isolation and loneliness that was heightened because the subject did not feel as if there were any other way to socialize.” She went on to say that the works also made her feel “numb” due to the dispassionate expressions of the subjects. “The art made me feel the emptiness that the students feel from the hookup culture.”

Nearly 500 students, faculty, and administrators attended the event, which also included spoken word performances. Coordinators made a conscious effort to invite the thought leaders and culture changers on campus, including eating club presidents, and university administrators and college deans. Eating clubs, where a majority of Princeton upperclassmen dine, are private, social organizations in close proximity to campus.

According to Linnville, The Alternative has received an overwhelming amount of thanks for hosting the event.

21

university christian union

Learning to Lead Students with Christian Union Step Up at Penn by eileen scott, senior writer

Christian Union at Penn had a successful first year on campus and the future looks promising as emerging student leaders are putting their faith into action and helping to steer the ministry toward future growth.

The new ministry closed out its first year with

christian union

::

the magazine

Rosalie Doerksen ’17 is the new treasurer with Christian Union’s leadership development ministry at Penn.

22

30 students involved in Christian Union Bible Courses and many spending extended time praying and fasting on a regular basis. The Bible courses were led by Justin Mills (Penn ’05), Christian Union’s ministry director at Penn, and John Cunningham, a Christian Union ministry fellow, and focused on Philippians, Seeking God, and Sex and Spirituality.

Dynamic conferences in the fall and winter also helped students go deeper in the Word, in worship, and in prayer.

According to Mills, the emphasis on prayer was new to many students. However, “they responded well to the prospect of rigorous, in-depth study of Scriptures and a focus on seeking God wholeheartedly,” he said.

In December, Christian Union at Penn was awarded recognition as a campus organization. In

the spring, some students were selected to take on leadership roles within the ministry for the next academic year. With mentoring from Mills and Cunningham, these students will take on responsibilities that will help them grow not only as believers, but also as more highly skilled organizers, communicators, and influencers. Student leaders will be ramping up efforts to increase outreach when Bible course enrollment opens in the fall.

Rosalie Doerksen ’17 is the new treasurer for Christian Union at Penn.

“I am excited to watch students at Penn grow in their love for God and for each other,” said Doerksen. “I am also excited by the many ways in which this ministry will be able to reach out to Penn’s campus and draw more people to Christ.”

In addition to hosting Bible courses and corporate prayer times, Christian Union at Penn will engage the campus this year through a weekly leadership lecture series, outreach events, and expressions of kindness to peers.

According to its mission statement, Christian Union at Penn “exists to be a growing community of Christian leaders who transform campus through the love of Jesus Christ.”

Tucker Hutchinson ’17, the director of operations with Christian Union at Penn, is looking forward to the upcoming year and reaching Christian students and those who do not know the Lord.

“I hope that the Penn community will see us as a ministry that truly cares about the campus,” he said.

Hutchinson and Doerksen also noted that Christian Union’s emphasis on the spiritual and practical elements of Christian leadership development has been pivotal.

“Christian Union ministry fellows have taught me how to combine leadership ability with a Christian outlook, two ideas which are often considered separate entities,” said Hutchinson.

Despite their energy and desire to serve Christ at Penn, Doerksen and Hutchinson know it’s going

to take a lot of prayer and trust in the grace and power of God to transform the ethos of the campus.

“Penn has an extremely secular campus. Not only that, but I feel that for the most part, the atmosphere is adamantly resistant to Christianity,” said Doerksen.

Therefore, they take their responsibility serious-

ly and look to be servant leaders.

“As a leader, my actions are being held to a higher standard,” said Doerksen. “I am helping to shape the path of Christian Union at Penn. Ultimately, my decisions and the decisions of the rest of the executive team will impact how we cultivate a generation of Christian leaders at Penn.” | cu

.................................................................................

Team Sober Students Launch Chapter at Columbia by eileen scott, senior writer Weekend blackouts, tussles with the law, and trips to the emergency room. For some young people who drink heavily, this is what it means to be a college student at Columbia. Citing the stresses of college life, many turn to binge drinking as a means of coping and as the backdrop for their socializing.

According to Columbia juniors Jane Manley and Fletcher Sims, there are two groups of students— those who stay in their rooms and study on weekends and those who go out and drink excessively. The pair want to create a third group: students who are engaged socially, but don’t drink.

summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

the organization means students commit to abstaining from alcohol until age 21 and drinking only in moderation after reaching the legal age. The organization also offers social opportunities for students.

“What we want to do is create a unified, fun, social atmosphere for students who want to refrain from excessive drinking, so they can feel comfortable and not feel like they’re missing out on a ‘college experience’ just because they aren’t binge drinking,” said Manley.

Both Manley and Sims are active in Christian Union at Columbia and in the Columbia community. Manley is a varsity swimmer and member of the water polo team; Sims, a former member of the Team Sober is an organization that was founded lightweight crew team, is on the rugby club team and by students involved with Christian Union’s is a member of the Army leadership development ministry at Yale.

ROTC program at Fordham The concept is now being introduced to the University.

As leaders who are in pocommunity at Columbia... sitions of influence, they are seeking to set examples. The juniors were inspired to rethink their social behavTeam Sober is an organization that was founded ior after attending the Ivy League Congress on Faith by students involved with Christian Union’s leadand Action (ILCFA) in April, and hearing Christian ership development ministry at Yale. The concept Union Teaching Fellow Nick Nowalk speak about is now being introduced to the community at Cobeing God’s image bearers during a plenary session. lumbia through Sims and Manley. Participation in

23

christian union

::

the magazine

university christian union

24

ner up with others who are trying to do this, too.”

“It’s hard to imagine any situation where the Through the establishment of Team Sober at consumption of alcohol, especially in excess, brings Columbia, students no longer need to feel alone in glory to God,” said Sims. wanting to socialize without drinking.

Manley learned about Team Sober while particThe pre-existence ipating in a prayerof Team Sober at a-thon during the Yale also lends a ILCFA that was sense of community hosted by members and support to the of Christian Union organization’s foundat Yale. Subsequenters at Columbia. ly, she signed a Manley visited Yale pledge that said, “I and spoke with will not drink until members of Team my 21st birthday.”

Sober about what Sims signed a simithe organization lar pledge once he could look like at returned to campus.

Columbia.

Both students “ Ju s t h a v i n g said they were tired brothers and sisters of the lifestyles they in Christ with the sporadically lived same ideals and until that point. moral standards as They wanted to parus has served to be ticipate in the party a great support sysscene on campus, tem. We have seen but without the altheir success at Yale cohol. They also and it gives us somerealized this was a thing to aspire to,” way to impact the Jane Manley ’15 and Fletcher Sims ’15 are the co-founders of Team Sober at Columbia. said Sims. campus culture on Manley admits Christ’s behalf. that some students are shocked by the idea of Team “We recognized that students in the party scene Sober. However, she remains undaunted in her efforts were hurting and in need of Jesus,” said Sims. “But and sees how the organization can help students if the people who represent Jesus are not present in flourish at Columbia.. that scene, how are they going to come to know “My response is to show them through my own Him?” actions that living a sober college experience is not The pair concluded that attending parties—while inhibiting or limiting at all,” she said. consistently turning down drinks and still having a By remaining active in the social scene and still good time—had the potential to make an impression. going out and having fun, Manley and Team Sober Manley admits that committing to Team Sober are modeling healthy lifestyles and, hopefully, emis not an easy decision to make. However, she and powering others on campus to do the same. | cu Sims have found that making the pledge in community made it easier.

“If we allow others to view these decisions, we can end up having a positive impact on others around us, too,” said Manley. “By striving and struggling to lead lives that glorify God, hopefully we can part-

A Change of Heart Strong Mentorship Helps Harvard Student Believe Again by eileen scott, senior writer

from Nick Nowalk, a Christian Union teaching fellow at Harvard, and Don Weiss, Christian Union’s ministry director at Harvard.

“I still remember Nick Nowalk saying that the thing that he struggles with most is doubting God’s existence. I almost hugged him right then and there,” said Fulton.

Nowalk walked alongside Fulton with authentic compassion that helped penetrate his snide demeanor. In fact, he says, much of the credit for his return to faith goes to people like Nowalk who kept him in community.

“Christians are given a pretty heavy job, to be the images of God on earth…The Christians who surrounded me more than lived up to that challenge,” said Fulton.

Fulton also received transformative mentoring from Nick Nowalk, a Christian Union teaching fellow at Harvard, and Don Weiss, Christian Union’s ministry director at Harvard.

2014 :: christianunion.org

The rising junior also credits intellectually rich, Spirit-focused Christian Union Bible courses with turning his life around.

Today, Fulton says, life on the other side of doubt is like “waking up from a bad dream.” He now has a sense of purpose—somewhere in the course of studying the Bible, the coherence of Scripture came together.

Fulton serves as an assistant Bible course leader with Christian Union and continues to learn about servant leadership, love, and wisdom.

“We have incredible prayer warriors and we have leaders who are amazing at sitting down and thinking about the best and most effective way of doing things,” said Fulton.

He’s also learned the sacrificial side of leadership, no longer seeking to “waste time” on social media or other distractions. He knows one day he will be

summer

For David Fulton ’16, being around committed Christians felt like “being dipped in acid.” It hurt. Not because he was an atheist, but because he was struggling to remain a believer himself at Harvard.

The social studies major originally planned to attend a Christian college, but decided to test his beliefs at a secular university. Perhaps not surprisingly, this challenge led to a crisis of faith early in Fulton’s freshman year. However, the love and witness of his Christian peers and mentors within Christian Union’s ministry at Harvard helped this prodigal come home.

Soon after arriving at Harvard, Fulton was confronted with worldviews and philosophies that were opposed to the truth of the Gospel and caused him to question his own concept of reason.

“Christianity didn’t seem all that logically compelling, although neither did anything else. I didn’t even know what logic meant anymore,” Fulton said.

As a result, Fulton’s faith was replaced with bitterness.

“I remember having really intense feelings of hatred and scorn and jealousy watching people worship a God whose existence was not provable,” said Fulton. “When I saw someone with tremendous and unquestioning faith and joy, I mostly wanted to crush it.”

In particular, Fulton recalled a Christian Union-sponsored conference he attended at Lake George. He called it the low point of his doubt.

“I don’t think there was a single person there I hadn’t ticked off by the end of the ten days,” admits Fulton. Yet, while the retreat was Fulton’s spiritual low point, he also describes it as his friends’ finest hours. They didn’t take the bait of antagonism he cast their way.

“I look back at that time as my glowing example of what Christian community should be, of what I need to help build for the sake of future skeptics,” he said.

Fulton also received transformative mentoring

25

university christian union

accountable to God for how he used his time.

“If I can’t grab a meal with one of my Bible course guys or can’t be with my roommates after they had a tough day because I surfed the web instead of doing homework last night, I have failed my Father in some way,” he said.

Fulton’s time seems pretty well spent. He serves as an intern at a local church and is the editor of The Harvard Ichthus, a journal of Christian thought.

Additionally, he is a member of the Dorm Crew, which cleans bathrooms during the school year. This summer, Fulton is traveling to Jerusalem to learn

biblical Hebrew, Jewish history, and culture, and then going to Shanghai to teach the Bible as literature for a secular program for gifted Chinese students.

Looking ahead, Fulton anticipates using his Christian leadership for ministry of some sort, where he also hopes to pass along the lessons he learned about doubt, faith, and love.

“If I once found it disgusting to watch people gather to worship God and be Christ-like,” said Fulton, “I now think it might be the most beautiful thing in the world. I want to make more of that happen.” | cu

.................................................................................

A Biblical Perspective of Law

christian union

::

the magazine

Students, Christian Union Ministry Director Join Legal Fellows Program by catherine elvy, staff writer

26

With the goal of expanding their legal said fellowship participants are learning how faith training to incorporate a Christian worldcan interface with a professional calling in the legal view, three students with Christian Union field. As well, the program is “helping them to get at Harvard Law School and the ministry’s director the bigger perspective on the underlying principles are participating in Blackstone Legal Fellowship’s that have helped shape Western law,” Garretson said. leadership development program over the summer.

In June, Blackstone fellows spent two weeks atDuring the ninetending lectures, semiweek program, Blacknars, and discussions stone offers intense legal designed to explore the and philosophical educafundamentals of legal edtion to Christian law ucation from a biblical students from top-tier viewpoint before transiuniversities across the tioning to six-week world. The Arizointernships. Many of the na-based division of opportunities include Alliance Defending Freepublic-interest law firms, dom aims to equip futhink tanks, and pubture lawyers to preserve lic-policy organizations religious liberties, and working on behalf of readdresses trends in culligious liberties and protural and legal issues life and traditional family confronting Christian causes.

Jim Garretson, Christian Union’s ministry director at attorneys.

In August, the stuHarvard Law School, is a participant in the Blackstone Jim Garretson, Chris- Legal Fellowship’s leadership development program dents return to Blacktian Union’s ministry this summer. stone’s headquarters in director at Harvard Law, Arizona for a week of

and learn reasoned defenses of Christian liberties and traditional family issues.

The curriculum also incorporates daily worship, prayer, and devotions addressing challenges for believers in the legal profession.

