Harvard Law
The Revolutionary Power of Christian Retreats
One Student Ministry's Unstoppable Heart to See God Transform Lives
by Erin conner, writer & communications associate
It's not easy or convenient to plan a weekend away. It is much easier to choose not to disrupt the pattern of life and to stay within the confines of routine. Disruption is not easy for anyone, but it is especially difficult for Ivy League students. Their rigorous academic schedules are full of the demands and pressures of achievement at the highest level, so stepping away from it all during the school year is nothing short of revolutionary.
Stepping away to retreat with the Lord and with each other is a beautiful gateway into the freedom Christ came to give--freedom, in part, from the weight of the standards, values, and identity placed upon us by the world. The students of Christian Union are learning to live in this kind of freedom, and, as a result, they are sharing it with others.
Christian Union Connects Leaders in a New City
Christian Union Washington, DC Hosts First Annual Reception
by erin conner, writer and communications associate
On a warm October evening in Arlington, VA, close to two dozen people gathered to attend Christian Union's first annual Washington, DC reception. This reception included a meet and greet for attendees to connect with other Christian Union alumni and friends of the ministry. It also hosted Carrie Sheffield, a nationally renowned columnist and broadcaster, as the guest speaker to share an overview of her recently published memoir, Motorhome Prophecies. Sheffield, a Harvard alumna and member of Christian Union America, will be serving in an advisory role for the Christian Union Washington, DC Board of Advisors.
Carrie Sheffield sharing at Christian Union's Washington, DC Reception
God is Surely Alive at Harvard Law
2024 Bible Course Engagement Explodes
by erin conner, writer and communications associate
In 2021, Christian Union Gloria Law and other ministries at Harvard Law School (HLS) were featured on the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). The report, seen on major television stations and online, highlighted a strong Christian presence and a unified desire to see God move mightily at HLS.
Student Leaders Focus on Freshmen and Faith
Reaching Freshmen at Our Nation's Most Secular Schools with the Love of Christ
by Erin conner, writer & communications associate
Student leaders at Christian Union such as Foster Cardinale and Teddy Taylor, seniors at Cornell University, are generously and joyfully giving their time and effort to warmly welcome the incoming class of students on their campus. Cardinale and Taylor were both involved in Christian Union Bible Courses last year and will be leading freshman Bible Courses this upcoming academic year. Both had the idea to take pizzas to the freshman quad during the first week of classes, as Cornell's dining staff members were on strike and students were only being served bagged meals. Both are selflessly serving others as higher than themselves.
The Greatest Struggle: Living with Emptiness
Christian Leadership Ministry at Harvard Law
by Justin Yim, Ministry Director of Christian Union Gloria Law at Harvard Law
When Harvard was first founded in 1636, one of its central bylaws was written as follows: "...let every student be earnestly pressed to consider well that the main end of his life and studies is to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life--and therefore to lay Christ in the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning..."
In 1993, when evangelist Billy Graham asked Harvard’s President, Derek Bok, about the greatest struggle his students faced at the college, Bok quickly responded, “Living with emptiness.”
Much has changed at Harvard since its founding days, but much has remained the same. And the unique urgency of the body of Christ to be more present in the greater student community is at a crescendo, as we are challenged to show love amid hate, peace in a time of turmoil, and to speak truth in love.
What is Christian Union?
A Ministry that Equips Tranformative Christian Leaders for Life
By Erin conner, writer and communications associate
Christian Union has been in the national spotlight for several weeks now. From magazine and newspaper articles, television interviews, a podcast appearance, a Worldwide Prayer Meeting at Yale with the Summit International School of Ministry that was live-streamed across multiple countries, and social media ads running from the west to the east coast of the U.S., many people in faith-based circles are asking, "What is Christian Union?"
Christian Union is a leadership development ministry that works at ten of the nation's most influential educational institutions and beyond to develop and connect Christians to transform culture for God's glory.
Christian Union (CU) is a unique ministry in that it meets a comprehensive set of needs in our nation's young adults:
Nothing is More Loving
Sharing Christ with an "Unreached People Group" at Cornell and Beyond
By Erin conner, writer and communications associate
While students and faculty were protesting in Ithaca's public spaces and headlines were raging with anger and allegations about attacks on freedom in The Cornell's Daily Sun, Christian Union (CU) Vita students were fixing their eyes on the Author and Finisher of their faith. These students recently surrendered their week of spring break to serve the Lord. They are not looking to the right or to the left; instead, they are gazing upon the beauty of the Lord, knowing He is the One who sustains them and keeps them from sinking into the surrounding culture of despair, as they share the Hope that they have in Jesus Christ with anyone who will listen.
