Myers also met with a group of pastors on Saturday morning, and concluded his visit by preaching a Sunday morning sermon at New Life Presbyterian Church entitled The Incarnation and the Good Life. More information on Mars Hill Audio can be found at http://www.marshillaudio.org/.  His lectures at Cornell are available in audio format at http://www.chestertonhouse.org/

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Charles Kim Says Good-Bye to Crusade and Hello to Christian Union: Cornell Campus Minister Called to Princeton
Posted June 9, 2005
by Elyse Lee ’08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - In the middle of spring semester 2005, Charles Kim resigned his position as staff worker with Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC) and Director of the Mott House at Cornell. Kim has been working with CCC since June 2000, and has been at Cornell since January 2001. After working at the Mott House, which is owned by the Christian Union, Kim was inspired by the Christian Union’s vision and by the close friendships he built with the staff. Through the process of working with Matt Bennett, Sandy Corbitt, Howe Whitman and others at the Christian Union over the past two years, Kim found himself joining them in their desire for sweeping spiritual transformation on Ivy League campuses. Kim will join the Christian Union at Princeton University and looks forward to the opportunity to work with like-minded ministers and new-found friends.

In correspondence with Kim, I asked him to impart his insight and wisdom gained from working at Cornell for four years. The most significant lesson Kim learned while serving at Cornell is that, “What matters most is friendship. People aren’t looking for a great organization or the best materials they want people who have experienced the love of Jesus, which makes them feel at home.”

Kim thinks that the great transformation of spiritual or cultural change on campus is still coming. Cornell remains largely secular and laden with temptations of self-promotion and wealth. However, Kim has seen devoted Christian students with a great passion for the Lord take bold stands against popular culture and accepted opinions, and these displays of bravery have inspired him. Recently, Kim has witnessed a growing interest in the unity of the Christian body and a genuine desire for spiritual revival. In the coming future, Kim believes that Cornell will witness a radical movement of the Holy Spirit.

The hardest part about being a staff worker at Cornell for Kim was, without a doubt, keeping his own love relationship with the Lord “white hot”. He says, “Above all else, ministry demands a revealing of your heart. What’s in it? What do you love most? ‘For where your heart is, there you’re treasure will be also.’ Ministry is a call to love, and genuine care for the well being of others is the hardest thing in the world. In fact, it’s impossible unless you’ve first been loved by Jesus.”

Kim continued, “In my experience, my best relationships and times of ministry have been when I’ve submitted to God and operated from a foundation of truly enjoying my walk with God. Over time, cracks in my character or the idolatry of other things, whether they were the desire for popularity or the desire for recognition or prestige, have brought on a test of what I love more: God or myself. In those times I have had a choice to repent and begin again or choose to keep something back from God. Holding back keeps you from being able to receive or give love… ministry is all about being able to have both.”

Lastly, the words which Charles Kim would like to leave behind to Cornell students are, “Never lose hope. Never give up. Make sure your relationship with the Lord is always your first love and continually walk in an attitude of humility, confession, repentance, and gratitude to Jesus. The joy of the Lord is your strength and true joy always comes with being right with the Lord and, as much as possible, others. Finally, you reap what you sow. Defeat evil with good and always speak blessing and life to others, never returning evil for evil.”

Next year, Campus Crusade for Christ at Cornell will be student-led. President Lindsay Windsor ’07 says, “We greatly appreciate all that Charles invested in CCC here, and we’re excited about the opportunity Charles has for discipleship, accountability, and growth in his next phase of life. We believe that as a fellowship we also have an awesome new opportunity to follow God’s vision for us on campus, and we’re looking forward to seeing what amazing things God has planned.” 

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Students, staff and area residents seek God for a “birth” on Cornell campus.

Campus on a Hill Holds "Birth": Night of Worship and Prayer Inspires Students
Posted June 6, 2005
by Elyse Lee ’08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Campus on a Hill (COAH) held its second large worship and prayer gathering on May 7, 2005. Students, faculty, and Tompkins County residents came together in the Ramin Room at Bartles Hall for four- and-a-half hours of praising and praying to God. There were no pews or even chairs; attendees stood, knelt, or lay prostrate on the ground. Some had their hands lifted, some danced, some waved banners, some sat still, but all were worshipping God. Alex Lee ’07, president and co-founder of Campus on a Hill, was asked for his opinion on the night. Visibly excited, he replied, “We prayed and we worshipped…I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but we prayed and we worshipped.”

The theme for the night was “Birth”, derived from Isaiah 43 which says, “See, I am doing a new thing! I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland”. The night was devoted to prayer, asking God that a new thing would happen at Cornell. Lee prayed for “birth, whatever that means”, saying that for each of us birth may mean something different. Lee believes that “God intends for the birth of a new thing to happen on this campus and in this world, and it begins with the revival and transformation of the body of Christ through prayer.”

The night was a mixture of praise by the Praise Alive praise band, and prayer led by students and by campus ministers. The prayer sessions included prayers aimed at deliverance from immorality and pornography, from pride and feelings of worthlessness, as well as prayers for greater stewardship. Later in the evening, people prayed in small groups of two or three for friends and family, and then broke into groups divided by the colleges within Cornell and prayed for their respective schools. For many students, praying for the colleges was a new experience. The specific professors, classmates and buildings of each college were lifted up. Pastor John Hwang and Joel Miller led the last section of prayer. Pastor Hwang prayed for all those in attendance going on short-term missions during the summer, and Miller prayed for those who were working, staying at home, or taking summer classes. Miller also prayed for those graduating and the congregation laid hands on each senior.