With the commencement of the 2013–14 academic year, Christian Union launched a leadership development ministry for students at Harvard’s law center, one of the world’s foremost legal schools.

Ministry fellows hold weekly Bible courses, provide mentoring sessions, and occasionally host dinners for students for networking, encouragement, and thoughtful discussions.

Among this year’s interns from Christian Union, Jung Hoon (Princeton ’10, Harvard Law ’16), said the Blackstone internship is providing a “framework for starting to think about the intersection of Christianity and the law.”

“It’s important for me to understand the ideas that shape culture because culture ends up influencing the law. However, law can also influence culture and, in that regard, Christian representation in the law is necessary.”

Ultimately, “I hope to be a faithful Christian witness in the legal profession, uncompromising, yet gentle and respectful.” | cu

christianunion.org

Twitter.com/ChristianUnion

::

Christian Union’s Social Media Links:

2014

......................................

summer

debriefing and career guidance.

With the commencement of the 2013-14 academic year, Christian Union launched a leadership development ministry for students at Harvard’s law center, one of the world’s foremost legal schools.

Ministry fellows hold weekly Bible courses, provide mentoring sessions, and occasionally host dinners for students for networking, encouragement, and thoughtful discussions.

Just as Christian Union focuses on high-caliber, Christian leadership development, Blackstone strategically supports and educates prospective lawyers who will assume positions of influence as legal scholars, litigators, policymakers, and judges.

A Blackstone official described collaboration between the organizations as a natural fit. This summer, Blackstone took the unprecedented step of sponsoring Garretson’s participation in its annual training program, a generous gesture of support for Christian Union’s targeted ministry.

“That was our big draw to Christian Union – it’s an effective ministry that is doing a great job,” said Tim Chandler, vice president of staff operations for Blackstone Legal Fellowship and Collegiate Academy. “Hopefully, Blackstone is offering something to their students that also will help them to be more effective.”

One of the key amenities of Blackstone’s program is the opportunity to be “surrounded by exceptional students and faculty who are both professionally successful and deeply committed to their faith,” said Chandler, also senior legal counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom.

As a campus minister to law students, Garretson said the training he is receiving from Blackstone is better preparing him to “interact with the legal and ethical issues of our time from a distinctively Christian perspective.”

Since 2000, the Blackstone Fellowship has instructed more than 1,500 students from about 150 law schools. Founded in 1994, Alliance Defending Freedom advocates for religious freedoms and causes via legal strategies, training opportunities, and litigation.

Fellowship coursework covers principles of natural law, constitutional history, jurisprudence, and other topics. As well, students receive career advice

27

Facebook.com/Christian.Union

university christian union

Building a Foundation at Brown Christian Union Commissions Leadership Team

christian union

::

the magazine

by tom campisi, managing editor

28

Early this summer, Christian Union introduced the faculty for its new leadership development ministry at Brown University.

Christian Union’s strategic focus on high-achieving students at universities like Brown requires a curriculum and faculty suitable for men and women of exceptional intellectual caliber. And Matt Woodard and Justin Doyle—with seminary degrees and real-world work experience—exemplify this high standard for ministry faculty.

With the addition of Brown, Christian Union now ministers at all eight Ivy League schools, including Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Yale.

Christian Union also has a ministry director and ministry fellow at Harvard Law School, where future attorneys and legislators are attending Bible courses and receiving one-onone mentoring.

Woodard, Christian Union’s ministry direcMatt Woodard, Christian Union’s ministry tor at Brown, earned a director at Brown Master of Divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary and a Master of Arts in Religion from Yale Divinity School. Previously, he attended the University of North Carolina, where he received his undergraduate degree in Exercise and Sports Science. Woodard has held positions both in ministry and in athletics, most recently as the College and Young Adults Leader at First Baptist Church in Temple, Texas, and formerly as an Athletic Performance Specialist for collegiate athletes.

Doyle, a Christian Union ministry fellow, recently graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. After earning a bachelor’s degree in education from Miami

University of Ohio, he served as the Experience Team Director at New Life Community Church in Chicago and worked as a therapeutic mentor with at-risk youth.

“Maybe the best thing about working with Christian Union is the pleasure of working with our amazing faculty. Our new team at Brown is a great example of this,” said Tim Henderson, vice president of University Christian Union. “Matt Woodard is a wonderful, humble, godly man whose degrees from UNC, Yale, and Princeton give him terrific insight into the ministry. Our new ministry fellow, Justin Doyle, is likewise a treasure and we are blessed to have him. We are so happy that the students at Brown will receive his instruction and mentorship.”

Woodard, a native a native of North Carolina, is eager to disciple and mentor students on one of the nation’s most influential, but overwhelmingly secular, universities. At the start of the fall semester, the Christian Union faculty directs a freshman outreach campaign with various events and offers students the opportunity to sign up for weekly Bible courses on the Book of Hebrews.

“What drew me to Christian Union is the ministry’s emphasis on engaging the hearts and minds of students through Bible courses and mentoring,” said Woodard. “I am very passionate about that level of discipleship.”

“Having spent time on an Ivy League campus, I was able to see firsthand the unique challenges these curious and very gifted students face on a daily basis. We know there are lost students at Brown, students desperate and hungry for the hope of Christ.

Our goal is to foster a group of disciples who are equipped to use their intellectual and creative gifts to engage the campus around them.”

Doyle, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, is equally excited to make an impact on campus.

“What a great honor and privilege it is to join Christ in bringing sweeping Gospel transformation on the campus of Brown,” he said. | cu

city christian union

New York City Christian Union Forum Exhorts Professionals to Work, Serve with Excellence by catherine elvy, staff writer

B

summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

elievers should view work assignments not just to know junior employees over lunches outside the as jobs to get done, but as a calling to serve office, as well as stopping by cubicles to ask about the Lord. family concerns.

That was one of the themes from Develop a reputation for “how Curtis McWilliams, Princeton ’77, much you care versus how much you when the longtime commercial real know,” said McWilliams, whose exestate executive served as the featured tensive credentials include top-tier speaker during a spring forum of the experience in the real estate investNew York City Christian Union. ment trust and investment banking Christian Union forums are quartersectors. ly events designed to connect NYC As well, believers should assess how leaders with believers who have sucmuch they are able to labor for God cessfully integrated their faith with in their present enterprises and strive their callings and careers. to be “servant leaders” to the customCurtis McWilliams, On April 30, McWilliams, the re- Princeton ’77, was the ers, employees, and investors they tired president and chief executive featured speaker at New encounter. They should ask, “How York City Christian Union’s officer of CNL Real Estate Advisors, am I impacting the Kingdom?” delivered a talk entitled “In the Hand spring forum.

McWilliams said. of God: Seeking to Serve the Lord with Along related lines, the tireless Excellence” before a gathering of executive also described how he made emerging and established professionals several career shifts to enable him to in Lower Manhattan. Career transitions spend more time with his three children can bring seasons of both tremendous elaand to participate in their school activities. tion and significant challenges, he said. Still, Before that, “I was missing their whole the Lord calls His followers to serve Him lives,” he said. fully in all circumstances.

Though semi-retired, McWilliams, a “Sometimes, we don’t understand why we are member of Christian Union’s Princeton President’s put in difficult situations,” said McWilliams, also a Council, serves on the leadership boards for Advanmarathon runner. tor Systems Corp and Ashford Hospitality Prime.

For that reason, believers, especially young adults, In addition, he serves on the board for Young Life, should pause to ask God for specific direction and a worldwide organization for middle school, high guidance on career endeavors and help in identifyschool, and college students. ing their strengths and abilities.

Not surprisingly, reaching students and emerging Then, “as we seek His will for our lives, we must adults is a top priority for McWilliams, who became be willing to step out in faith,” said McWilliams. a Christian during his junior year at Princeton.

Once established in a new role, “pursue where God In response to McWilliams’ appearance, the has you,” he said. ministry director for New York City Christian In addition, the Florida businessman encouraged Union said forum participants appreciated the forum participants to embrace the importance of input on how to reflect faith in the workplace. “It connection in the workplace. That is, they should resonated,” said Scott Crosby. “Christians in the visibly demonstrate care for individual co-workers. marketplace are always struggling with how to do At a practical level, that can translate into getting this well.” | cu

29

donor spotlight

Putting Their Hands to the Plow Cornell Alumni Are Passionate Supporters of Christian Union

F

by the sharp contrast Erik made to other guys she knew at Cornell. “I didn’t know anyone who defined themselves as a Christian, and reflected that faith the way he did,” she said. The difference appealed to her. “I wasn’t exactly walking a straight line with Jesus at the time, but I’m thankful I shared my faith with Trasey, because it has led to a wonderful life together,” recalls Erik.

Today Erik, an executive of an international bank based in New York City, serves on Christian Union’s board of trustees.

He and Trasey make periodic, informal visits to the schools where Christian Union serves, but play down their involvement. They like it that way – students are relaxed and seem to share on a more intimate level. “We love to worship with students and encourage them,” Trasey says. “Now I can picture their faces and personalities, and it shapes my prayers for them.”

The path to their highly engaged relationship with the ministry wends its way through God’s work in Erik and Trasey’s “Students at Ivy League schools are an unreached people group,” said Eric and Trasey lives, an intense journey the Codrington, longtime supporters of Christian Union. young couple little expected when they wed. After Erik’s stint in the U.S. Navy, they supported one another through grad school; he explains. “What little I had was being eroded by the earned his MBA from Duke and began a career in academic and social environment around me.” Neifinance, while Trasey earned her MBA from William ther one connected with a campus ministry, but and Mary and embarked on a career in telecom. But both were welcomed into the Greek system. when Trasey became pregnant, life took a sharp turn.

Against this backdrop, Trasey arrived at a fraterThey discovered Trasey had a rare condition nity “Christmas Tea” formal on the arm of her date; threatening her life and that of her unborn daughErik arrived separately with his. When they were ter. Mercifully, their precious daughter, Victoria, introduced, sparks flew. Trasey ’85 shares, “He was came into the world alive and healthy. Trasey, howthe smartest, funniest guy I’d ever met.” For Erik, ever, sustained physical damage and faced a tough it was simple: “I was smitten.” Trasey was intrigued

christian union

::

the magazine

or Cornellians Erik and Trasey Codrington, extending the love of Jesus Christ to students in the Ivy League reflects the grace they have received from God themselves. Erik and Trasey met as undergraduates at Cornell in the 1980s, when the university was what they would describe as a “spiritual desert.”

“I was a Christian when I went off to college, but I didn’t have a strong foundation,” Erik ’86

30

New Jersey, and Houston, Texas, while their daughter completes her studies at Texas A&M. They continue to pay visits to the Christian Union ministries.

“I wish everyone knew what a joy it is to get involved,” Erik comments.

“People have more capacity to serve than they think. Just look at us: I have a demanding job, long daily commute, frequent business travel, and other board-level commitments, yet the Lord has opened the door for us to contribute to Christian Union in a variety of ways.”

“I want the generations that follow to have better options and grow in their faith through these crucial years.”

—Erik Codrington, Cornell ’86 Erik and Trasey are heartened to see their energetic support and fervent prayers, combined with those of many others, bearing fruit. “Christian Union’s approach to the Ivy League is working!”

Erik affirms, “The Lord is pouring out blessing and grace.” | cu Join with the Codringtons in providing students with the Christian mentorship they need to grow as godly leaders. You can donate at www.ChristianUnion. org/give or call 1-609-688-1700, extension 915. summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

road to recovery. To face the grueling therapy that would ultimately allow her to walk again, Trasey motivated herself with dark humor: “I imagined I was training for the Olympics.” Through this difficult, uncertain, and humbling time they found God developing in them profound empathy and a deeper capacity to serve those hard hit by physical and spiritual suffering.

Wanting to be used more by God in service, the Codringtons connected with Christian Union. Developing Christian leaders in the Ivy League struck a chord. Erik and Trasey were troubled by the lack of resources available to campus ministries. “Without something like Christian Union to give me good Bible teaching, and the reinforcement of Christian friends, I was treading water at Cornell, from a spiritual perspective. I want the generations that follow to have better options and grow in their faith through these crucial years,” Erik shares.

The couple also shares Christian Union’s broader mission. “Students at Ivy League schools are an unreached people group,” they said. “The universities are, for the most part, working to convert them to an anti-Christian or post-Christian world view.” Future leaders who would exert influence over society need to learn, “to live and work in accordance with God’s unchanging Word.” Otherwise, Erik notes, “we’ll have more of the spiritually ‘blind leading the blind.’”

Through Christian Union, the couple channels their concern in many ways, from Erik’s service on the board of trustees, to Trasey mentoring students at Princeton, and together visiting with ministry fellows to encourage them. Erik remarks, “Our personal and financial involvement has expanded as we’ve been encouraged by the evidences of Christian Union’s success, for instance, having almost 10 percent of Princeton undergraduates involved in Bible courses.”

The couple is pleased that Christian Union has been able to expand to all eight of the Ivy League universities, including Cornell in 2012-13. Today, the Codringtons divide their time between Chatham,

31

university christian union

What’s Next...