Jesus Disrupts: 2024 Evangelism Campaign
CU Rise Set to "Disrupt" Spiritual Climate of U.S. Colleges
By erin conner, writer and communications associate
In 2022, Christian Union first launched CU Rise, an evangelism campaign designed to share the gospel with students at nine of the nation’s most influential universities more boldly, strategically, and frequently than ever before. This month, Christian Union is at it again, as CU Rise takes form for the third spring in a row with its campaign entitled "Jesus Disrupts."
For eight weeks, starting March 17, the goal of CU Rise is to proclaim the gospel, disrupting the current spiritual climate at highly secular universities that produce a disproportionate amount of U.S. and global leaders. Matt Bennett, Founder and President of Christian Union, recently told the Christian Post that this theme was chosen “to introduce students to how radical Jesus is.”
The schools across the country that this campaign will focus on include Brown University of Rhode Island, Columbia University of New York, Cornell University of New York, Dartmouth College of New Hampshire, Harvard University of Massachusetts, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University of New Jersey, Yale University of Connecticut, and Stanford University of California.
“Students today at the nation’s most rigorous schools are largely unaware of the most important message in the history of humanity. Jesus Christ has brought more good into the world than any other person, and these students deserve to know, said Bennett. "Jesus is also the only one who can forgive sins and transfer us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. We need to do everything we can to give these students the opportunity to believe in Him.”
Read Christian Post's full article entitled "‘Jesus disrupts’: Christian Student Group to Launch 8-week Evangelism Tour" here.
Read FaithWire's related article entitled, "Christian Leader's Sobering Comparision Between Communist China and Ivey League Campuses" here.
View and share videos, testimonies, or articles from the CU Risecampaign that explain Christianity here.
It Is Not About You
Devotional on Being a Godly Vessel
By justin yim, ministry director, cu gloria law at harvard law
"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” – Romans 10:17
One of the greatest joys of being a pastor was (and continues to be) coaching and mentoring young pastors-in-training. I’ve had the privilege of mentoring a good number of seminary students who were cutting their teeth into local church ministry. And in the process of our mentoring relationship – just as Jesus did it with His disciples by sending them out two-by-two – there came a point when I asked for him to preach their first sermon to the congregation. Inevitably, in the week before that Sunday, in a moment of existential panicking whether the sermon was good enough, I would have the same conversation that was given to me when I was a young seminarian: “It’s not about you.”
For Such a Time as This
A Devotional to Prepare Our Hearts for a New Year
By Dr. Marcus Buckley, Ministry Director at Christian Union Vita at Cornell
"And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him." -Esther 4:12-17
Seek the Prince of Peace
Join Our 21-Day Fast
By chuck hetzler, PhD, vice president of biblical theology
Is Israel’s current war a sign of the end times? How should we, as Christians, think about the war? What can and should we do?
Christian Union is calling all American Christians to start the year with a 21-day fast, Tuesday, January 2, through Monday, January 22, 2024, to humble ourselves and seek God in light of the current events in the Middle East.
The upcoming CU National Fast is titled "Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace for All Nations." Christian Union faculty and staff will write devotionals based on Scripture, which will be sent to all signed-up participants by email each day of the fast.
Repent, for the Kingdom of God is Near
A Closer Look at Jesus' Call to Repentance
By Erin Conner
Repentance is a beautiful word. It is the name of the road that leads out of darkness. It is the name of the road that leads to life. It is a Biblical concept that, depending on the type of church we grew up in or currently attend, may seem harsh, foreign, or antiquated. As a true follower of God, deep and ongoing repentance, the act of turning away from sin to wholeheartedly following the Lord, is a life-giving spiritual discipline.
From a deep immersion into Scripture, we find that God never intended for repentance to be a spiritual discipline of the past. God never intended for his people to ignore His commands. In fact, Christ said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) He never intended His people to be “of the world,” obeying the world’s “commands” while neglecting His. (Romans 12:2) We find God never intended self-worship (or any other form of idolatry) to co-exist with the worship of God. From a deep immersion into Scripture, we also find that God never intended for people to go through the motions of repentance without a contrite heart.