Pastor Chuck Tompkins, former pastor of Bethel Grove Bible Church, returned to Ithaca to speak at the event. He challenged those in attendance to prevent the night from being a “feel good, nice, emotional religious spasm” and instead to see something tangible result from the night in the unseen and seen world. He said there is no use praying for revival in the surrounding community if there is no revival happening in the church. "We need to have a renewed vision of Jesus and an appropriate vision of ourselves in order for our actions to change," Tompkins challenged. “What is your view of Jesus Christ? Is it demonstrated in your life that he is Lord? What kind of Jesus are we worshipping? Is Jesus a mascot who comes on to the field just to cheer you on and then goes back to the bleachers, or is Jesus a monarch who rules absolutely?”

One of the long-term goals of COAH is for Christians to be involved in and praying for each sub-culture on Cornell campus. People signed up to pray for different categories of organizations such as sports, arts, or politics. COAH wants everyone to plug into this movement by praying for Cornell’s rebirth.

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Karl Johnson with the many resources of Chesterton House

Chesterton House Encourages Christian Worldviews: Founder Karl Johnson Shares Vision
Posted on May 26, 2005
By Pexian Fu ’06

ITHACA, NEW YORK - As college students, we often feel that God has little to do with class assignments. Although we may believe that we were called to Cornell to study a certain subject, we are hard pressed to find any mention of God in our textbooks on Economics or Chemistry. As Christians, we believe that the most important thing in our life is a loving relationship with our Savior. However, we spend little time studying this compared to the hours we spend agonizing over other facts and figures. Large numbers of Christians fall away after attending a secular college, and Karl Johnson, founder of Chesterton House, believes that this is due to the lack of resources available to minister to such students. He feels that a ministry such as Chesterton House, which helps present a coherent and compelling Christian worldview across all academic discipline can help preserve students’ faith.

The Chesterton House was founded in 2000 in response to Johnson’s experience at Cornell University. Johnson felt that the college environment placed God in a “separate compartment.” Christianity was tolerated, as long as students relegated their religion to their private time. God never intended for this to be the case, and the role of Chesterton House is to help Christian students integrate their religion into their academic lives.

Chesterton House is a volunteer-run organization, made up of pastors, professors, and personnel from area Christian organizations. Recently, Chesterton House has recently raised its profile by helping organize and publicize established ministry events. One example of this is the Institute of Biblical Studies workshop. Traditionally, Bethel Grove Bible Church (BG) has hosted the yearly event on its own. This year however, Chesterton House co-hosted the event with BG and helped publicize the event by distributing pamphlets on campus. In the pamphlets is a list of the events that Chesterton House co-hosted. Most of the events are on campus, and include activities such as academic lectures and movie screenings by Christian groups. In this way, Chesterton House hopes to help students find connections between their studies and their faith. Through the greater publicity and an effort to hold events on campus, more students are able to attend these talks.

The ministry has also touched students personally. Through the resources available to the House in the forms of books, magazines, and personal knowledge of the staff, students are encouraged in their faith. Such students sometimes come under the criticism of staff and peers, and they begin to question the legitimacy and history of their faith. But doubting opinions often change when shown the wealth of material from historians, the academic professionals who come to speak on the Christian faith, and personal connections are made with Chesterton House students.

More ministries are in the works. Chesterton House is also considering teaming up with a seminary or Christian college to offer courses in Cornell for credit that might count toward their graduation requirements. Alternatively, a student who is interested in a graduate degree could have these credits count toward their Masters in Theology or Masters of Divinity. The process requires much paperwork and working through details, but it looks possible that the courses may be available next spring. This is certainly an exciting chance for students. As Johnson puts it, “This will help Christian college students develop their mind, in addition to developing their heart, in the Christian faith.”

In addition, Chesterton House is developing a reading group program. Faculty members would choose their favorite publication and open their house once a month or so for discussion on religious articles. This would enable personal interaction to compliment other, more large-scale, events.

Chesterton House is a ministry that reaches out to students, helping preserve their faith in a secular college, and this reporter was truly touched by what Johnson had to share. Please pray for God to work mightily through the ministry and to bless its incredible potential.

The Chesterton House Resource Room located at the Crossroads Life Centre is open on Fridays 1-5 pm. More information is available at http://www.chestertonhouse.org/

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After-School Centers are one facet of the ministry of the New York City Urban Plunge (NYCUP).

Students Spend Spring Break Selflessly: Ronald Fung Shares His Experience
Posted May 26, 2005
by Elyse Lee ‘08

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - Spring Break destination 2005: New York City! Seven Cornell students decided to trade in seeing the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building and Times Square for spending time with the AIDS infected, the homeless, and children in the Bronx. These students joined five other teams for the New York City Urban Plunge (NYCUP) with InterVarsity. The spring version of NYCUP (there is also a summer version which is 5-6 weeks) consisted of twenty students from different New York state colleges and universities divided into several smaller groups that worked in different ministries around the city. The groups worked in various agencies including after-school centers, homeless shelters and AIDS clinics.

