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Is Culture Reshaping Religious Affiliation and Freedom in America?
by Christian union, first published in 2021; edited and revised 2024
Religious freedom is an expectation and reality in our country, but with a major shift in the cultural understanding of identity, some experts argue that religious freedom may be evaporating before our eyes. In an article from Gospel Coalition Australia entitled "Has Religious Freedom Had Its Day," writer Akos Balogh examines the cultural changes that are quickly reshaping the freedom of the Church in the west.
Greetings from Providence!
As the stillness of the summer begins on campus, I am praising the Lord that although our leaders are spread out in different areas across the country this summer, several of them are currently completing internships in Washington, DC. It’s amazing how the Lord has strategically kept our transformative leaders connected, even away from campus life. Knowing that several of them would be together, they planned ahead to connect with each other through meal times, prayers, and devotionals. Amaya Allen (Vice President) and Giselle Gonzalez (Campus Kindness leader) met up in DC and spent time with one another. I give glory to the Lord that He keeps these important bonds strengthened through the love and power of His Holy Spirit.
“Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” -Matthew 18:19-20 ESV
When Jesus says that he’ll be among us, he really means it! God fulfills his promises. And in accordance with our united prayers, he has been so present at Dartmouth this past term. From hosting our evangelistic event for the whole campus (thank you for your prayers!) to providing personal ministry for over 30 students, we’ve seen God move. The level of fervor in Christian Union Vox’s students this spring has been extraordinary! From prayer meetings lasting until 2am to 10-day fasts to spontaneously worshiping the Lord together, God is on the move at Dartmouth! And it comes because God fulfills his word: when we seek him together, he shows up!
Our students began the month of May by taking their last finals and heading out for their summer plans. Many are pursuing internships, and some are working and studying around the world. Just this past week, I was able to connect one of our current students who is working in Japan this summer with an alumnus from our ministry who lives and works in Tokyo! What a blessing to have such an incredible alumni network at Princeton and through CU Nova.
At the end of the year, many students shared testimonies with us about their experience in our Bible courses. One student remarked, “I think my involvement in CU Bible Course has been the most impactful and beneficial thing to my spiritual walk.” Another said, “This community has given me my favorite memories of Princeton.” It’s amazing to see our students grow in love for the Lord and for each other throughout the year as they engage with CU Nova.
Aligning Our Hearts with the Heart of God
by Christian union, first published in 2018; edited and revised 2024
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?"- Luke 16:9-11 (NIV)
It is no secret that the priorities of Jesus regularly riled up the religious leaders of His day. Jesus’ proclivity for welcoming the disreputable “sinners and tax collectors” into relationship and community became a particular target of their ire and scorn. The series of four parables in Luke 15:1-16:15 function in tandem to show Jesus’ radical inclusion and acceptance of such unbeloved people as deeply consonant with the shape of God’s coming kingdom in the world.
Luke 15:1-2 plays the set-up role for the four outrageous parables that follow, each building in dramatic intensity, in clarity of a scandalous message, and in subverting and violating what almost universally holds for common sense in a fallen world. The “therefore” in 15:3 indicates that the four stories illustrate why He “receives sinners and eats with them” in His home. Likewise, Luke 16:14-15 provides a climactic summary, gathering up the main point of the parables. It turns out that the Pharisees despise Jesus’ priorities because they are “lovers of money” and thus on the wrong side of the God’s purposes in creation—in spite of how they pose piously before human beings, masking their true motives for their abhorrence of such unclean sinners.
Yet it is only in the final parable that Jesus’ apology for His kingdom-shaped ministry appears in all of its shocking beauty. Strangely commended by the business owner he has just swindled (16:8), the dishonest steward’s motives and actions tend to confuse the reader. In what way does his behavior reflect Jesus’ ministry? How are we supposed to imitate Him? Clearly, not in being greedy or dishonest over financial matters per se (we are to be “shrewd” like him (16:8), yet while being as innocent as doves, as in Matt. 10:16). Yet to stop there would be to miss the whole point.
