Racial Reconciliation

��ñ�� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

ashlye.vanderworp@intervarsity.org — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 19:56:32 +0000

��ñ�� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

(MADISON, WI)––��ñ�� Christian Fellowship released a survey today assessing Christian higher education students’ well-being and attitudes amid the COVID-19 pandemic, their viewpoints on social issues, their discipleship resourcing needs, and more. Representing 316 current ��ñ�� students on 127 college campuses, the findings reveal racial justice and climate change as the most important social issues, and isolation, lack of community, and/or a lack of social interactions as the primary factors in a decline in mental health.

“Generation Z is the most connected generation yet, with an unprecedented online presence and digital connectivity,” said Tom Lin, President & CEO of ��ñ�� Christian Fellowship. “However, the findings of this survey show just how important community and fellowship are to students’ overall well-being and how important it is to maintain and cultivate these on college campuses.”

Key findings include:

Almost half (47%) of students reported that their mental and emotional health has been negatively impacted as a result of the pandemic. Of these students, 71% contributed this to isolation, lack of community, and/or a lack of social interactions.
60% of students are hungry for even more resources on Scripture study and 52% want more guidance on prayer; nearly half (47%) of students are looking for resources to provide guidance on dating and marriage.
Top issues of importance to students today are: racial justice (39%); climate change (29%); foster care, adoption, and orphan care (28%). Jobs and the economy (14%); immigration (10%); and serving refugees (8%) were ranked the lowest.

“I’m deeply encouraged that the top areas Gen Z students want to grow in are in studying Scripture and developing a deeper prayer life. Scripture study and prayer are central to how ��ñ�� is addressing the loneliness and isolation Gen Z students have experienced this year, and they are the lens through which we understand and engage social issues,” Lin said.

Greg Jao, Chief Communications Officer at ��ñ��, added: “Emerging from the past year of racial unrest, we’re seeing how the social issues that our nation reckons with are also at the forefront of our students’ minds. As a campus ministry, it’s crucial for us to help students navigate both these issues and how to live out their faith from a Biblical perspective in real time on college campuses.”

The survey results are now available to read and download at https://pinkston.co/2021-Student-Survey.

For more information, contact ��ñ��@pinkston.co.

About ��ñ�� Christian Fellowship:

One of the largest campus ministries in the United States, ��ñ�� Christian Fellowship ministers to students and faculty on 769 campuses and has over 1,100 chapters across the nation, from Ivy League schools to community colleges. For over 75 years, ��ñ�� has partnered with hundreds of college campuses to see students and faculty transformed, campuses renewed, and world changers developed. ��ñ�� is dedicated to establishing and advancing witnessing communities of students and faculty on college and university campuses.

News Keywords

Racial Reconciliation

racial justice

climate change

Praying for God’s Justice

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Sat, 09 Jul 2016 11:34:45 +0000

News

Tom Lin and Jim Lundgren

Praying for God’s Justice

It’s been a heavy week.

We are both lamenting the death of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and the death of Philando Castile in Minnesota, both killed at the hands of law enforcement.

We are both also lamenting the deaths of Brent Thompson, Patrick Zamarippa, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, and Lorne Ahrens, the five police officers killed by a sniper in Dallas while they were protecting protestors.

And we are lamenting again the longstanding existence of racial conflict in the U.S.—the sinful physical, emotional, and mental abuse African Americans, in particular, have suffered under since our nation began; the often volatile relationships between law enforcement officers and communities of color, and the fear that exists on both sides; and the frequent silence of the church on issues of systemic racial injustice.

But there are no simple analyses or solutions, both because of the long history of racial conflict and because of its many layers. Violence, we know, will never be part of the solution. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem; it merely creates new and more complicated ones.” The solution we long for is God’s justice—true, lasting justice, of which violence has no part.

The problem resists our desire for black and white clarity, however. It demands both/and thinking, rather than either-or thinking, and reflects the human paradox: we are all God’s image bearers and sinful humans simultaneously. We have sinned in what we’ve done, and in what we’ve left undone. And it will take God bringing both personal transformation of hearts and major transformation of systems and structures for lasting change to come.

Yet, in the midst of all the answers we don’t know, here’s what we do know. As the current president and president-elect of ��ñ��, we care deeply about the gospel and the increasingly diverse college and university world. ��ñ��’s ministry reflects that diversity: over 54 percent of our students are non-White Americans, and we have had consistent growth in the number of Black staff and students. Last week the two of us welcomed 19 new Black staff members into ��ñ�� at our annual Orientation for New Staff in Madison, Wisconsin. They join 94 Black staff members and over 5,300 African American students involved in ��ñ�� chapters all over the U.S. And we know, as we’ve listened to staff and student stories, that any of these bright, eager, gifted young men and women could have been the ones killed this week.