A typical day included an early breakfast, worship service, a sermon from one of the veteran urban ministry workers, and then afternoons spent at the team’s respective agency. Evenings were devoted to sharing with one another the day’s occurrences and insights. Each night three of the teams ran a small homeless shelter in downtown Manhattan. Students also participated in the “midnight run,” during which teams walked around the city handing out clothing to the homeless on the street.

Participant Roland Fung ‘08, spoke about the changes to his identity as a Christian at Cornell, and other insights from his NYCUP experience.

Q: What were your expectations prior to the trip? Were your expectations fulfilled? How?

A: Actually, I ended up spending most of my afternoons taking care of toddlers in an after school center.  To be honest, I was hoping to interact with older people such as the homeless and the teenagers - people in my mind who were the "most needy".  But God showed me how much he values children - I could see that, growing up in such a hostile environment, the success of their futures depends largely in part by the work invested in them during their early years.

Q: Why did you decide to go?

A: My decision to go to NYCUP was rather last minute, although no less led by God.  I originally had not planned on going, but my spring break plans got cancelled rather abruptly.  A couple of days later my friend mentioned NYCUP during our fellowship meeting, and after some prayer I felt led to go, so I did. 

Q: How were you changed by this experience?

A: I definitely have a changed attitude towards “The City”.  It's easy to focus on the problems of the inner city from an outside perspective, but getting to talk with people - putting a face and a life story behind each individual problem - caused me to see instead the beauty of the city, found in the people, each of whom is loved infinitely by God.  After NYCUP, I am still unsure if urban ministry is my calling.  But, as my friend put it, the very least I've gained is an understanding of what God's will is.  In whatever vocation I or any of the other NYCUP-ers end up, we now carry a glimpse of what God is most concerned with - restoring the life of the weary, the poor, and the grieving so that they may come to know Him as their loving father.  And that maybe where God wants us - in a position to use our skills to grow the Kingdom of God in an indirect approach. The possibilities are endless and our God is resourceful with our talents.  All we need is a servant's heart and God's love for others. 

Q: How will this change your outlook on Cornell?

A: I am still wrestling with what NYCUP means for me as I return to school.  The biggest challenge is approaching my non-Christian peers in a way that is respectful in such a pluralistic environment.  But the core message of the Gospel remains the same and NYCUP has reaffirmed to me the absolute necessity of being a friend who provides restoration - not so much in the physical sense as we would to the materially poor, but more in sense of being a close, personal friend. 

For more information on NYCUP and how you can support this ministry, see www.ivcfnyc.org/nycup.html 

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The Gideons and the Cornell students took time out of their busy schedules to bring God's Word to Cornell and Ithaca campuses.

Gideons Spread Good News at Cornell: Organization Meets Challenges and Gives Away the New Testament
Posted May 5, 2005
by Peixian Fu ’06

ITHACA, NEW YORK -  The sun rose early on the cold Friday morning. Students rushing to class were greeted by gentlemen wielding free green copies of the New Testament. A Gideon Bible held a distribution on the Cornell and Ithaca College campuses. The Gideons were stationed around Collegetown Bagels, a high traffic area.

The Gideons had already been to Ithaca on Good Friday in 2003 and conducted a Bible distribution in various places on campus, including Ho Plaza. They gave out over 4000 Bibles and still did not have enough. Encouraged by the response, they printed 5000 copies of the New Testament and applied for more locations, praying and planning for God’s word to reach more Cornellians than ever.

Initially, the Gideons had aimed at a large scale distribution in Cornell, with stations at Thurston Bridge, West Campus, Ho Plaza and Kennedy Hall. They needed Cornell students to be present to obtain approval for the event, and asked for volunteers. Help had poured in from the various fellowships on campus. However, it came to the attention of the Gideons that they would not be able to hand out the Bibles themselves. Gideon regulations do not allow this for several reasons. First, the Gideons do not wish to duplicate the ministry of any other Christian group. And, Gideons want to make it clear to the public that they are not competing with Christian bookstores. But all was not lost, and the Gideons were allowed to use the area outside Collegetown Bagels for their distribution. Gideons from all over New York drove down to help out in the distribution.

Gary Issacs, a Cornell graduate student and member of the Gideons, did much of the coordinating and organizing the event, and he put it this way, “the number of people, of Bibles, of men we think we need to do this, we think it’s huge… but God cut down Gideon’s army and put more and more restrictions on them, and still did incredible things.” With such a spirit, the Gideons were undaunted by the difficulties before them and continued to pray for God’s hand to move mightily.

The Gideons had been praying for good weather and the day was sunny and warm. They stood on the sidewalk, cheerfully distributing God’s word. Most students were open to accepting a Bible, some were hesitant, and a few were repelled by the offer of free Bibles. The Gideons were encouraged by Christians who stopped by to say hello, people who were open to discussing the Bible, and of course, those who received Christ!

All in all, it was a good day’s work. The Gideons claim God’s promise that His word will not return void, and they trust that His word has been planted into the Cornell community, and will bear fruit.

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Students enjoy a time of fellowship over dessert.