Please pray for upcoming Christian Union events

11 2

august

september

23

september

28

christian union

::

the magazine

october

32

12

january

Prayer and Fasting Initiative Christian Union and believers across the nation will pray and fast for 40 days. See www.ChristianUnion.org/40Days to learn more.

Brown University Ministry Launch Christian Union will sponsor and support an undergraduate leadership development ministry at Brown at the start of the academic year.

New York City Christian Union Forum New York City Christian Union will host a quarterly forum with Ken Fish, Princeton ’82, of Kingdom Fire Ministries.

Dallas Benefit Event An evening of celebration in Dallas, Texas to support the ministry of Christian Union in developing Christian leaders to transform culture.

Prayer and Fasting Initiative Christian Union and believers across the nation will pray and fast for 40 days. See www.ChristianUnion.org/40Days to learn more.

Even when they disagree, Christians should share the same position.

summer

2014 :: christianunion.org

Where there’s disagreement there’s reason for prayer.

Because in the humble search for God’s answers we find understanding. So before you take a stand for what you believe, spend some time on your knees.

33

®

ATLANTA | CHARLOTTE | HOusTON | JACKsON | MEMpHis | ORLANDO | WAsHiNGTON DC | GLObAL

www.rts.edu

brown 37 columbia 40 cornell 4 2

christian union

::

the magazine

dartmouth 45

34

harvard 4 8 penn 51 prince ton 5 4 ya l e 5 7

(right) at Cornell University

mcgraw tower

reports from america’s most influential universities

The Spiritual Climate in the

Ivy League

The following articles were written to keep readers informed about the spiritual atmosphere at Ivy League universities. Some stories will encourage you by highlighting ways God is working through other (non-Christian Union) ministries. Other articles—on news, trends, and events—are included to help motivate you to pray for these institutions, their students, faculty, and staff, and for all of the Christian ministries that work at these schools. ......................................................................................

I VY L E A G U E R E POR T S | Summer 2014 summer

and freedom of speech is revered.

“In the 1950s, the right wing was attempting to repress left-wing ideas.

Today, on many campuses, it is liberals trying to repress conservative ideas, even as conservative faculty members are at risk of becoming an endangered species,” Bloomberg told

Harvard graduates. “And that is probably nowhere more true than it is here in the Ivy League.”

Likening the academy’s liberalism to McCarthyism, Bloomberg referred to the silencing of New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly during a lecture he was to give at

christianunion.org

T

his spring, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Harvard ’66, and other commencement speakers criticized the Ivy League and higher education, in general, for increasing intolerance of alternative viewpoints, despite being places where diversity is trumpeted

::

COMMENCEMENT SPEAKERS LAMENT THE OPPRESSION OF IDEAS

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

2014

The New Intolerance

35

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

Brown University in fall 2013. Kelly was scheduled to speak about “Proactive Policing in America’s Biggest City,” but as he started, he was shouted down by 100 students protesting the New York Police Department’s treatment of African Americans and Muslims.

“Isn’t the purpose of a university to stir discussion, not silence it?”

Bloomberg asked the new graduates.

“What were the students afraid of hearing? Why did administrators not step in to prevent the mob from silencing speech?”

Whether specifically conservative, or merely orthodox in their Christian beliefs, those who sit at the table of

appearances amid student protests.

This spring at Rutgers University, scheduled commencement speaker Condoleezza Rice was forced to step down when professors and students criticized the former Secretary of State and the (George W.) Bush Administration’s role in the Iraq War. At Seton Hall, a Catholic university, author and research fellow Mary Eberstadt, Cornell ‘83, was nearly silenced as a graduation speaker after some found her pro-family and pro-children views to be offensive. But Eberstadt seized the podium, and subtly, but smartly, called out those who would attempt to silence her voice.

christian union

::

the magazine

“Isn’t the purpose of a university to stir discussion, not silence it?”

– Michael Bloomberg, Harvard ’66

36

public discourse are finding themselves elbowed out as their worldviews are often not tolerated and even labeled as “bigoted.”

In May, the former president of Princeton University criticized students at Haverford College for being “immature” and “arrogant” in protesting their institution’s previously selected commencement speaker.

William Bowen, Princeton Ph.D. ’58, used his commencement address at Haverford to condemn the students who campaigned against Robert Birgeneau, the former chancellor of the University of California at Berkeley.

Haverford students objected to Birgeneau’s handling of a 2011 incident at Berkeley involving police force during the Occupy movement. Birgeneau, Yale Ph.D. ’66, is among several commencement speakers across the nation who canceled their

“An insidious new intolerance now snakes its way into classrooms, boardrooms, newsrooms, and other places vital to the exercise of free speech,” Eberstadt told graduates. “This new intolerance says we must have diversity in all things — except arguments and ideas. It says we must all march in ideological lockstep — or feel the snakebite, and be taken by ambulance from the public square.”

Eberstadt also challenged graduates to live according to their faith.

“The new intolerance insinuates that people who put their faith in a Deity are on the wrong side of history,” she said. “It’s up to you, every one of you, to bear witness to this contrary principle: there is no wrong side of history. There is only the wrong side of truth.”

Renowned physician and author Dr. Ben Carson, Yale ’73, has spoken

out quite publicly about the adverse consequences of political correctness.

In 2013, Carson stepped down from a speaking engagement at Johns Hopkins University because of the uproar from certain groups within the university about Carson’s previous remarks on same-sex “marriage.”

The retired neurosurgeon also garnered significant attention for his rapier speech at the 2013 National Prayer Breakfast where he spoke for social justice and fiscal responsibility without regard for the political environment. “[Political Correctness] is in place to ensure conformity to the prescribed expressions and lifestyles dictated by the elites,” wrote Carson in a column for townhall.com entitled “The Insidious Effects of Political Correctness.”

The irony of the shunning of people with a Christian or values-based view is that it stands as an affront to the university’s own posture of inclusion.

“There are rewards of acceptance and praise for members of the ‘in crowd’ as they attempt to silence or destroy any who dare think for themselves or express opposing views,” wrote Carson.

But, as evidenced by the sentiments of Bloomberg and Eberstadt there is hope that as hypocrisy is exposed, the University will once again encourage and incubate the free exchange of ideas and viewpoints.

As Carson stated, “Political correctness is impotent if we the people are fearless.” | cu

BROW N | On Campus

In the Beginning

R E L I G I O U S H E R I TA G E PA R T O F U N I V E R S I T Y ’ S 2 5 0 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

I

James Manning to Rhode Island, the cradle of American Baptists, to found a college. In addition to being one of the few colonies without a college, Rhode Island sheltered more than 22,000 Baptists, about 80 percent of New England’s total, according to Brown.

Hence, on March 3, 1764, a royal charter reflecting the work of Manning and other patriarchs birthed “the College or University in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations in New England in America.” Manning, a 1762 alumnus of Princeton’s predecessor, served as the inaugural president.

“It was where you became a gentleman,” Wood told Rhode Island Public Radio. The professor emeritus also noted early graduates went on to become physicians, ministers, and politicians.

Among other highlights from the university’s commemorative materials:

Brown University kicked off a 15-month celebration of its 250th anniversary with a series of events.

:: christianunion.org

any religious tests; but, on the contrary, all the members hereof shall forever enjoy full, free, absolute, and uninterrupted liberty of conscience.”

• Manning was the college’s first and initially sole professor. He oversaw the first commencement and moved the College of Rhode Island from the town of Warren to its permanent home in Providence.

• The college’s first student was its only student. During its initial year, 14-year-old William Rogers studied along with Manning in the parsonage of the Baptist church in Warren.

2014

• In 1638, Rev. Chad Brown, patriarch of the region’s Brown family, migrated to Massachusetts Colony from England. After arriving in Providence, he took leadership of the First Baptist Church in America and operated farmland that became the site of Brown University.

• In 1756, early Baptists established the Hopewell Baptist Academy in New Jersey to prepare youths for ministerial service. The secondary school instructed some of the men who were instrumental in found-

ing Brown’s forerunner, including Manning.

• In 1764, Rhode Island’s legislature established its first institution of higher education, at the time the third college in New England and only the seventh in the future United States. In the colony’s noted spirit of religious freedom, the college’s founding document stated, “That into this liberal and catholic institution shall never be admitted

summer

n March, Brown University kicked off a 15-month celebration of its 250th anniversary with a dazzling fireworks display and 600-pound birthday cake replicating its iconic University Hall.

Brown is staging exhibits, speeches, performances, and a series of events through commencement 2015 to pay tribute to the university’s founding in 1764 in the colonial outpost of Rhode Island.

“We want to use this opportunity to reflect on our history, to think about Brown today and in the future,” said President Christina Paxson, Columbia Ph.D. ’87 and a former Princeton University administrator.

As part of the commemorative efforts, Brown is showcasing an interactive timeline that includes a look back at the university’s religious roots, which were intertwined with the birth of a new nation.

In the early 1760s, the Baptists represented one of the fastest growing denominations in British North America, but the faithful lacked a college, according to Brown historian Gordon Wood, Harvard Ph.D. ’64.

In contrast, the Puritans oversaw the establishment of the predecessors to Harvard and Yale universities, while the Anglicans were instrumental in the founding of the College of William and Mary and the forerunners to Columbia and Penn. Likewise, the Presbyterians were behind the predecessor to Princeton University.

In 1763, the Philadelphia Association of Baptist Churches sent Rev.

37

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

After graduating in 1769, Rogers served as a chaplain in the Continental Army and later labored as the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Philadelphia.

• In 1769, seven men received degrees at the first commencement, which was held at the Baptist chapel in Warren. Initiating a tradition of commencement debates, the students offered arguments on the statement: “The Americans, in their present circumstances, cannot, consistent with good policy, affect to become an independent state.”

• The Brown family was associated

with the College of Rhode Island from its inception. The merchant brothers, Nicholas, Joseph, John, and Moses, contributed to funding buildings, endowing chairs, and more. Nicholas Brown, greatgrandson of Chad Brown, gave $5,000 in 1804 that resulted in a new name, Brown University.

• After years of competition among the communities of Rhode Island and strong advocacy by the Brown family and civic leaders, the college chose Providence as its permanent home.

• After the selection of Providence,

construction began on the first building for the new campus. Later, College Edifice was renamed University Hall.

Appropriately, impressive fireworks punctuated the sky over the historic College Green in March as Brown initiated its first round of semiquincentennial celebrations.

There, Paxson reminded a crowd of revelers, munching on cake from a sugary replica of University Hall, that Brown’s mission involves the “discovery and transmission of knowledge across generations.” | cu

.......................................................................................

BROW N | On Campus

Facebook Fast Is Fruitful B R O W N S T U D E N T C H R O N I C L E S S O C I A L M E D I A S A B B AT H

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

“It was a really good time to read proved an important step for Jean-Marie s the spring semester drew to a close, a Christian leader at Brown the Bible more and pray more,” said to bolster her courage in publicly discussUniversity encouraged campus believ- Elizabeth Jean-Marie ’15, president of ing her Christian allegiance, especially ers to pursue the types of spiritual fruit The Brown & RISD Cornerstone maga- among collegiate peers. “I wanted to show she enjoyed in summer 2013 when she zine. “I feel more compelled to share them how important my faith is to me,” experienced a life-changing season of my faith, to embody my faith in every she said. “I will never have an opportunity to share like this again. They see me, aspect of life.” diligently seeking God. In February, Jean-Marie penned an and they’re watching me.”

Likewise, Jean-Marie is trying to account of the calling she felt to deepen her relationship with Christ for reflect her renewed spiritual commitment Brown’s Christian journal. Likewise, the throughout her life, despite a full load South Florida native eagerly shared of academic and extracurricular activthroughout the academic year with ities. “I never want to feel like I’m Brown classmates about the harvest she scheduling God around my schedule,” reaped during her season of sweet spir- said Jean-Marie, a pre-med student.

In addition to Cornerstone, itual communion, even though it meant Jean-Marie is involved with the Branch temporarily foregoing social media.

“It showed me that I had too much Christian Fellowship (thebranchconclutter. Not having distractions nect.com), part of Chi Alpha Campus Elizabeth Jean-Marie, Brown ’15, encouraged helped me focus and devote time to Ministries, and Brown University Orfellow believers to seek God diligently in a my relationship with God,” said chestra. As well, the biology major recent article she wrote for The Brown & works at a clinic in Providence and Jean-Marie.

RISD Cornerstone magazine.

Writing the first-person account also attends nearby Renaissance Church.

christian union

::

the magazine

A

38

In her article, “Becoming a Greenhouse: How Deactivating Facebook over the Summer Changed My Life,” Jean-Marie highlighted both the riches of relishing time with her Savior and one particular sacrificial step behind that transformational period.

“Every ‘empty’ moment was an

“I honestly didn’t realize how much time I was spending on Facebook until I didn’t have it anymore.

I thought that I’d miss Facebook most when I was at home on my computer, and that would be it,” she wrote.

“But, it turns out that I missed it consistently throughout the day.”

opportunity to talk to God, or to open the Bible, even if it was through my iPhone app,” she wrote. “The time that I spent reading Scripture gave me so much clarity on what was preventing me from making that final step to walking hand-in-hand with Jesus.”