That’s why we’re committed to standing with our Black brothers and sisters and co-laborers in the gospel—listening to them, learning from them, and lamenting with them over the structures and systems that keep them living in fear for their lives, both on campus and off.

We’re also committed to continuing to develop students and faculty who understand what it is to be God’s image bearers in a fractured, violent world—to be bearers of his dignity, grace, peace, truth, and justice in their relationships and vocations. Our Black Campus Ministries staff model this so well for students; we’re often amazed at the ways they are able to shepherd and disciple hurting students while they themselves are also in deep grief.

Our vice president and director of Multiethnic Ministries, Paula Fuller, says, “One of our greatest challenges in times like these is the ability to hold on to hope. As I interact with our Black staff and students, I see the level of pain and trauma they’ve experienced. I also see their capacity to grapple with the brokenness of society while holding onto the power of the gospel. As we enter a new season for Black Campus Ministries, and the appointment of Charlene Brown as our new director, I see a generation of leaders who can help ��ñ�� envision a path that moves us beyond engaging racial tension to challenging racial injustice. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.’”

The presence of justice is not a Black and White issue. In addition to African Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinos have also experienced suffering at the hands of unjust structures. It will take all of us—people of all ethnicities and denominations—praying and taking action as God leads to see his kingdom come and his will be done in relationships and systems in the United States.

If you’re new to the journey, here are a few voices you might start your listening and learning with:

��ñ�� staff member Brunel Bienvenu’s reflections on being from a law enforcement family and being a victim of racism at the hands of police
professor and pastor Ed Stetzer’s parable of the Hellenist widows from Acts 6
pastor and ��ñ�� Press author Thabiti Anyabwile’s call to the church to speak out on matters of injustice.

As the two of us lament and continue to learn from others, we’re praying big prayers too, asking God to bring his mercy and justice—quickly. Will you join us in that prayer? And then, as God leads, in partnering to see and work for his answer?

Lord, may your kingdom come and your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

News Keywords

Racial Reconciliation

Justice

��ñ�� and BlackLivesMatter

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Fri, 01 Jan 2016 03:19:02 +0000

Press Room

��ñ�� and BlackLivesMatter

(St. Louis, MO) --- ��ñ�� has a 75-year dedication to the gospel, orthodox doctrine, and missions while also sharing the message in a way that resonates with the current student generation. Scripture and the gospel are non-negotiables for us. Some of our chapters have been denied access to campuses because of our dedication to core, orthodox Christian doctrines.

We chose to address #BlackLivesMatter at Urbana 15, ��ñ��’s Student Missions Conference, because it is a language and experience of many college students. Many Black ��ñ�� staff and students report that they are physically and emotionally at risk in their communities and on campus. About one-half of those at Urbana 15 are people of color, including more than 1,200 Black participants. ��ñ�� chose to participate in this conversation because we believe that Christians have something distinctive to contribute in order to advance the gospel.

��ñ�� does not endorse everything attributed to #BlackLivesMatter. For instance, we reject any call to attack or dehumanize police. But – using the language of Francis Schaeffer and Chuck Colson – we are co-belligerents with a movement with which we sometimes disagree because we believe it is important to affirm that God created our Black brothers and sisters. They bear his image. They deserve safety, dignity and respect. ��ñ�� believes all lives are sacred – born and unborn. Interim president Jim Lundgren says, “Scripture is clear about the sanctity of life. That is why I’m both pro-life and committed to the dignity of my Black brothers and sisters.”

We see racial reconciliation as an expression of the gospel (e.g., Ephesians 2:14-18), and as an important practice in preparation for global missions. The need for reconciliation is obvious in the Middle East and other global mission fields. It is just as obvious in the United States. ��ñ�� has been involved in this conversation for decades. We believe it is important to stand alongside our Black brothers and sisters.

News Keywords

Racial Reconciliation

Justice

BlackLivesMatter

Racial Reconciliation

��ñ���� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

��ñ���� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

About ��ñ���� Christian Fellowship:

Praying for God’s Justice

Praying for God’s Justice

��ñ���� and BlackLivesMatter

��ñ���� and BlackLivesMatter

��ñ�� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

��ñ�� Christian Fellowship Releases Gen Z Survey Assessing Christian Students’ Viewpoints and Ministry Needs Amid Pandemic

About ��ñ�� Christian Fellowship:

��ñ�� and BlackLivesMatter

��ñ�� and BlackLivesMatter