Something for Everyone: Alpha Course Reaches Cornell Students
Posted April 28, 2005
by Peixian Fu ’06

ITHACA, NEW YORK - The scent of freshly baked pie and good food fills the air, along with the sounds of laughter and chatter at the Crossroads House. The Alpha Course is held there every Friday evening. Developed at Holy Trinity Brompton over the last twenty years, Alpha is a 15-session practical introduction to the Christian faith. The course provides a firm theological foundation suitable for seekers, believers and anyone who would just like a good dinner. Alpha is held all over the world, with a similar program. In Ithaca, the course is organized by Vineyard Ithaca Church every Spring semester. The evening begins with dinner, kindly provided for by the Cornell International Christian Fellowship (CICF), which meets at the same time. Dinner is a good time to mingle and talk to new people. The fellowship is warm and friendly, and it is wonderful to see and meet people from all over the world united in Christ.

Alpha is regularly held in Holy Trinity Brompton, and the speaker, Nicky Gumbel is videotaped. The video enables participants of Alpha worldwide to hear the message wherever they may be. After dinner, everyone adjourns upstairs and a video is shown. Nicky Gumbel is a talented speaker, and he presents the Gospel in a sincere manner that is easy for all audiences to understand. He treads the line between aggression and persuasion artfully, and provides Biblical, historical and anecdotal examples evidence of the point he is trying to make. The topics that he speaks about are pertinent to every Christian, such as investigating the life of Jesus, His death and resurrection, among many others.

The video is then followed by dessert and coffee, an ingenious way of encouraging people to stay until the end. People then break up into small groups where they can discuss the video and any questions that they may have. There are mature Christians who attend the course who are able to help answer questions, aid discussion and pray with people. The atmosphere is open, and no question is too simple or hostile. Seekers and believers alike raise any issues on their heart, whether relevant to the day’s video or not. This is the most valuable and educational part of the session as it is a chance for believers to share their own testimonies and answer questions. As Zhen Ying Soh ’07 says, “the discussion session enables me to ask questions that I have wanted to ask but have never known where to turn for answers.” It is exciting to see how God works in the hearts of the participants and how the Holy Spirit opens their ears and eyes.

As Nicky Gumbel said, “It’s friends bringing friends.” Alpha is a friendly introduction to Christianity that has brought many to Christ. Aimed at people who do not go to church, and yet relevant to even the most mature believer, it is an excellent way to introduce Christianity to anyone. There will also be a weekend away sometime in the semester, a short retreat to consolidate all that was learnt and discussed during the course.

The Alpha Course started on 25 Feb and will run till the end of the semester. More information can be obtained from http://alphacourse.org/, or emailing the coordinator, Helen, at hpfeil@coombs.anu.edu.au

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Cornell students listent intently to Cathy Cleaver Ruse on the topic of abortion.

Abortion in the Third Millennium: Speaker Cathy Cleaver Ruse Addresses Abortion
posted April 14, 2005
by Elyse Lee ’08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Cathy Cleaver Ruse presented the facts and statistics on abortion in the United States and internationally in front of a diverse crowd of about fifty people. The event was sponsored by the Aquinas, Cornell Coalition for Life, and the Cornell Bioethics Society. Ruse is a graduate of Georgetown Law, Secretariat of the Pro-Life Activities for the U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference, and an advocate for illegalizing abortion. Her address “Abortion in the Third Millennium: 32 Years Since Roe v. Wade, What Will Our Generation Choose?” focused on misconceptions, laws, and little known background stories of previous pioneers in the Pro-Choice movement.

Ruse began by saying that abortion is one option which the original feminists in the 1960s did not endorse. Abortion did not have popular feminist support until two men, the founders of the first pro-choice organization National Alliance to Repeal Abortion Laws, convinced the pioneers of the feminism movement to add abortion to their platform. And yet in 1976 one of these men, Dr. Bernard Nathanson, who had his own child aborted, became an advocate for pro-life. He claimed that the advancement in technology and science, specifically in real-time ultrasounds, made the act of abortion detestable. Through ultrasound he was able to see the heartbeat, the fingers and toes, even the eyes of the unborn child. In 1984 he created the movie “The Silent Scream” which showed an actual dismemberment abortion taking place through an ultrasound video. (This video can be viewed at http://www.silentscream.org.)

Several other examples of advocates for pro-choice changing allegiance to pro-life were described. The most prominent of the stories were Jane Roe, the “Roe” in Roe v. Wade, now Norma McCorvey. Jane Roe was pregnant for the third time when plaintiff attorneys asked if she wanted to sue the state of Texas for anti-abortion laws. Roe agreed, but went on to have her own child, and give the child up for adoption. Years later she saw that her case had made it to the Supreme Court, and that she was the reason for legal abortion in the United States. This reality made her distraught as she turned to alcohol, drugs, and even tried to commit suicide twice. She finally decided to give into the fame that was pressed upon her, and started to work at an abortion clinic. While working at the clinic, Roe confessed, there are two things that I cannot do: I cannot touch the tissue of the babies, and I cannot lie to the women. Norma McCovery is now a strong advocate for Pro-Life.  