Jean-Marie noted the intense struggle she felt when she deactivated her Facebook account and shunned social media during August as part of an effort to designate a season of spiritual enrichment.

“I knew I had to make a change, something drastic. So, I came to the conclusion that it was time to take out the distractions in my life, ergo deactivating Facebook,” Jean-Marie wrote.

The results were profound.

“I honestly didn’t realize how much time I was spending on Facebook until I didn’t have it anymore.”

However, brief periods previously spent “aimlessly” scrolling through newsfeed became personal opportunities. “In those empty moments, it was as if the world had suddenly gone quiet, and I was able finally to hear my own thoughts,” Jean-Marie wrote.

Simultaneously, Jean-Marie found her prayer sessions flourishing, and she took a new interest in perusing the Word of God. As well, she tackled C.S. Lewis’ classic apologetic, Mere Christianity.

“I finally had the strength to stay off Facebook,” she wrote. “If I could

stay off Facebook, then I could certainly do the things that I’d always put off for tomorrow. I could finish Mere Christianity. I could wake up every morning with the Word, and I could be in constant communication with God.” She also experienced a tangible need to allow Christ truly to live

through her, a nod to a famous passage from Lewis. Namely, the heralded Christian thinker noted the “roof of a greenhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines on it.”

Now, “I am a greenhouse,” she said, “and the only way I can become bright is through Christ shining on me.”

As for summer 2014, Jean-Marie simply wants to cherish time with her Savior before returning to Brown for her capstone year. “My faith has grown here,” she said. “I felt like God put me here.” | cu

....................................................................................... b r o w n ne w s - in - b r ie f

Cru, AIA Honor Graduating Seniors

:: christianunion.org

Students involved with Brown University’s Christian journal held a series of events during the spring aimed at promoting camaraderie among campus believers.

2014

Christian Journal Hosts Inter-Ministry Events

Among them, The Brown & RISD Cornerstone held a screening of The Passion of the Christ and a related panel discussion during Easter week.

Earlier in April, the publication hosted an evangelistic event to highlight student talents and testimonies. About 150 students from a variety of ministries attended IGNIS on April 10 in Salomon Hall.

“We want to establish a second purpose for the magazine, to be a place to host inter-ministry events,” said Elizabeth Jean-Marie ’15, president.

summer

About two dozen students involved with Cru’s outreach at Brown University (www.cru-brown. org) attended the ministry’s annual senior dinner. On April 25, Cru Brown hosted a dinner at the Judson Center to honor seniors and give them a chance to offer departing words to underclassmen.

Among other traditions in Brown’s Christian community, Athletes in Action (www.aia-brown. org) also held a dinner for seniors

on April 24. As part of the event, the underclassmen prepared supper for the seniors and allowed them to share words of advice.

Both events were held at the Judson Center, Christian Union’s ministry center at Brown.

39

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

COLU M B I A | On Campus

The Intellectual Engagement of My Faith A F R I C A N S T U D E N T I S T H A N K F U L F O R C H A L L E N G E | By Luke Foster, Columbia ’15

J

ake Bediako graduated from Columbia University in May with a history degree and a divine mandate: To enjoy life and continue to trust in God’s unfolding plan.

christian union

::

the magazine

Jake Bediako, Columbia ’14, will pursue a master’s degree in African Studies at the University of Cambridge.

40

Bediako ’14 arrived at Columbia from Ghana four years ago, thinking that he ought to study political science and become a lawyer. But Providence is rarely so straightforward. He explains, “It was only the history classes that stole my heart.” Bediako became fascinated by the great wars of the Twentieth Century in Europe and the way the European geopolitics of World Wars I and II and the Cold War impacted African development. He’s now

on the way to the University of Cambridge in Britain for an MPhil degree in African Studies.

Looking back, Bediako traces his journey of faith as an unbroken path back into childhood. Though raised in a Christian home, he explains, “I was a Christian, not because my parents took me to church every weekend, but because there was just something about God that interested me and sucked me right in. I seemed to love Him for some reason.” The decisive moment came at the age of 10: “I will never forget my mother’s surprise when I responded to an altar call and went to the front of the church to surrender my life to Jesus. I do not remember what was said during the sermon or how I processed it in my 10 year-old mind, but I just know that I responded to God that day.”

He has continued in his pilgrimage since that decision as a boy: “Although my Christian walk has not been without valleys and moments of doubt and wrestling with God, my fascination with God and belief in the validity of the Bible are two things that have stayed unchanged through the years.”

So often, secular college campuses are seen as places for believers to lose their faith, but Bediako explained that Columbia provided exactly what he needed to grow: a challenge.

“Columbia taught me to engage intellectually with my faith,” he said.

Quoting 1 Peter 3:15, he explained that encountering objections and challenges and outright dismissal of Christianity paradoxically proved “one of the most useful faith-building

experiences” of his life because he had to delve into the reasons why Jesus was alive and real.

For Bediako, deeper intellectual knowledge of God came along with greater emotional knowledge because of his involvement in Christian community. He said his experience in local churches in New York, Times Square Church and Hillsong, “taught me the meaning of God’s love, grace, and mercy and enabled me to be loving, gracious, and merciful to others like I never could before.” On campus, he credits InterVarsity Christian Fellowship for cultivating diverse friendships and teaching him “to celebrate differences within the body of Christ.”

Connecting all of this learning to his long-term calling, Bediako expresses a profound contentment: “Although a lot about the future is unknown, I am calm knowing that my Best Friend and Everlasting Father runs the universe and He has prepared a special place for me in it—a place just right for me.” As he prepares himself to serve the cause of African development, he acknowledges that any worthwhile work has both its sorrows and its joys.

“I have come to understand that who and what God has called me to be will be revealed not by running helter-skelter trying to find myself, but rather, by resting metaphorically on His lap and getting to know Him,” he said.

Thankfully, we have a God who is Lord both over joy and of sorrow, and whose grace extends to giving Ivy League students a meaningful race to run in life. | cu

COLU M B I A | On Campus

How a Comedy Writer Found God

C O L U M B I A C AT H O L I C M I N I S T R Y H O S T S L E C T U R E B Y T O M L E O P O L D

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

F

The meeting happened one day when Leopold was headed to see a psychic. There on the street in front of Old St. Patrick’s Church, Leopold greeted Morris, told him he was reading his book, and asked if he would have a few minutes to talk sometime.

Morris told him he could be found right there at Old St. Pat’s, where he was serving as parochial vicar.

“The minute Father Morris took my hand, I knew I’d be a follower of Christ,” Leopold shared in his testimony. “Does my daughter still suffer?

She does, we all still do, but now I feel the Lord’s grace. We are not alone.” | cu

............................ c o l u m b ia ne w s - in - b r ie f

Pastoral Counseling Offered at Columbia

:: christianunion.org

The Office of the University Chaplain (OUC) offered open hours for confidential pastoral counseling for students in the spring semester. Ordained Religious Life Advisers and OUC staff were available for students to “share their stories and reflect with a trained professional.”

In January, the stresses and concerns expressed by students at Columbia were highlighted in an article written by Chayenne Mia ’16 in the Columbia Daily Spectator, in which she outlined the heavy demands and expectations experienced by students within the Ivy League.

2014

and I thought it would be great for my students to hear,” said Fr. O’Reilly.

Although able to turn a phrase for laughs, Leopold’s journey was peppered with suffering. It was during the height of his daughter’s struggle with an eating disorder that he began to sense God’s movement in his life.

As Leopold, his wife, and older daughter prepared for Christmas in their hotel room near the Arizona rehab center where his younger daughter was staying (they celebrated the holiday, despite being Jewish), this funny man was brought to a somber surrender to God. “I was praying before the thought dawned on me that I was praying,” Leopold said. “Maybe begging is the better word, ‘Please God, give me even the smallest sign you’re up there, I just can’t make it alone.’ ” Leopold describes how the next day, he met a stranger in the desert who seemed to have a sense of his suffering and spoke to him and his wife about his conversion to Christianity. The stranger kept nodding his head toward him saying, “This one knows what I’m talking about.”

Strangely enough, admits Leopold, he did understand.

There were other similar experiences that were more than coincidences, Leopold said. Perhaps the most significant was his encounter with Fr. Morris. Leopold first met Fr. Morris on the street of New York, recognizing the popular priest from the jacket of The Promise, a book that deals with grief.

summer

rom writing for Seinfeld, “a show about nothing,” to accepting a faith that means everything, comedy writer Tom Leopold shared the laughter and sorrow of his journey with students in the heart of the city that’s been the backdrop for much of his story.

In April, Leopold spoke on the topic “How a Comedy Writer Found God” during a lecture sponsored by the Columbia Catholic Ministry.

Leopold has written for shows such as Seinfeld and Cheers, and worked with beloved comedians such as Bob Hope, Billy Crystal, Lucille Ball, and others. He began writing for National Lampoon and got a big break when Chevy Chase asked him to write for his first special after leaving Saturday Night Live. Recently, however, Leopold mixed humor with suffering by penning the one man show about his life.

Columbia seemed an apt place for Leopold to share his story. The iconic Tom’s Restaurant (known as Monk’s on Seinfeld) is just steps away from the university where he recently spoke.

New York City was also the setting for much of Leopold’s work and his conversion. He was aided on his journey from Judaism to Catholicism by Columbia Assistant Chaplain Fr. Jonathan Morris and was baptized in the Archdiocese of New York.

Leopold also occasionally attends Mass at Corpus Christi Church where Columbia Chaplain Fr. Daniel O’Reilly, Princeton ‘97, is pastor.

“Tom is a great witness to the faith who has a dramatic conversion story,

41

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

COR N E LL | On Campus

Science, Faith, and Authority L E C T U R E E X H O R T S G R A D U AT E S T U D E N T S T O B E A M B A S S A D O R S

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

S

cience is hyped as the definitive authority for modern society, leaving many secular researchers with the potential for greater platforms – and more credibility – than their pastoral counterparts.

christian union

::

the magazine

Christians who labor in scientific fields have a special platform to serve as ambassadors for Christ, according to Matt Farrar, Cornell Ph.D. ’12.

42

As such, Christians who labor in scientific fields need to pause to consider the spiritual and cultural responsibilities tied to their roles as ambassadors for Christ.

That was one of the themes from Matt Farrar when the post-doctoral associate in Cornell University’s neurobiology and behavior department spoke on campus at a lecture hosted by the Graduate at Christian Fellowship Roundtable and the Chesterton House.

Farrar, Cornell Ph.D. ’12, appeared at The Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center

on April 12 to deliver a presentation entitled “Regnant Priests of a NeoOrthodoxy: Science, Faith and Authority in the 21st Century.” Farrar, a physicist who focuses on the development of nonlinear optical tools in studies of spinal cord injuries, based his presentation upon the writings of a series of Christian scholars, including Mark Noll, a historian who specializes in Christianity.

Farrar noted that many leading voices in Western Society question whether religion is a valid source of knowledge. And this perception is at the core of the issue for believers who work in secular fields.

“If knowledge of God no longer counts, what does count for knowledge?” Farrar asked rhetorically. Taking his concerns a step further, Farrar also rhetorically questioned whether Christianity should be cast aside to the realm of astrology, witchcraft, and mythology.

As for the scientific arena, the field is highly revered and features formidable barriers to entry – making practitioners, in effect, the modern clerics of the secular world. As well, much of what the public knows about science originates from “received tradition,” and even fellow scientists have limited abilities to test claims, access complete texts of scholarly articles, and fully understand highly specialized research.

“We accept a lot because we receive it,” said Farrar.

Glancing through history, Christianity has fallen from a place of

esteem – and source of legitimate knowledge, according to Farrar – because of wars and political conflicts carried out under the banners of religious motivation. Other sources of reputational damage stem from clashes between religion and science dating back to the so-called Galileo affair and from the marked separation of church and state within the constitutional framework of the United States.

The upshot is the undermining of the value of Christianity in governance and as a worldview.

On a positive trend, younger scientists appear less likely to be identified as atheists than their older counterparts, an observation echoed by some Christians in academia.

“That has been my sense for many years,” said Karl Johnson, Cornell ’89, Ph.D. ’11, founding director of the Chesterton House.

“The militant secularism in the academy peaked more than a decade ago,” Johnson said. Younger scientists are “a little more open to the possibility of religious beliefs” offering some benefits.

Also impacting the intersection of faith and scholarship, some Western churches have shifted from pursuing seminary-trained pastors to instead embracing preachers trumpeted for their energy, magnetism, and communication skills.

“You see a shift from moral knowledge to charismatic authority,” said Farrar. “Historically, pastors were educated experts on matters vital to the world.”

As for believers who labor in the sciences, Farrar strongly encouraged them to relish their worldly platforms and professional esteem.

“Develop a thoroughly informed faith that is congruous with your level of education,” Farrar said. “You’re going to be someone’s professor, coworker…”

Farrar, who will join the faculty of Messiah College in fall 2015, urged Cornell graduate students to peruse

materials related to faith in their chosen fields and to investigate voraciously key apologetics.

“Hold knowledge not just as a weekend hobby,” he said.

Likewise, “support and encourage pastors.... Encourage them to share their knowledge,” Farrar said.