They Will Know Us by Our Love
College Students Struggle as Israel-Hamas War Continues
By erin conner
"By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." -John 13:35
Many of our nation’s colleges and universities have been in a state of turmoil since the October 7 attacks against Israel. Christianity Today’s recent article by Emily Belz, “As Campus Threats Rise, College Ministries Look for Ways to Help,” takes a closer look at how Christian Union and other ministries are responding.
The Power of a Seeking God Lifestyle
Highlight: CU America member, Erika Lamara Garrett, LMFT
By Erin Conner
“It was the fall that saved my life,” Erika Lamara Garrett explained. In January of 2020, at the age of 33, Garrett fell. The injuries she sustained from this fall confined her to a bed and made her dependent on others to perform basic daily activities. Despite the desperation of her circumstances while on bed rest, she sensed the Lord telling her, “Erika- you will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”
Are the Miraculous Gifts for Today?
The Debate of Cessationism v. Continuationism
By erin conner
Are the miraculous gifts for today? Dr. Michael Brown argues a compelling “yes” in his article entitled “The Reformed of the Lord Say No to Cessationism,” published on October 9 in Christianity Today.
“The cessationist debate is back, although in some ways, it’s never left,” Brown writes, in light of the recently scheduled 2024 Cessationist Conference led, in part, by Pastor John MacArthur. This conference is timed to coincide with the release of the Cessationist movie, “bringing an age-old topic back to the forefront of trending conversations, especially among Reformed believers.”
The Nobility of Examining the Scriptures Daily
By chuck hetzler
The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. – Acts 17:10-11
The Bible says that the Bereans were “more noble” than the Thessalonians because they were eager to hear what Paul and Silas had to say. They did not quickly take offense to the concept of a suffering Savior, crucified as a criminal, and raised from death to life as the victorious Son of God. They did not consider it inconceivable that God could fulfill thousands of years of prophecies in this God-Man, Jesus of Nazareth. Some people today can be quickly triggered when hearing unfamiliar messages, but such a reaction is ignoble and immature. We should be able to hear different views and then patiently weigh and test them through the Scriptures, just as the Bereans did.
A Journey Beyond Graduation
Christian Union America's Mentoring Program Launches Alumni Well
By christine foster
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. - Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
For many Christians, the most challenging phase of life begins the moment they graduate from college. Robust discipleship, through which many students grew strong in college, suddenly disappears. The members of their Bible Course group scatter across the country and around the world. Young graduates suddenly find themselves in a new city, with a demanding job, and no home church. Christian Union’s Alumni Mentoring Program aims to smooth this time, by equipping these graduates with some support. The intention is to see these new alumni continue to network with other faithful people and grow into the full Christian leaders God intends for them to be.
Cherish the Word of God
A Devotional
By qwynn gross
If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. - John 15:7, NKJV
The Word of God is the bedrock, basis, and fabric of Christianity; spoken in the beginning and framing the world in which creation lives, the Word is the manna from heaven that became flesh and dwelled amongst man, written on tablets of stone and transferred to man’s heart so that all would be warned and find great reward, the Word was given to one, Adam, and defied by two, Adam and Eve; a covenant to be kept by a nation astray in heart but upheld by the Savior who would be faithful and true. Established as the one thing that will never pass away, neither return to God void, the Word of God is the Truth that endures forever, and that must abide in every believer, as imitators of Christ, that prayers may be answered, faith can be seen, and fruit is produced.
A Win for Religious Liberty
FCA v San Jose Unified School District
By erin conner
In an article on the FIRE (The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression) website, Robert Shibley reports that in 2019, at a high school in California, Fellowship of Christian Athletes' (FCA) recognition as a student group was revoked for requiring that student leaders comply with their statements of belief. These statements align with the basic tenets of Christian theology.
On September 13, 2023, belief-based student groups won an important victory in the lawsuit that followed, Fellowship of Christian Athletes v. San Jose Unified School District, which restored the ability of many such groups to meet on public campuses and schools in the many western states covered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Let Us Reason Together
Christian Union Bible Courses Challenge Students
By erin conner
Intellectual engagement, one of the six core values of Christian Union, embraces God’s command for us to love God with all our mind. (Mark 12:30) As a result of the desire to intellectually engage university students to build faithful leaders, Christian Union offers rigorous Bible Courses.
Students involved in Christian Union ministries in the fall semester of 2023 have an opportunity to join a 10-lesson study on the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Colossians, which is often referred to as a “prison letter,” as Paul wrote it while “in chains.” (Colossians 4:3, 10, 18.)