Not only have the stories of key persons in the abortion dispute been silenced, Ruse insists, but the truth of the current situation is not being told either. Ruse sees serious error in the popular sentiment that abortion is merely a compassionate response to a woman in need. Colleges today have health care plans that cover an unlimited number of abortions, but do not offer any type of coverage for motherhood. Though viewed as compassion, the truth is that 3% (out of 1.3 million abortions each year) of women said their abortion was due to risk in their own health, 3% said the abortion was due to fetal abnormalities, and 1% said it was due to rape or incest. The remaining 93% said that their abortion was due to lack of financial resources and lack of emotional support. What Ruse calls the “dirty secret of the pro-choice movement” is that the reason why the majority of women aborting babies is because they have a financial and emotional need which is not being met. What society is actually telling women is that abortion is their choice, it’s their body, and it’s their problem.

The general consensus considered the talk informing, but that Ruse did not clearly address some of the other issues that surround abortion. Though her eloquence in presenting facts and her own opinion were well conveyed, a few students were left with questions. One student asked, even if abortion was illegalized, what can be done about the financial and gender inequalities at hand? Other students wondered why Catholic groups on college campuses were greatly involved in social justice issues but did not focus as much on abortion, which is a more relevant issue for college students.

Students walking back to north campus spoke of the need for society’s unrealistic impression of abortion to be taken away. They agreed that society was trapping girls within this system of an easy, quick solution. The answer may not be solely in illegalizing abortion, though that may be a first step.

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Worship leaders from various fellowships lead songs of praise as one.

Graduate Student Starts Inter-Fellowship Praise Nights: Cornell Fellowships Take Steps Toward Unity
Posted March 29, 2005
By Elyse Lee ’08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Ethan Bancala, a Cornell graduate student, had a vision for more inter-fellowship unity. He writes, “Though each part of the (Christian) body at Cornell has its own unique and specific purpose, we are still one body with one function and one main goal, and it is vital to seek God’s face as one body.” Ethan, along with Steve Swartz, a non-student volunteer praise leader for Chi Alpha, organized Inter-Fellowship Praise Night through Campus on a Hill. The evening consisted solely of worshipping God through song for two and a half hours. The worship team represented six different fellowships on campus- Chi Alpha Christian Fellowship, Chinese Bible Study, Grace Christian Fellowship, Fellowship of Christian Singaporeans, Cornell International Christian Fellowship and Campus Crusade for Christ. Forty students attended, representing the twenty-five plus Christian organizations on campus. In the future Bancala hopes that one representative from each fellowship would be involved in Praise Night.

Andrew Kim ’06, president of Grace Christian Fellowship and bass guitarist on the worship team, was blessed by the talent of the worship team. He said that there were no worries musically and that everything “just clicked as a praise team”. The style of worship was also strikingly different from the Asian-American styles Kim is accustomed to. During Praise Night, Kim saw Christians dancing in the aisles, lying prostrate on the ground, or suddenly singing original lyrics out loud. Kim found that his experience working and worshipping with people from different ethnic groups and musical styles opened his eyes to new worship approaches. He also commented that “Seeing people from different fellowships worshipping together was really refreshing.”

Freshman John Whang agreed with Kim about the different style of worship. He commented, “It was great to see so many different fellowships gathered in one place, especially since I would otherwise not be able to meet them.” Sophomore transfer student Brian Suh was touched by how people were genuinely seeking out God there, and took extra time out of their busy weeks before spring break to come together in worship.

Before the praise night, Simeon Law ’07 was unsure of what to expect. Later on he said, “The night of meditation and Spirit-filled praise was the reminder I needed: the Holy Spirit [is] ever present, we simply need to open our hearts and minds…overall people left with good, lasting impressions. It was an event through which people were moved by the Spirit in their own lives and as a body here at Cornell.”

So the question now becomes, what happens next? Bancala’s short term goal is to see these joint Praise Nights taking place on a monthly basis with an organized planning team involved as well. But Bancala comments that what he really wants to see are more big events similar to the Student Volunteer Movement 2, where over 100 students prayed for the campus and for the world, worshipping together for five hours.

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Gospel Explosion concert performers encourage Cornell students.

Rekindling Tradition: Cornell Celebrates the 29th Annual Festival of Black Gospel 
posted February 26, 2005
by Elyse Lee, '08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Over the February 18-20th weekend, Cornell University celebrated the 29th Annual Festival of Black Gospel. The theme for this year’s festivities was “Yes!”-accepting the challenge for our lives to submit and say “yes” to God’s will and not our own. The weekend kicked off with the Gospel Explosion concert featuring professional musical guests Kenny Curry and Nu Spirit at Anabel Taylor Hall. Saturday was packed for events such as the mass choir rehearsal featuring guest musical director Jeremiah Worrell, the Unite 2 Basketball Tournament, and for Club Jehovah: the Afterparty. Club Jehovah boasted the latest in Christian rap and gospel spun by popular disc jockeys into the wee hours of the night. By Sunday afternoon, the excitement of the weekend was still thriving during the closing service. The mass choir performed, Reverend Tejado Hanchell from Washington, D.C. delivered the sermon, and students testified of the weekend’s uplifting and refreshing events. After Rev. Hanchell’s sermon, people streamed down the aisles to the pulpit to receive prayers of admonishment of the things, people, places and ideas in our past that hinder our futures, and for the confirmation of the blessings God has promised.  

The Festival of Black Gospel advisor Rev. Sonya Hicks praised God for His blessings this year on the mass choir, and for the success of the executive board. The mass choir is composed of any Cornell students and Ithaca community members who love God and love to sing. In 2004 the mass choir had only seven members, but this year it has exploded into over fifty members. The singers met for the first time on Saturday morning, but still brought the congregation to its feet when they performed on Sunday afternoon. The executive board made a deliberate and extensive effort to encourage people to join, and has expanded numbers and diversity into the mass choir.