Ultimately, scientists who are believers should embrace their roles as spiritual ambassadors, even within the rigorous world of scientific inquiry.

Farrar said he sides with St. Thomas Aquinas, the philosopher priest who embraced the existence of God as a self-evident truth. With that comes a call for like-minded believers to decide how to shape the culture of their professional spheres.

“Christians in the sciences have a vital part to play in presenting Christianity as a true body of knowledge,” said Farrar. | cu

.......................................................................................

COR N E LL | On Campus

Summer Christian Fellowship S T U D E N T S U N I T E F O R PA S S I O N AT E W O R S H I P A N D B I B L E S T U D Y

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

I

local pastor, and James Pannafino, an apologist with Ratio Christi.

The summer fellowship also provides more intimacy and openness among the students due to the fewer number of participants.

“The flavor of the prayer, especially in small groups, has been very different,” said Matusz. “The students seem a lot more engaged this summer.”

doing, let’s go after the presence of God. Go after Him first and be filled with the Spirit,” said Salzano. “The heart of the matter is that they are worshipping God.” And keeping the Holy Spirit alive within the hearts and lives of the students during the summer months is the very foundation of the summer fellowship. There is often a tendency

christianunion.org

for students to fall out of their spiritual routines during the summer, but SCF allows them to stay rooted in faith and to be connected with their Christian brothers and sisters. It’s also a time, said Matusz, for students to build habits that they can bring into the regular academic year.

::

Matusz attributes that engagement, in part, to the passion of the worship sessions and the mentorship of musician Joe Salzano, who also directs the Worship Workshop at Cornell.

“My whole thing with these kids is that it doesn’t matter what you’re

2014

There is often a tendency for students to fall out of their spiritual routines during the summer, but Summer Christian Fellowship allows them to stay routed in faith and to be connected with their Christian brothers and sisters.

summer

n sharp contrast to the cold and gray winters, summer in Ithaca, New York provides a warm and beautiful backdrop for the peace and respite offered by the Summer Christian Fellowship at Cornell. Students from a variety of ministries, who remain on campus, come together to worship, study the Bible, and fellowship.

“Community is important,” said James Palmer ’16, who stayed in Ithaca for an internship with the Public Service Center. “Summer Christian Fellowship (SCF) acts as a hub to build friendships and community that can be lived out during the week.”

According to Stan Matusz (Cornell ’93 and Penn Law ’96), a mentor and facilitator for SCF, each summer is different. Less structured, and more ignited by worship, this year’s SCF leaves ample room for the leading of the Holy Spirit. There is no formal theme for Bible studies, and speakers are free to address a variety of topics.

Speakers have included Paul Epp, a

43

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

“We don’t want to be treading water spiritually; we want to be growing and learning,” said Matusz.

The integration of students from several different ministries also lends itself to that growth and edification.

“It helps us build intentional community that goes beyond the bounds of specific ministries,” said Palmer.

“SCF offers a perspective on local pastors and ministries that might not otherwise have been experienced, since we bring in mostly local minis-

ters, rather than one leader for the summer.”

The diversity of participants also fosters a greater sense of camaraderie.

“Summer is a unique time for students from different ministries to meet each other in a relaxed setting, bringing greater unity to the Christian body at Cornell,” said Kejing Jiang ’14, a volunteer teaching assistant at Cornell who will be attending grad school.

In all, SCF serves to strengthen community as well as individual faith,

while providing a peaceful respite in the absence of the academic year stress. And these precious summer worship and study times can help students like Palmer thrive all year round.

“God has been a huge source of peace and strength in my time at Cornell,” said Palmer. “I can honestly say I have grown closer, and more on fire for God in the past few years of my life than I ever did before.” | cu

....................................................................................... c o r ne l l ne w s - in - b r ie f

christian union

::

the magazine

Easter on the Quad

44

Easter on the Quad was held at Cornell this spring. Highlights of the event included a 24/7 prayer tent outside the Arts Quad, a night of inter-ministry praise and prayer, and an Easter morning service.

Hundreds of students and members of the Cornell community have traditionally attended the services, which include praise music, worship, and testimonies. Easter on the Quad brings the Christian body at Cornell together in prayer, unity, and intercession and also focuses on sharing the Gospel with the surrounding community.

A Christian Union grant helped fund the event.

Chesterton House Celebrates End of Academic Year The Chesterton House, a Christian studies center affiliated with Cornell University, celebrated the end of the academic year with a barbecue in May and an open house to coincide with Cornell’s reunion activities in June.

About 35 people, including the male residents of Chesterton House and female residents of Sophia House, gathered for the barbeque at a park in New York’s Finger Lakes region.

Among its operations, Chesterton House facilitates a male residential learning center, offering space for up to 18 men, as well as a nearby female residential center, featuring room for up to 12 women.

Chosen Generation Gospel Choir Is Moving Forward The Chosen Generation Gospel Choir presented its spring concert on May 4 in the Appel Commons Multipurpose Room at Cornell.

“Moving Forward: The Best Is yet to Come!” provided an atmosphere of inspiration, motivation, and hope through both song and praise.

In addition to Chosen Generation, the concert also included the Most High Male Gospel A Capella Ensemble and the Triumphant Praise Dance Troupe.

D A R T M OU T H | On Campus

The Benefits of Marriage A D A R T M O U T H P R O F E S S O R M A K E S A S T R O N G C A S E | By Richard Denton Editor’s note: The following article appeared in The Dartmouth. Reprinted with permission.

I

to a “friends with benefits” arrangement before evolving to a more serious romantic relationship. This path to marriage is becoming more common due to the prevalence of today’s hookup culture on campuses. But the very nature of hookup relationships makes this progression difficult.

Psychologists Elizabeth Paul and Kristen Hayes studied typical hookup experiences. While 30 percent of students said that hookups involved some “hanging out and talking,” 25 percent said that there was only small talk and 69 percent said that there was no communication about the sexual activity (ranging from kissing to sexual intercourse) that occurred. So often,

According to policy analysts Dean Lillard and Jennifer Gerner, children who live with both parents are more than twice as likely to attend selective colleges.

:: christianunion.org

hookups involve little meaningful communication. The typical medium-to-long term prospect from hookups is nothing, which is not surprising considering that students usually define a hookup as involving no commitment.

Students’ aspirations about hookups often differ significantly from their experience and expectations.

While anthropologists Justin Garcia and Chris Reiber found that the greatest motivating factor for hookups was physical pleasure (nearly 90 percent), 51 percent of students considered hookups a potential outlet to start a relationship. Yet only 6 percent of

2014

Couples that waited to have sex until marriage experienced the greatest relationship satisfaction and perceived stability, even when eliminating factors like education and religiosity, according to a study of married couples by sociologist Dean Busby and colleagues. The effect was moderate, but real. (Other factors such as personality are probably greater.) Crucially, communication had the highest correlation to satisfaction and stability, and couples that waited to have sex until marriage had the best communication.

One possible route to marriage is through hookups, leading perhaps next

summer

n October 2012, I wrote a column for The Dartmouth titled “Sex and Responsibility.” In it, I argued that most students would do best to aim for a permanent state of monogamy, which for the purpose of economy, I called “marriage.” While that definition of marriage is partially satisfactory, some of the studies mentioned below use the legal definition. Why should people want to be married? As summarized by sociologist Linda Waite and author Maggie Gallagher in The Case for Marriage, research shows that married people are happier, more likely to be financially successful, more likely to raise successful children and live longer.

If you don’t believe this, I suggest you take a survey of what fraction of Dartmouth students come from intact families with stable marriages. Then consider that, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, only 65 percent of American children live with married parents as of 2010. According to policy analysts Dean Lillard and Jennifer Gerner, children who live with both parents are more than twice as likely to attend selective colleges.

Married people also have more sex than single or cohabitating couples and are more satisfied with it. Research by Dartmouth economics professor David Blanchflower with Andrew Oswald shows that people who have more sex are happier. It also shows that the happiness-maximizing number of sexual partners is one, in-

dependent of the amount of sex that a person has. As they state, their work “has conservative implications.”

I realize that most college students may not be thinking about marriage right now, and the increasing time gap between puberty and marriage is one reason for the development of the hookup culture. Nevertheless, a survey by Her Campus indicates that 85 percent of college-aged men and women want to get married by age 30. And 67.3 percent of college men said they would be content to stay together with a woman until marriage if they met the “right one” now. Furthermore, most college students eventually get married.

45

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

students expected that a relationship would result from the hookup.

A better foundation for marriage is friendship, leading to commitment.

In the most successful marriages, the partners are constantly communicat-

ing, sharing life’s little things as well as life’s big things, and constantly expressing reception, empathy, and understanding. This kind of communication is what we associate with a good friendship. When friendship,

commitment, romance, and sex come together, you have the elements for a beautiful, satisfying marriage. | cu is a physics and astronomy professor at Dartmouth. richard denton

.....................................................................................

D A R T M OU T H | On Campus

Blending Faith and Reason W H E E L O C K C O N F E R E N C E C E L E B R AT E S F I F T H A N N I V E R S A R Y

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

christian union

::

the magazine

T

46

he Wheelock Conference on Integrating Faith, Reason and Vocation celebrated its fifth year of highlighting ways Dartmouth College students can integrate Christianity and culture within the academy and beyond.

In April, the Eleazar Wheelock Society staged its annual conference to encourage Dartmouth students to consider a biblical worldview in their studies and vocations. This year’s theme centered on ways blended faith and reason can provide a foundation for life’s tough choices.

Since its inception, the conference has aimed to generate dialogues “across campus and across the generations” on career and personal milestones, said Andrew Schuman ’10, a board member who launched the conference as an undergraduate.

More than 400 students, alumni, scholars, and leaders attended the conference at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. For Schuman, a graduate student at Yale University, this year’s conference anniversary was especially meaningful.

“It has really gained traction,” said Schuman, noting 250 people partic-

Andrew Schuman, Dartmouth ’10, is the founder of The Wheelock Conference.

International Justice Mission President Gary Haugen, Harvard ’85, was the conference’s keynote speaker.

ipated in the inaugural conference.

“We really didn’t know what to expect.”

This year, about 50 alumni joined other executives and academicians to take part in 10 panel discussions. The topics included: making tough choices in business and leadership, the role of faith in the university, and ways businesses can be missional.

Panelists represented a range of fields including: medicine, law, busi-

ness, ministry, psychology, and engineering.

As well, Gary Haugen, Harvard ’85, author and president of the International Justice Mission (IJM), served as the keynote speaker. Since investigating genocide in Rwanda, the former senior trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice has devoted his professional energies to seeking justice for victims of human trafficking.

“We were really honored to have a fantastic keynoter,” said Schuman.

“He brought a really rich perspective to the conference.”

In 1997, Haugen founded IJM, which has expanded into a global human rights organization. As such, Haugen embodied much of the purpose of the Wheelock conference – “rich, intellectual investigation of the world with a real sense of calling with meaningful work and service…He provided a compelling vision,” Schuman said.

In fall 2009, a group of students, staff, and alumni established the Wheelock Society as a non-profit organization to support Christian efforts on campus, including The Dartmouth Apologia: A Journal of Christian Thought. Students published the inaugural issue of the Apologia in spring 2007 to showcase intellectual perspectives reflecting Christianity.

As for the Wheelock Society, the group’s founders named the organization after Dartmouth’s patriarch, a Puritan minister and a Yale College alumnus of 1733 who envisioned Dartmouth as an institution to train Native Americans as missionaries.

In addition to helping to establish the Wheelock Society, Schuman served as the original editor of the Apologia and as a founding director of the Waterman Institute, a Christian study center in the Dartmouth community. After graduating with degrees in engineering and philosophy, Schuman worked as a pastoral intern at Christ Redeemer Church in Hanover and as the founder of the Augustine Collective, a national network of Christian student journals.

Currently, Schuman is pursuing a joint master of business administration and master of religion from Yale,

where he works with Miroslav Volf, founder of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, on the touted Life Worth Living Initiative.

As a reflection of such theologies, conference participants were asked to explore what it means to live holistically and to invest in the lives around them.

“Christians are called to do life together,” Schuman said. “The richest aspects of life bubble up in community.”

As for Schuman, participation in the Wheelock Society’s latest conference provided an encouraging glimpse into the eternal value of service to believers at Dartmouth. “It’s been a real privilege to see the vision continue after I have left, to see the Christian community move forward,” he said. | cu

....................................................................................... d a r tm o u th ne w s - in - b r ie f

christianunion.org

With a White House task force probing the issue of sexual assault on college campuses, Dartmouth College President Phil Hanlon ’77 took to the airwaves to comment on the national epidemic.

On The Diane Rehm Show, Hanlon noted that “excessive, harmful behaviors are harming young people on our campuses.”

Among its initiatives, Dartmouth is training students and staffers to intervene at the earliest signs of trouble. “We know from

::

Students involved with the Aquinas House (www. dartmouthcatholic.com) at Dartmouth College enjoyed a busy spring semester that included a getaway for seniors to the Dartmouth Outing Club’s nearby Titcomb Cabin, as well as a reception for graduation.