Adora America Event at Madison Square Garden Created Altar of Unity
by erin conner, writer and communications associate
On July 5, 2024, powerful worship and prayer filled the atmosphere of Madison Square Garden in midtown Manhattan, as thousands of believers gathered to unite to give glory and honor to God. Matt Bennett, founder and president of Christian Union, a ministry that works to develop Christian leaders at strategic universities and cities across the U.S., was honored and humbled to pray for the corporate Body of Christ as part of this event held by Adora America.
Adora America "looks to collaborate with God in connecting the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ in a region, so that we might preach the gospel and flood the earth with the message of the Kingdom of God. As part of a previous move of God amongst the Hispanic community in this region, in 1998, the church declared New York as the city of God."
Christian Union is Hosting a National Fast for America to Return to God
by Erin conner, writer and communications associate
Pew and Barna research showcases the multi-decade decline of Christian belief and practice in America among both strongly committed and marginally committed Christians. Projections indicate that 50 million people will be "lost" without reconciliation to God through Christ by 2050. America has suffered mass secularization in the last few decades resulting in an increase in disorder in America, from the highest levels of depression and anxiety on record since the Great Depression to a significant and measurable decrease in personal and societal health and stability.
In response to this reality, Christian Union America will be holding a 14-day national fast from August 1 to August 14, 2024, that will emphasize the need for American Christians and the American people to turn to God. This initiative will urge Christians to fast and pray for our nation, for our nation's leaders to return to God, and for all Americans to heed the Lord's loving call to reconciliation, repentance, and obedience.
Christian Union will provide all participants with a guide to fasting, an email devotional each day of the fast, an online community for participants, and a Bible reading plan. Participants will also be added to Christian Union's app, which is hosting a private group for this purpose. This online group will allow participants to connect with other like-minded Christians from the east to the west coast, share testimonies, and access additional resources such as videos and articles during the fast.
Grieving with the God of All Comfort
by Christian union america
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." —Matthew 5:4
Did you know that mourning over sin is an important aspect of prayer for revival?
As Christians with a healthy heart and mind, grieving over the destruction that sin causes in our own lives, in the lives of others, and in the land we live is a natural response. Consider this idea from the Bible:
Jesus’ second beatitude promises blessing and comfort to those who mourn. In a narrow and natural sense, this beatitude applies to those who go through the heartache of trial and loss. But most commentators believe that there is a larger, spiritual application in Jesus’ words that centers on mourning over sin. Most often, this verse is applied to mourning over one's own individual sin. Yes, we should sincerely repent over our own sin; however, we need not stop at the personal level. There is also a corporate dimension to repentance, prayer, and blessing. If, together, we allow ourselves to feel what God feels- to allow God to give us a heart of flesh instead of a heart of stone- and mourn over the sins of our families, our churches, our communities, and/or our nation, Scripture illustrates that God’s blessing of comfort and healing can flow into these areas as well.
The 2023-2024 academic year has come to a close here at Cornell University, and Christian Union Vita has been blessed to see the Lord work in so many ways!
It’s hard to believe how fast this year has gone! Our student leaders did incredible work all year long in reaching out to students and welcoming them in, helping students to find both a warm Christian community and a place where they could be challenged to grow into the Christian leaders God has called each of them to be. While several of our current leaders have graduated and are moving on, I am excited to say that the next academic year’s group of student leaders are already taking charge and implementing plans to begin reaching out to incoming students over the summer. These students are laying the groundwork to make sure Christian Union Vita hits the ground running when the semester starts this August!
A Reflection on the Healing Power of God in the Church Age
by Christian union, originally published in 2019
“…if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
– 2 Chronicles 7: 13, 14
One small hand slipped into mine. A second stealthy hand claimed my other hand. The young girls tugged me along the dirt path through the village, between small homes. Prayers and songs drifted from doorways. Cell phones served as our flashlights, guiding my steps only; the girls were sure-footed as they pulled and nudged me along. From the sky, heavy with darkness, stars erupted. They dangled so seemingly low amid the lengthwise haze of the Milky Way I wondered if I might disentangle a hand, reach up, and snatch one, just one, drop it my pocket, to remember a sacred night in Vunibao, Fiji.