The Festival of Black Gospel was founded by Rev. Samuel Perry, a local pastor, and Rev. Jack Lewis, the head of Cornell United Religious Works, with the goal and desire to use Gospel music to bring together students and the Ithaca community. The festival highlights the foundations of African tradition with contemporary instruments and beats. The Festival of Black Gospel 2005 Committee wrote, “The music of Black people in American finds its origin in the traditions of music and poetry that were part of our African heritage. The oral composing and rendering extempore songs that chronicled the contemporary and historical events of the land. It is understandable that once the shock of enslavement was overcome Africans fell back upon that which had been so meaningful, purposeful, and respected in their past. They drew from its strength to survive, and have continued to use songs to defy persecution and grief through the succeeding centuries.”

Attending the Festival is not always an easy matter. While some people came from “college town,” many in the audience traveled from out of state to support the 29th Annual Festival of Black Gospel. Loyal church members from Binghamton make the journey every year to support the festival. Festival planners face the logistical challenge of “student spread” every year, but turnout is usually strong, testifying to God’s goodness.

Members of the community and University are already looking in anticipation of the 30th Festival of Black Gospel. Planning and organization is particularly difficult since there is no established organization on campus which hosts this event each year. Though the Festival of Black Gospel has a series of University and cooperate sponsors, each year’s Festival is dependant on God’s provisions.

The Festival of Black Gospel brought encouragement and freedom to many in the audience during the weekend. Its performers and staff pray for another year of God’s blessings as they prepare for next year’s performance.

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Pastor Chuck Tomkins speaking to the Bethel Grove congregation.

Pastor Tomkins Bid Farewell to Bethel Grove Church: Interview with a Cornell Campus Minister
Posted February 26, 2005
By Elyse Lee, '08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - After twenty years of service as Pastor at Bethel Grove Bible Church in Ithaca, Pastor Chuck Tompkins will be preaching his last sermon on February 13, 2005. He informed the congregation of his resignation in January, composing a heart-felt letter detailing the prayerful process that led him to resign. Currently Pastor Tompkins plans on spending three months in Seattle and Denver to pray, read, and think about where God is leading he and his wife. One week before his farewell I had to the chance to discuss with Pastor Tompkins the relationship between Cornell and Bethel Grove, and the changes he has seen throughout his years of service in Ithaca.

Q: How have you seen God work through BG to reach Cornell students?

A: Over the years I’ve seen the initiative of many families to "adopt" students and give them a home cooked meal, and for many, to observe up close for the first time what a Christian marriage and family looks like. One student leader commented years ago that the church's key role in such an academic community may be to assist in the re-parenting of students. Many students come from broken families and to see healthy marriages up close can set a direction for the rest of their lives.

Another key contribution is the presence of many [Cornell] faculty, administrators and staff who comprise the BG family. We’ve asked them to share their life story on Sunday morning, or to teach a class, all of which demonstrates that their scholarship is not incompatible with their faith.  The careful integration of faith and academic pursuit has been appreciated, and BG has been a place where we seek to love God with all our hearts, souls, and minds. We want it to be place of dynamic balance in those areas, creating what I call "thinking lovers" of God.

Q: How have you seen Cornell students and campus change over the years?

A: I can remember speaking with campus leaders even before I arrived and they were discouraged with the lack of a Christian presence on campus.  But that has changed, and a spiritual thaw has occurred over time, and I believe it is in direct proportion to the daily prayer that has saturated the campus. I believe that every day there is a prayer meeting some place on campus. The other change I have noted is the increase in Christian faculty. God is calling influential men and women to positions of leadership in the academy. Though I don't have statistics, my sense is that the Christian faculty presence is larger than ever before.

But, I [do] hear faculty lamenting that there seems to be a drift from a solid understanding of the content of the Gospel and being able to articulate sound theology and to craft a well thought out biblical worldview.  In some quarters, the trend is decried as a "dumbing down" of the faith, and while I am not sure I would share that description, I am concerned for Christian students to have a solid and robust rationale for their faith as well as a total experience of the love of God.

Q: What is your prayer for Cornell in the future?
A: John Mott came through these halls and ignited a movement that eventually shared in the mobilization of students that changed the face of missions for decades. The Student Volunteer Movement emerged from Princeton and other campuses in the Northeast. I pray for a mighty move of God's Spirit on the campus that will compel students to be world changers for advancing the Kingdom of God.  I pray for men and women to grasp the calling of God on their lives to influence the sciences and the humanities with a lifestyle that will be a compelling apologetic for the Gospel. Men and women who will be positioned through the media industry, businesses and all levels of government, intent on living out their callings as salt and light agents for truth. I pray for a student generation that is strong in heart and head, in both the Spirit and the Word.