In addition, the Catholic ministry observed Memorial Day with a barbecue and a senior send-off. Other spring activities centered on Easter and times of prayer.

research that 90 percent of sexual assaults are committed by a small percentage of the population, about 3 percent, and so we’re going to try to activate the other 97 percent towards prevention,” he said.

2014

Dartmouth President Comments On Sexual Assault Epidemic

summer

Aquinas House Hosts Senior, Spring Activities

Photo Courtesy of Maryanne Russell/Dartmouth College

Dartmouth College President Phil Hanlon ’77

47

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

H A RVA RD | On Campus

For Whom the Bell Tolls

A H A R VA R D YA R D I N S T I T U T I O N I S R I N G I N G O N C E A G A I N

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

A

piece of Harvard University’s spiritual heritage is once again summoning students to morning prayers.

This summer, the university replaced the historic, broken bell inside Memorial Church with a new unit made from metals recast in an English foundry using the original molds.

christian union

::

the magazine

The new bell inside Memorial Church was installed in June.

48

In 2011, the bell – best known for signaling early prayers and the top of the hour – developed a 30-inch crack, causing harsh tones, according to the Harvard Gazette, the university’s newspaper.

In June, a team, including an employee of the foundry in Loughborough, England, where the bell was cast in 1926, removed the fixture and replaced it with a two-ton unit cast from copper and tin.

Harvard President A. Lawrence

Lowell, who served as the university’s head from 1909 to 1933, donated a gleaming bell for Memorial Church.

The university dedicated the chapel and a monument to its casualties from World War I on Armistice Day in 1932, according to the Gazette.

The hallowed church stands opposite Widener Library as a tribute to the religious heritage that has bolstered the top-tier university for nearly four centuries, according to Harvard.

The university uses the bell, which is 5 feet in diameter and 4 feet tall, during class memorial services and special occasions such as commencement exercises. Lowell, who completed undergraduate studies from Harvard in 1877 and law coursework in 1880, also penned the words behind the bell’s inscription: In memory of voices that are hushed, according to Harvard.

Until it malfunctioned, the bell atop the famed Harvard Yard rang at least nine times a day. Electronic chimes substituted after the breakage resulted in abnormal, loud clangs.

As such, chaplaincy officials heartily welcomed the return of authentic peals to the routine of religious and daily life at Harvard, the oldest institute of higher learning in the United States.

“We are very excited to have a new bell here,” Lucy Forster-Smith, senior minister in Memorial Church, told the Gazette. “We can have an actual bell ringing, and not a recording, which is great.”

As a reflection of the restoration efforts, the foundry director of English-based John Taylor & Co. joined with a team of electricians during the installment process to fine-tune the mechanical system that tolls the bell automatically. The original bell will remain in storage until a decision is made about its future, according to Harvard.

In June 2011, the university had replaced the unit’s clapper with one that lacked apparent signs of damage.

Weeks later, when the bell began to ring again as students returned for the fall semester, the tone was harsh and bothersome, eventually touching off legal wranglings that made national headlines.

The late Peter Gomes, who ministered in Memorial Church from 1970 to 2011, once described the bell as a campus institution to The Harvard Crimson, the university’s student newspaper. Though unpopular with the frosh of nearby dormitories, Gomes noted the chimes reflect both historic and spiritual significance.

“We will not change the bells just to accommodate late sleeping habits of freshmen in the college,” Gomes, Harvard ’68, told the Crimson in 2006.

Bells have been a fixture of campus life throughout Harvard’s storied history, originating from ancient traditions at Oxford and Cambridge universities to mark time and recognize solemn occasions, according to Harvard.

Among them, on the 300th an-

niversary of Harvard College in 1968, the bell resonated 300 times on a September morning. Likewise, on Sept. 11, 2001, the bell tolled to summon the university to a vigil after the unprecedented terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., according to the Gazette.

Even Harvard’s earliest rule book reflected the sacred, but practical, role of bells in campus life. “Every Schollar shall be present in his Tutor’s chambers at the 7th houre in the morning, immediately after the sound of the bell at his opening the Scripture and

prayer…,” noted Clarence Birdseye, Columbia Law 1877, in Individual Training in Our Colleges, an historical compilation.

Crimson. “Days were marked by prayers.”

Gomes also quipped the colonists may have believed the clangs drove

Until it malfunctioned, the bell atop the famed Harvard Yard rang at least nine times a day. Electronic chimes substituted after the breakage resulted in abnormal, loud clangs.

Looking back, “Christians have used bells for thousands of years. Time in western Christian civilization was a Christian concept,” Gomes told the

away demons. “You make that kind of noise to scare away evil forces,” Gomes told the Crimson. | cu

.....................................................................................

H A RVA RD | On Campus

This Present Darkness B L A C K ‘ M A S S ’ F I Z Z L E S O U T AT H A R VA R D A S P R O T E S T D R AW S 2 , 0 0 0

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

I

:: christianunion.org

Harvard and to demonstrate that the most powerful response to offensive speech is not censorship, but reasoned discourse and robust dissent.”

The Cultural Studies Club attempted to bill the satanic reenactment as educational and promoting discourse, but, in an opinion piece for The Harvard Crimson, Aurora Griffin ’14 and Luciana Milano ’14 called out the sponsors and addressed the reality of the situation.

“The Satanic Temple, which is really behind this particular event, is a religious community guilty of greater fundamentalism than any group it intends to mock. Any notion that the Satanic Temple is simply a cultural group is nonsense,” they wrote.

In a Catholic News Agency report, Jim McGlone ’13 said, “It’s too much of a desecration of our Lord and mockery and parody of our faith to

2014

the street, looking for a place to assemble. Ultimately, they settled for a diluted sort of gathering that took place at a local bar.

Harvard President Drew Faust, Penn Ph.D. ’75, was one of many university and Christian leaders who denounced the event and attended the service at St. Paul’s.

“Freedom of expression, as Justice Holmes famously said long ago, protects not only free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate,” Faust said in a statement. She called the black mass “abhorrent,” saying it “represents a fundamental affront to the values of inclusion, belonging, and mutual respect that must define our community.”

Faust said she attended the holy hour “to join others in reaffirming our respect for the Catholic faith at

summer

t surely looked like spiritual warfare came to Harvard this spring as two diametrically opposed organizations held nearly simultaneous events. A satanic group, supported by a university-recognized organization, planned a “black mass” on campus. At the same time, 2,000 believers countered the black mass with a holy hour of prayer and adoration at St. Paul’s in Cambridge.

Sponsored by the Harvard Extension Cultural Studies Club, the socalled “mass” was to be officiated by The Satanic Temple of New York in Memorial Hall. A black mass typically mocks the Catholic Mass and desecrates the Eucharist. However, as the Holy Hour at St. Paul’s was getting ready to begin, the Satanists postponed their event indefinitely.

Members of the Satanic Temple were left to wander and prowl about

49

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

be an attempt at dialogue—it’s really just an obscenity.”

Equally offended, Eli Kresta’16 said he felt “attacked” by the planned mockery, yet hearing Christ’s echo of “Father forgive them. They know not what they do,” he could not respond with ridicule.

cheeks,” said Kresta. “I had never seen St. Paul’s so packed, and here came Christ in the Eucharist arriving in total victory.”

While the black mass is particularly offensive to Catholics, the event was seen as an abomination to all denominations, and even humanists.

While the black mass is particularly offensive to Catholics, the event was seen as an abomination to all denominations…

“Jesus has been under attack since before His birth. This was the first time that I had ever experienced that sort of violence against our Lord,” said Kresta.

And the response of the 2,000 attendees of the holy hour brought to bear that power of prayer.

“When the [Eucharistic] procession arrived, I am not ashamed to say that tears were streaming down my

“I see the black mass as a legally permissable, but unwise, form of demonstration, given that it’s a direct mockery of Catholic tradition and belief,” wrote Humanist Chaplain Greg Epstein in a posting for OnFaith (www. faithstreet.com/onfaith). Epstein also attended the holy hour at St. Paul’s.

Father Francis Clooney, the Parkman Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School, indicated that hold-

ing the black mass could set an ugly precedent.

In The Harvard Crimson, Clooney said, “The endeavor ‘to learn and experience the history of different cultural practices’ might in another year lead to historical reenactments of anti-Semitic or racist ceremonies familiar from Western history or parodies that trivialize Native American heritage or other revivals of cultural and religious insult.”

However, the event’s demise due to overwhelming outcry, unity, and powerful prayer, crushed the head of such unholy precedent, and revealed Christ’s authority over evil.

“We are all surprised with what God did here,” said Edward Love, Harvard ’15. “But this is exactly what He promised. We should have expected this the whole time, because God is more powerful than anything the devil could conjure up.” | cu

....................................................................................... ha r v a r d ne w s - in - b r ie f

christian union

::

the magazine

Harvard Institutes Honor Code

50

In fall 2015, undergraduates at Harvard will be held accountable to an honor code. Dean of Undergraduate Education Jay M. Harris said the code is designed to “strengthen the dedication to academic integrity in the college.”

The honor code was adopted by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences on May 6 and will take effect next year. The faculty’s committee on academic integrity worked for four years crafting the document which contains a “statement of values” and the following phrase: “We thus hold honesty—in the representa-

tion of our work and in our interactions with teachers, advisers, peers, and students—as the foundation of our community.”

Apologetics Conference Held in Boston

Alister McGrath

“Faith in a Secular Age: An Apologetics Conference” was held at Park Street Church in Boston this April. Park Street, the church home to many Harvard students, offered presentations by several noted speakers, covering a broad spectrum of issues including: culture, science, history, theology, and society.

Theologian Alister McGrath

was the plenary speaker, and Dick Keyes (Harvard ’64), the director of L’Abri Fellowship, presented the culture seminar. The goal of the conference was to “equip believers to interact respectfully and thoughtfully with skeptics and seekers about the questions of faith.”

P E N N | On Campus

Centrally Re-Located OFF I C E OF T H E C H A PL A I N C E L E BR AT E S N E W SPA C E

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

T

As such, the chaplaincy relocation to consolidated space centrally located in Houston Hall “provides a great opportunity to take a step closer to students in our effort to journey with them on the most beautiful and most difficult moments in life,” Howard said.

Unlike most major universities, Penn lacks a university chapel. However, Penn’s urban campus is dotted with a series of neighborhood churches offering collegiate programming and respite space.

Likewise, with input from students, Penn’s chaplaincy designed its new commons to sport a “modern-comfy” feel via oversized, cozy furniture and an electric fireplace. The area also will showcase a small art gallery for rotating photos and abundant natural light. Classes resume on August 27, and Penn’s chaplaincy is planning a grand opening to follow.

Houston Hall was once the home

Members of Programs in Religion, Interfaith and Spirituality Matters (PRISM), an umbrella interfaith organization representing nearly 50 student religious groups, pushed the issue to administrators and the Undergraduate Assembly, according to a © Candace DiCarlo chaplaincy press Penn Chaplain Chaz Howard ’00 release.

“Religious life is a thriving – yet largely overlooked— part of Penn’s campus,” PRISM leaders wrote. “…Interfaith events and relationships are already something students mention as being among the most meaningful experiences they have during their time on campus, and we

christianunion.org

hope the university can now provide assistance with resources to back up this predominantly student-driven trend.”

Built in 1896, Houston Hall is the oldest student union facility in the United States. The historic building remains the symbolic center of student life and serves as a place for social, recreational, educational, and cultural gatherings.

::

of the Christian Association and previously hosted Muslim Student Association prayers and Shabbat dinners.

“The chaplain’s office was located in this building at one time, so we are coming full circle,” Howard said.

Some of the impetus for the relocation also came on the heels of student advocacy within Penn’s faith community.

2014

“Religious life is a thriving – yet largely overlooked – part of Penn’s campus.”

summer

he University of Pennsylvania’s spiritual support center has new digs, and it is now housed under one roof with the relocated commons for religious activities.

In July, the Office of the Chaplain and the Religious Activities Commons moved to renovated space inside 240 Houston Hall, in part, to help shore up the university’s outreach efforts to students navigating the choppy waters of stressful studies and young adulthood.

“Our office is part of the larger team that cares for students,” said Chaplain Charles “Chaz” Howard ’00.

The chaplain’s office, which moved from Locust Walk, offers pastoral advising and oversees the coordination of student religious and spiritual activities. Penn’s Religious Activities Common, which relocated from the Graduate Student Center, offers faith communities space for worship, study, and alliance.

“Being in the main student union will allow us to increase outreach and connect with students for counseling and support,” Howard said.

During the 2014 academic year, the Penn community dealt with a series of tragedies, including two suicides in three weeks.

Not surprisingly, a 2013 survey from the National College Health Assessment revealed 84 percent of American students said they felt overwhelmed by their workload at some point in the previous year, including 48 percent who indicated they felt that way in the previous two weeks.

51

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

For Penn’s religious community, the new location allows for increased hours of programming and prayer.

Having the chaplain’s office and the commons housed together also facilitates interfaith dialogue, according

to Penn’s chaplaincy.

The building features prayer rooms as well as a reflection room for meditation and contemplation.

“The new space is in a more accessible location,” said Hannah Victor

’16, who served as a student representative on behalf of Christian students on a chaplaincy committee for the move. “Hopefully, people will use it more.” | cu

.......................................................................................

P E N N | On Campus

Prayer Tent Revival

PENNFORJESUS HOSTS

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

ives were changed, an atheist learned about Jesus for the first time, and students wept. These were just some of things that happened when a simple tent was erected at Penn this Easter season, inviting passersby to pause in the midst of life’s busyness and spend a few moments

in prayer before the Lord.

The Prayer Tent at Penn is hosted each spring by PennforJesus (www.

PennforJesus.org). This year, the tent was open around the clock, from April 13 through 19, offering students a holy place for prayer any time of the day or night.

christian union

::

the magazine

L

ANNUAL E VENT DURIN G E A S TER SE A SON

52

The Prayer Tent at Penn, hosted by PennforJesus, attracted believers and even some seekers during the Easter season.

The prayer tent, located at Stitler Plaza, promoted unity among believers and a public witness to both the campus and the local community, according to Michael Hu ’14, a leader with PennforJesus.

Transformative prayer took place within an oasis that featured stations with different themes: a world map (prayer for the nations), communion, and confession and forgiveness. Additionally, opportunities for worship and artistic expression were also available for God’s people.

“It was very comfortable there,” said Hanna Victor ’16. “I find a particular pleasure in sitting and appreciating simply being in the presence of God. I think the prayer tent facilitated that for many people who walked in.”

Victor chose to pray for particular parts of the world, and interceded for those with prayer requests.

A spontaneous evening of worship took place in the middle of the week and lasted for three hours. During this time of praise, believers felt convicted that people outside the tent needed to experience God and His presence. As a result, they went outside and began asking passersby if they would like prayer.

One student accepted that invitation for prayer, although she wasn’t a believer, and stayed in the tent for more than an hour. Through tears, she was loved by Christian students and is still being prayed for by the believers who became new friends.

the challenge, but took a little more than three sentences. Still, they successfully explained the Gospel to the student, who said he would share what he learned with his Muslim friends.

On Facebook, another tent visitor wrote about a surprising bond that

A spontaneous evening of worship took place in the middle of the week, and lasted for three hours.

Another student, an atheist from Turkey who is studying law at Penn, entered the tent without an understanding of Christianity, Easter, or Jesus.

“Can you sum up what Christianity is and who Jesus is in two to three sentences for me?” this law student asked.

The Christian students accepted

was formed through prayer. According to the student, a former Israeli soldier came into the tent one night and began asking the students why they prayed and sang to God. The students shared their testimonies, and most importantly, they prayed for him. Before he left, the former soldier took the student aside and said, “In the Israeli Army, the medics have a

saying, ‘forever my brother’s keeper.’

We never leave a soldier behind. You don’t know how many rabbis I’ve told the things I told you tonight… No one has ever given me as kind a response as all of you; you certainly did not leave me behind.”

Some may wonder if the impact of the prayer tent is as fleeting as its appearance on campus. However, one alumna recently told the story of God’s steadfast grip.

“Since last year at the prayer tent, I’ve found God reminding me more and more to bring prayer to the forefront of my life,” said Amanda Liew ’13. “In the transition to the real world and working life, He’s called me to rely on Him in utter dependence and to turn all my praises and requests to Him first.” A grant from Christian Union helped fund the event. | cu

.......................................................................................

p enn ne w s - in - b r ie f

Veritas Forum Examines Suffering

summer

Full Measure Performs Concert

::

Full Measure performed for the Penn student population, as well as audience members from other campuses in the area. In addition to their inspiring concerts, the group also seeks to produce a music CD every two years.

A Christian Union grant helped fund the concert.

christianunion.org

Full Measure, Penn’s premier Christian a cappella group, held its annual spring concert in April. The concert included two hours of songs and skits designed to further the group’s mission to acknowledge and celebrate God’s sovereignty and the power of the Holy Spirit, and worshipfully compel others to know Jesus Christ.

2014

On May 2, Penn Medical Christian Fellowship co-sponsored a Veritas Forum that featured a panel discussion on suffering with two renowned physicians. Dr. Ray Barfield, associate professor at Duke School of Medicine and Duke Divinity School, and Dr. John Hansen-Flaschen (Brown ’72), a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, addressed topics such as why God allows suffering, how to respond to suffering, and how physicians process these experienc-

es on both professional and personal levels.

The event was partially funded by a Christian Union grant.

53

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

PR I N C E T O N | On Campus

Prayer and Patience

P H I L A N T H R O P I S T B I L L P O W E R S ’ 7 9 S P E A K S AT P R I N C E T O N R E U N I O N S

By Catherine Elvy, Staff Writer

I

christian union

::

the magazine

nvestor and philanthropist William C. Powers, best known for his longtime role at giant asset manager Pimco, encouraged alumni and students to allow faith to help guide their internal compasses during an appearance at Princeton University’s Reunions.

54

via the university’s Faith and Work Initiative during Princeton’s Reunions 2014, which targeted classes with graduation years ending in four or nine.

Not surprisingly, Powers, the benefactor behind Princeton’s Powers Field, also encouraged listeners to embrace life’s meaningful lessons, especially the ones imparted from coaches, teammates, and family members.

A much-lauded defensive back and an All-Ivy punter, Powers received Princeton’s Charles W. Caldwell Memorial Trophy William C. Powers ’79 is interviewed by David Miller, director of in 1978. Princeton bestows the Faith and Work Initiative in Princeton’s Center for the Study the honor annually to the of Religion. senior member of the varsity football team who Powers emphasized the role of demonstrates the greatest improveconsistent prayer and patience in ment in football.

For Powers, the strategies, training, helping to navigate challenging professional and personal waterways, as and attitudes he absorbed on the playwell as the importance of “waiting to ing field also contained powerful applications within the glare of the hear a response.”

Prayer – mixed with the passage investment arena.

“You want to do the right thing of time – offers “insight on how to respond. You will see things along the whether people are looking or not,” way in surprising ways,” said Powers, he said.

Likewise, as Princeton students Princeton ’79 and a former All-Ivy venture to the command centers of League football player.

Powers reflected on his journey, the global economy, they should folincluding 19 years as a managing di- low fair, ethical practices and avoid rector with Pacific Investment Man- proffering statements with material agement Co., on May 30 before a omissions. “We all know what it feels crowded auditorium in the Frist Cam- like when someone takes advantage pus Center. The Southern California of you,” said Powers, who manages resident and father of five appeared The Strand Partners, the vehicle for

his family’s investments.

The veteran investor warned of the plethora of spiritual and ethical dangers associated with working on Wall Street’s frontlines. Besides being exhausting, the fruit of such a turbulent lifestyle sometimes results in wanton greed and excessive personal behaviors.

“People get the taste of making money and get greedy. People get the taste of not making money and also get greedy,” Powers said.

Reflecting faith in work settings means mirroring the Golden Rule.

“We’ve all been through a number of those situations, where the other party was unfair, aggressive, abusive, or withholding,” Powers said.

Along related lines, Powers also described some of his philosophies behind hiring and promotional decisions. Namely, he looked closely at how employees – as well as job candidates – embraced responsibility and even how they interacted with service personnel such as golf caddies and valets. “The chances are [mistreatment] will resurface,” said Powers, an economics major who also holds a master of business administration from Stanford University.

The philanthropist also emphasized the paramount role of generosity during his appearance at his beloved alma mater.

Powers gave $10 million to Princeton’s football program, which the university heralded in 2006 as its largest donation ever to Princeton athletics.

The gift established a new, stateof-the-art playing surface for the stadium field, allowing Princeton to become the first Ivy League school to make the switch to the artificial turf known as FieldTurf. It also funded the renovation of the two practice fields east of Princeton Stadium.

As for his passion for philanthropy,

Powers said he is a big believer that those who share of their fortune reap rich rewards in return. “It’s not lost,” he said. “It will come back to you.”

Not surprisingly, Powers cherishes his memories as a student athlete.

Most notably, Powers’ 70-yard punt late in the fourth quarter thwarted a Harvard comeback in a 20-7

Princeton win in 1977 in Cambridge.

The play handed the Crimson their first Ivy loss and remains one of the favorite Tiger wins in the rivalry.

As for students entering the investment sector, Powers encouraged them to maintain Christ-like qualities such as a humble, prayerful attitude, and a kind heart. | cu

.......................................................................................

PR I N C E T O N | On Campus

Writing about Religion

T H E D A I LY P R I N C E T O N I A N F E AT U R E S H O N E S T, O P E N C O L U M N S

By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

A

he hovers between agnosticism and family tradition.

“Throughout the school year, she had inquired about my churchgoing habits, and I always found ways around them,” said Robertson. “My responses were meant to shield us both

“I wanted the freedom to articulate and accept my agnosticism, while still holding on to the very religious upbringing I claimed to be disowning; enjoying the freedom to explore faith without the watchful eye of family,” he wrote.

“I wanted the freedom to articulate and accept my agnosticism, while still holding on to the very religious upbringing I claimed to be disowning…”

:: christianunion.org

Yet, as he delves into the ambiguity of agnosticism, he also recognizes the ramifications of his rejection of faith.

“But there still exists an anxiety that says, at some point, self-exploration not only dishonors the moral conventions that my family upholds, but may also lead to critical life choices whose consequences endanger my happiness,” Robertson wrote.

In her column on “The Commonality of Faith,” Lea Trusty ’16, who is Greek Orthodox, discusses the lessons she learns from her peers of different

2014

from the truth of my agnosticism.

While it is not something of which I am ashamed, I must question the consequences of this ambiguous worldview.”

For Robertson, faith is more a matter of family tradition than belief.

And while he admits that Christianity was a cornerstone of his life, it was not a strong enough foundation to withstand the challenges of a secular university.

Robertson said his internal conflict of faith was intensified when he entered Princeton.

summer

t Princeton University this spring, three students voiced their views on faith in opinion pieces that ran consecutively in the campus newspaper.

From agnosticism, to longing for religion, to wondering about the diversity of beliefs, these young adults expressed what others often think about and struggle with when it comes to faith. The articles offered insight into the spiritual temperature on one of the nation’s most influential campuses.

According to one staffer with The Daily Princetonian, the newspaper received a higher than usual number of religion pieces in April, probably because of the Easter season and Lent.

The students openly confessed and pondered their personal views of faith and their hesitations, uncertainties, and acceptance and rejections of truth.

Aaron Robertson ’17 said he was prompted to write his piece, “Rejecting and Maintaining Religion,” in response to an Easter morning text he received from his grandmother about attending church. Not wanting to disappoint relatives, Robertson said

55

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

faiths. From Jews, to humanists, to Buddhists, Trusty engaged in conversations that helped her better understand others, and also helped her understand and question her own beliefs.

“When discussing all these faiths, I had an inordinate number of questions and comments. I can’t say I agreed with every aspect of each one, but there were facets that made me think deeply,” wrote Trusty.

Trusty’s fast for Lent was slightly different from that of her Catholic roommate; however, in the pursuit to sacrifice for the sake of Christ, they came to a deeper understanding of each other.

“You’ve been programmed by your environment to attach yourself to these earthly things,” she wrote. “Forty days does not create a greater willpower; it gives you freedom. And I

think this is something that anyone of any faith can appreciate.”

In her column, “Wishing for Religion,” Kelly Hatfield ’17 gives an outside-looking-in perspective. She peers through the window of faith and longs for the community that is found there.

“What I crave is that sense of identity, that organized community to discuss what comes after life, to explore whether or not I believe in a god or many gods, to engage in unifying traditions that transcend my sense of self,” she wrote.

Hatfield described a rainy afternoon during which she contemplated entering a church to pray before the altar—but ultimately she walked away.

“My conclusion that I will never be one to join an organized religion derives itself from my own inhibitions that make me feel as though my pres-

ence would be an intrusion. Irrational though this thought may be, it is ever-present and pervasive,” she wrote.

Hatfield wonders if her search is for religion or identity. And she decides that the desire itself is part of who she is, and she wonders where it will lead.

In retrospect, Robertson says that writing his views of faith confirmed what he struggled to acknowledge in his heart. Interestingly, however, his written work prompted yet another question that exemplifies his continuing grappling with faith.

“When something of yours is to be published, you want to take a chisel to it so that your words will be as clear to the reader, if not clearer, than they are to you,” he said. “Were I to have spoken extemporaneously on the matter, I would certainly have rambled, and who knows what my religious views would be then?” | cu

....................................................................................... p r in c et o n ne w s - in - b r ie f

christian union

::

the magazine

Love and Fidelity Network Marches for Marriage

56

The Love and Fidelity Network, a pro-marriage organization founded by Princeton alumna Cassandra Hough ’07, participated in the March for Marriage on June 19 at the west front of the Capitol.

Participants marched to the United States Supreme Court in support of marriage between one man and one woman.

At the rally, Caitlin La Ruffa (Princeton ’09), director of the Love and Fidelity Network (www.loveandfidelity.org), spoke about why marriage still matters to millennials. Other speakers included

former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum. Several other religious, political, and civic leaders also spoke at the event.