Pastor Chuck and Ann Tompkins would greatly appreciate your prayers and support. Please pray also for Bethel Grove’s other pastors, Pastor Dave M. Jones and Pastor Eric D. Hause. Contact information and information about Bethel Grove can be found at http://www.bg.org/

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Excited staff and students cut the ribbon at the Mott House Dedication

The Mott House Dedication:
October 23, 2004
Posted January 29, 2005
Elyse Lee '08 and Hee Sung Shin

ITHACA, NEW YORK - On a sunny day in Ithaca NY, a rare occasion indeed, the Mott House was dedicated to God’s work and glory on the Cornell campus. The dedication began with a tour of the building. Visitors were first treated to a viewing of the offices in the basement, then the lounges and television room on the first floor, and finally to the sleeping quarters and library on the second floor. Following the tours was a brief service with prayer by Charles Kim, the Director of Campus Crusade for Christ, a Scripture reading by Amy Arroyo (Class of ’05), a biography of John Mott read by Chris Landrigan (Class of ’06), and a prayer of dedication by Pastor David Jones of Bethel Grove Bible Church.

The dedication service concluded with remarks from members of the Bennett family. Matt Bennett, President of Christian Union, gave an address on the vision of the Mott House and of the Christian Union. Mr. Bennett was followed by a few words of thanks and appreciation from Monty and Lisa Bennett. Matt Bennett ended the service with prayer, and the ribbon to the Mott House was cut, opening it up to the services of God at Cornell.

The Christian Union envisions the Mott House as an inter-fellowship meeting place. The Mott House will be open for all fellowships to hold Bible studies, small groups, or any other events. It will be a place in which inter and intra-fellowship is encouraged, in addition to a place where students can be introduced to Jesus for the first time.

Says Matt Bennett, “Our heart is that this ministry center will be used of God to bring great blessing to thousands of Cornell students, staff, and faculty.”

The house underwent a full transformation since its purchase in 2003 under the leadership of Lisa Bennett and Charles Kim. The home features living space for five tenants, which will currently be staff members from fellowships such as InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and Campus Crusade for Christ for the spring semester of 2005. One of the most notable and impressive features of the Mott House will be the library.  The library will house scholarly writings and materials which all students will be able to access. Other resources such as commentaries, lexicons, and other Bible study materials will be available. One of the goals of the Mott House is to encourage and build an environment in which students can meet and get to know the character of Jesus through fellowship and spiritual study.

Cornell alum John Raleigh Mott (May 25, 1865 - January 31, 1955) was an influential evangelist during the 19th and 20th century.  In 1888, with D.L. Moody, John Mott founded the Student Volunteer Movement, which has sent over 25,000 students overseas as missionaries.  He graduated from Cornell in 1888 Phi Beta Kappa with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and history.  His life was filled with extraordinary experiences, working in both evangelism and discipleship.  After having written over a dozen books, being a leader in organizations like the YMCA and the International Missionary Council, John Mott was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946.  John Mott, as noted in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, lived a life “for a great united advance in the furtherance of peace and good-will throughout the world.” The Mott House aims go encapsulate the life of John Mott and pass on his dreams and accomplishments onto Cornell students for generations to come.

The Mott House is located on 203 Wyckoff Avenue on North Campus. In order to schedule an event at the house, contact Charles Kim at charles.kim@uscm.org.

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One In Love conference attendees enjoying fellowship.

One In Love 2005 - His Redemption Story: Winter Conference Changes Student Lives
Posted January 26, 2005
by Elyse Lee ’08

MONTROSE, PENNSYLVANIA - About forty Cornell students attended the annual One In Love (OIL) winter conference January 5 to 8 in Montrose, Pennsylvania. Each attendee selected a ‘track’ of seminars and small groups to attend throughout the conference. Seminar options included ‘Transforming Leadership,’ ‘Theology Comes Alive,’ ‘Understanding the Word,’ ‘Missions,’ ‘Your Work Matters to God,’ ‘Heart Motives,’ and ‘Spiritual Foundations.’ The conference divided into these different tracks so that students were able to focus their personal interests on specific topics.

OIL began 17 years ago with a group of students on the East Coast, and since then it has evolved into a nationally known conference with nearly one thousand participants. The goal and purpose of OIL is to raise up a generation that knows Jesus and makes Him known. This year’s theme was “His Redemption Story.” The conference focused on history as seen through God’s eyes and encouraged students to become part of “His Redemption Story.” OIL featured speakers such as Dr. Ralph Winter, Reverend Michael Oh, Pastor Michael Shea, Reverend Seth Kim, and Dr. Charles Zimmerman, among others.

Students at Cornell were excited about going to OIL for months in advance. Veteran OIL attendees shared in their fellowships about the intensity of prayer, reflection, and freedom in worship at OIL. However, since the conference was during winter break, many students had no means of transportation to the conference. One such example was Soobin Park ’05. The day before the conference she was still not planning on attending, as she had no transportation from Georgia to Pennsylvania, but brothers and sisters from her fellowship at Cornell contributed their own money to buy her a plane ticket. Park benefited greatly from the conference. She chose the ‘Missions’ track, which had special significance to her: she grew up on the missions field and is considering an overseas commitment to missions. She commented, “It gave me a larger perspective on God’s mission. For example, we can’t [rightfully speak of] the Biblical basis of missions- missions is the basis of the Bible. We are all a part of this mission and if we reject His calling, His great commission, then we aren’t truly living as followers of Christ. When we accepted Him, we accepted this calling as well.”