Lecture Examines Gospel, Race and Class Divisions Dr. Anthony Bradley, associate professor of theology at The King’s College (New York City) and a research fellow at the Acton Institute, appeared at Princeton University in April to probe issues of race and class within modern Christianity.

Bradley spoke on April 12 in McCormick Hall as part of a lecture series hosted by Manna Christian Fellowship (manna. mycpanel.princeton.edu).

“Our real divisions in this country are actually based on class,” said Bradley. “We will not be able the model the implications of the power of the Gospel if we are only around people who are just as educated, employed, and have the same life experiences…”

Ultimately, believers should model efforts by the early church to break barriers tied to social status, he said.

YA L E | On Campus

The Unjust Decision Of a Social Justice Network O R G A N I Z AT I O N D E N I E S M E M B E R S H I P T O C H O O S E L I F E AT YA L E

By Matthew Gerken, Yale ’11 Editor’s note: The following article originally appeared in First Things (www.firstthings.com). Reprinted with permission.

I

Life at Yale (http://chooselifeatyale. squarespace.com/) a natural fit for the social justice hub of Yale. Pro-lifers at Yale have long gotten over the idea that they’d get anywhere arguing with their peers about whose right to autonomy trumped whose, and so they charted a new direction. They took up their cause as a matter of social

Members of Choose Life at Yale with Amherst College Professor Hadley Arkes at the 2013 Vita et Veritas Conference.

2014 :: christianunion.org

justice. They realized that abortion has never been solely a matter of a baby’s life and liberty. It’s about the desperation and hopelessness of the mother that walked into the clinic.

It’s about the grandfather who will never put that little girl in his lap. It’s about the classmates who will never sit next to her, and the boy who will never work up the courage to write her that awkward poem. It’s even about that friend whom she would drift away from over the years, the successful sister who would make her

summer

n April, Yale’s campus pro-life group—after a year in which they participated in meetings and even helped raise money for the organization—became the first group in living memory to be denied membership in the Social Justice Network of Dwight Hall. Billing itself as an “independent” and “nonsectarian” center for public service and social justice, Dwight Hall at Yale is a group that seeks “to foster civic-minded student leaders and to promote service and activism in New Haven and around the world.”

Though legally independent, it is the university umbrella organization for service and advocacy, encompassing dozens of member organizations that address almost every conceivable issue, from the environment, to gay rights, to Palestinian statehood.

Membership would have given Choose Life at Yale (CLAY) access to a variety of resources, including coveted meeting locations, use of Dwight Hall’s vehicles for service projects, and a seat at the table during Dwight Hall’s freshman recruiting events. But most of all, it would have affirmed the conviction of CLAY members that the cause they served, whether by marching in D.C. or volunteering at a crisis pregnancy center, was a legitimate component of social justice.

Social justice is a term that has perhaps been used too indiscriminately for its own good, and members of Dwight Hall’s Social Justice Network might be surprised to learn that the term arose from the writings of a reactionary Italian Jesuit. But regardless of the history, it seems to me that if social justice means anything, it has to recognize the social nature of the type of justice it describes. Social justice is about our relationships with one another and with institutions, not our individuality and autonomy.

That’s why, contrary to many of my friends on the right, it makes a good deal of sense to me to describe inescapably communal issues such as environmental degradation as the proper subjects of social justice.

There’s a deeper truth that can be expressed in the term, though, in an age in which justice simply expressed is so often seen solely as a matter of individual autonomy. Social justice helps to remind us that humans are social by nature, and that nearly all of our decisions carry social consequences, often far greater than we can see. It can express the truth that the presence of the homeless on the streets of one of the wealthiest universities in the world is not merely a matter of the right to a hot meal and a roof, but is also the breakdown of a relationship between members of a community. Social injustice is a communal failure to love.

It’s this sense that made Choose

57

the spiritual climate in the ivy league

insecure, and the God she’d curse when she lost her job and then her mortgage. The biggest lie in all this is that the choice to end (or to save) a life is a solitary one.

We don’t know why Dwight Hall denied membership to the pro-life group. The ballot was secret and the count unannounced, and the established procedure (perhaps ironically for a social justice organization) allotted only sixty seconds for CLAY to make their case, while strictly banning any further discussion. We know it couldn’t have been perceived religious differences, since Dwight Hall already

contains Christian, Jewish, and secular groups. We know it couldn’t be CLAY’s political advocacy, because Dwight Hall endorses advocacy—even legislative advocacy—as part of its mission and a core component of many of its groups’ activities.

Perhaps it is because CLAY’s work cuts too close to the core. Perhaps it makes many of Dwight Hall’s leaders uncomfortable to be challenged by the witness of pro-lifers taking time from their week to serve women in need, whether in order to ease their choice for life or to help them heal after they have chosen otherwise. Per-

haps it challenges their comfortably individualistic assumptions about abortion because it is too close to what they themselves do when they feed the hungry, clothe the poor, or care for the sick. Perhaps it makes some of them—if only for a brief moment—rethink the meaning of the call to love and serve. That would explain why they have to push it away so quickly and quietly, because they know that this is how social justice movements begin. | cu is a former president of Choose Life at Yale. matthew gerken

.......................................................................................

YA L E | On Campus

Objective Evidence for the Resurrection D R . W I L L I A M L A N E C R A I G L E C T U R E S AT YA L E | By Eileen Scott, Senior Writer

christian union

::

the magazine

A

58

spring lecture by renowned theo- rect to claim that God has revealed logian Dr. William Lane Craig Himself decisively in Jesus,” Craig told explored the truth of Christ’s resur- attendees.

It’s crucial that Chrisrection and illustrated the tians are able to engage validity of the gospels as unbelievers in the public historical texts. square through objective Craig, Research Proevidence that supports fessor of Philosophy at their beliefs. “Otherwise, Talbot School of Theoloour claims hold no more gy and Professor of Phi[legitimacy] than the aslosophy at Houston Dr. William Lane Baptist University, spoke Craig lectured about sertions of anyone else claiming to have a personat Yale on April 10 in an the truth of the event sponsored by Yale resurrection of Christ al experience with God,” he said.

Students for Christ (www. at Yale this spring.

Craig laid out an obyalestudentsforchrist.org) jective, historically-based and Christian Union at Yale. The lecture was entitled “Ob- case for the truth of the resurrection, jective Evidence for the Resurrection emphasizing that Scriptures ought to be approached as a collection of anof Jesus.”

“Most people are happy to agree cient documents without any assumpthat God exists. But in our pluralist tion as to their reliability—just as society, it’s become politically incor- other sources for ancient history are

approached. Given that, Craig said that the majority of New Testament critics who have investigated the Gospel accept the fundamental facts concerning the resurrection.

These fundamental facts include: after his crucifixion, Jesus was buried

by Joseph of Arimathea in a tomb; on the Sunday after the crucifixion, Jesus’ tomb was found empty by a group of his women followers; on separate occasions, individuals and groups experienced post-mortem appearances of Jesus; and the disciples suddenly and sincerely came to believe that Jesus was risen from the dead despite their having every predisposition to the contrary.

According to Craig, those verifiable facts validate the Scriptures as reliable historical sources. At the same time, however, he also told students, “You don’t have to have evidence of

the resurrection in order for the resurrection to have occurred,” citing that prior to 1920 there was no known evidence of the other galaxies in the solar system.

While evidence may not be necessary for the resurrection to have occurred, belief in the resurrection is vital to claiming Christianity as one’s faith: “To deny the resurrection of Jesus is to deny an essential tenet of the faith,” Craig said. “If he didn’t rise from the dead, the Christian proclamation is false…Jesus would be a false messianic pretender.”

Audience members had questions for Craig after his lecture with some fixated on the reliability of the Scriptures. Craig encouraged the students to shake loose the notion that they had to believe in the gospels in order for them to be historically valid. They are, according to Craig, able to stand on their own as reliable documents that can be traced back to just five

years after the crucifixion events.

“To ignore the gospels in favor of extra-biblical sources would be simply mad as historical methodology,” said Craig. “History will always look at the earliest, most primitive documents.” And those primitive documents are the Scriptures.

scholars are reading the gospels against the Jewish context.

Additionally, Craig reminded attendees, Scriptures initially existed separately. It wasn’t until they were brought together and bound as the Bible that they became a volume for faith.

“Most people are happy to agree that God exists. But in our pluralist society, it’s become politically incorrect to claim that God has revealed Himself decisively in Jesus.”

Craig also brought to light the fact that much of the initial work in the field of the history of religion was done by German scholars. As a result, he said, that German anti-Semitism influenced German theology, and thereby the stories of the historical Jesus as well. Relatively recently, Craig said, there has been a movement toward Jewish acclamation, in which

Following the lecture, an ice cream social was sponsored by Yale Students for Christ. Students were able to discuss the lecture with Craig and others who gathered for the event.

“Overall, Dr. Craig was able to present the Gospel to the minds and the hearts of everyone present,” said Rodney Evans, Yale ’14. “That was the highlight of the night.” | cu

....................................................................................... y a l e ne w s - in - b r ie f

Divinity School Library Adds Papers of Chinese Evangelist

:: christianunion.org

A new book by best-selling author Barbara Brown Taylor, Yale M.Div. ’76, was featured in Time Magazine in April. In Learning to Walk in the Dark, Taylor posits how uncertainty offers opportunities for strength and hope, and how God’s presence can often be felt in the darkness. There are lessons to be

2014

Barbara Brown Taylor Featured in TIME

learned in the darkness, she contends, and like one who is blind, there are things that can be sensed and seen only in the dark. summer

The Yale Divinity School Library is now home to the personal papers of John Sung, the evangelist known for his role in the Chinese revival movement in the 1920s and 30s.

Sung was educated in the United States, but returned to China where he joined Bethel Bible School of Shanghai and formed the “Bethel Evangelist Band.” His sermons were known for his emphasis on dealing with sin.

The addition of Sung’s papers to

the library at Yale was celebrated during a ceremony on May 8 in the Day Missions Ready Room. Sung’s grandson, Timothy Wang, represented the family at the event.

59

the magazine

:: christian union

60

pa rt ing shot

||

Cornell University || Photograph by Phil Anema

Thank you!

Through your generous giving, Christian leaders are being developed to change culture.

Luke Foster

f 2015

columbia class o

, Mozambique Hometown: Gurué y Society, Columbia ion in History Ja at tr hn en Jo nc e th Co d of an an h rm Major: Englis Forum, Chai Co-Leader ident of the Veritas es Pr : es iti er Outreach Team tiv rm Ac fo s n tio Ac Campu & ith rural mnist, Columbia Fa n of missionaries in so e th Daily Spectator Colu up g in ow gr w, everyity, after

York C ening. I sa y in the world, New me a spiritual awak ca cit k st oc te sh ea gr re e ltu th cu in e g th h and Beauty to “Arrivin with r Goodness and Trut fo to my roots. Along g e in m k ng lo oo a sh e, er, qu ng bi Mozam spiritual hu campus, an abiding where around me on with everyday life. pus, and cohere and connect my first days on cam g rin du e m to t ou eded to hed y and confidence I ne w Jesse Peterson reac rit llo cu se Fe e ry th ist e in m M ve ga on Christian Uni tual home that bia became the spiri um ol C at ry ist in m e mpus. th ths of the Faith on ca tru e th to ly ld bo s es ful presence witn I seek to live as a faith as re tu rip Sc th wi d God has called y min ard to the adventure ed me to saturate m rw fo pp ui ok eq lo s I . ha gy ry lo ist eo in The m e light of th hing literature in th in the academy, teac me to!”

ChristianUnion.org/Giving Giving@ChristianUnion.org

CHRISTIAN UNION 240 Nassau Street Princeton, NJ 08542 USA

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Trinity helped me in terms of

biblical depth and meeting others with a heart for spiritual dynamism as well as the life of the mind.

Matthew W. Bennett ț &3Ǿ ǗǕǕǖȜ

Christian Union Founder and President

T Trinity rinity Ev Evangelical angelical Divinity School pr prepares epares le leaders aders at the mast master’s er’s and doctoral doctoral level level for for F FAITHFUL AITHFUL C CHRISTIAN HRISTIAN A AC ACTION CTION in a vvariety ariety of vvocations. ocations.

Preparation for a variety of ministry contexts, including urban settings, local church pastorate, campus ministry, and international development / missions work

Six fully-funded PhD scholarships across three programs in Educational Studies, Theological Studies, and Intercultural Studies

Visit teds.edu to watch students and faculty introduce ,2/ -/,$/ *0 +! 1, Ɯ+! 6,2/ 0

%,) /0%&-0ǽ

christian union

::

the magazine

Master’s-level programs for many vocations, including academic teaching & writing, licensed mental health counseling, and vocational ministry

4

Send us an email at gradadmissions@teds.edu ,/ )) țǻdzdzȜ ǶǷǸȒǻǶǶǺǽ

&0 &+ ""/Ɯ")!Ǿ ))&+,&0Ǿ 4&1% "51"+0&,+ 0&1"0 &+ (/,+Ǿ %&

$,Ǿ ,)2* 20Ǿ +!& + -,)&0Ǿ !&0,+Ǿ &)4 2(""Ǿ &110 2/$% +! 0,21% ),/&! ǽ