For graduating seniors, the conference brought conviction for a strong finish. Eric Han ’05 shared, “OIL was an awesome time of prayer, preaching, and fellowship. I took 1.5 showers in 4 days, slept a total of 12 hrs, and got sick after going home, but the blessings far outweighed the suffering! God showed me areas of my life that need refining, how much I need to entrust my future to him, and gave me a heart for loving underclassmen in my last semester of college.”

For others still, OIL stood out as a revelatory awakening rather than an emotional revival. Virginia Nam ’08 said, “My OIL experience was different from my other retreat experiences because after retreats, most people come back spiritually high but I came [back] spiritually low. I’m grateful for it though because in that lowly and humble state, God taught me certain things, mainly how to wait upon Him and [a revelation] of what a sinner I am through the teachings of the ‘Heart Motives’ track.”

Though students came from all different backgrounds and states, with different motivations and expectations, each one partook in the deepening of knowledge and love for God. Such is the uniting power and sovereignty of God. For more information on OIL, go to http://www.winteroil.org/

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Two Campus Ministers Speak Their Minds: Joel Miller and Charles Kim on Ministry at Cornell
Posted November 19, 2004
by Hee Sung Shin

ITHACA, NEW YORK - [Reporter Hee Sung Shin caught up with two of Cornell Campus' fellowship staff members. Joel Miller of Intervarsity Christian Fellowship and Charles Kim from Campus Crusade for Christ were kind enough to answer some questions about Cornell ministry, and share some personal stories as well.]

Hee Sung:What the major steps in your life that inspired you to be a campus staff worker?

Joel: I think for me it was basically, I was very involved in campus fellowship as a student.  I grew a lot and that was the context where I started to understand God’s heart for the lost.  Yea, so I really had a positive experience as a student in campus ministry.  I graduated thinking it was an outside, sort of long shot option.  But after working for two years as an environmental engineer, I realized I really love working with students, helping them fellow Jesus completely. 

Charles: A similar experience being involved in campus ministry at Yale as an undergrad.  Probably a time of prayer, at a conference that Crusade sponsors, considering full time vocational ministry.  Then they have a quiet time where we go seek the Lord.  And during that time, it was very active and very dynamic time of prayer.  Very unique in my memory.  The prayer was a two-way conversation more of a dialogue than a monologue.  Originally campus ministry wasn’t in my radarscope at the time, but afterwards it was.

Hee Sung: What do you think is a unique way that the kingdom of God has been advancing here at Cornell?

Joel: I think sometimes in campus ministry, you have to have a certain amount of confidence that the Kingdom is advancing, even when it’s hard to see, that the seeds are being planted, and that there’s growth happening.  Particularly in the lives of Christian students, this is the venue that I’ve seen growth in.  I’m leading a small group right now with [Grace Christian Fellowship], and we’re looking at this idea of “whole life discipleship” where we learn about what it means to follow Jesus Christ not in our inner lives or our relationships, but our whole cultural participation.   I’m really excited about that because it’s an area of Christian discipleship that a lot of Cornell students are relatively unfamiliar with.  That’s been exciting to see the light bulbs go on when people realize, “Wow, the Kingdom of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ does have bearing on my major and my pursuit of it.”

Charles: When you ask that question, I think, “are people coming to know Christ?”  That’s why in my experience, I can’t see a remarkable increase in conversions.  But I only speak in a three or four year window… Getting connected with each other in community of leadership, instead of individual groups, is something that I think God is doing.  Particular with [inter-fellowship] prayer meetings, and Campus on a Hill.  So I think that’s definitely a good foundation, but ultimately, for me, the advancement of God’s kingdom involves seeing many people come to know Christ.

Joel: Yea, I agree.

Charles: Also, godly leadership is also the next piece that I would like to see happen.  The students are a transient population.  Four years and they’re gone.  It’s hard to build momentum with students.  So it feels like it’s taken me three or four years to get my bearings.

Joel: Me too, totally.

Charles: I think in the next three or four years, if I didn’t see more people come to Christ, then I [would] begin to wonder whether or not the kingdom of God is advancing here.

Hee Sung: Some people say unity is important.  We need to all have interaction.  We need to be working together.  The mission of COAH is for the whole body of Christ to mobilize the whole campus … but some people wonder, “why are we so preoccupied with unity?  I think we are losing a lot of opportunities for our personal fellowships to be effective, because we are so preoccupied by holding hands together.”  How can you think a campus like Cornell can achieve this balance?

Joel: To this point, the expression of our unity has been limited to prayer meetings and occasional one-night events.  And I think the next step that could be an expression of real genuine working together, without necessarily obliterating the identity of each group, is to simply work together in some sort of ongoing way in evangelism or discipleship.  Or somehow figuring out a better way to cross-pollinate as an organization, in terms of strengths of each organization.  That’s a conversation that I don’t if it has started, but I feel that it ought to.

Charles: Yea, I agree.  I don’t think there’s any magic formula because the population turns over every four years.  So for me, the unity doesn’t necessarily have to be that everyone goes to every prayer meeting, or that everyone knows each other.  But perhaps, that it’s about the desire of people to give themselves in total surrender to God… I think ultimately, it’s about surrender, more than it is about any specific solution.

Hee Sung: What do you think is a specific stronghold that the enemy has here at Cornell?

Charles: I think it’s fear, in terms of having to arrange and to create your life.  In the sense that there is no one looking out for you, so you have to be the agent of change, and making things happen.  And it causes a lot of people to put academics as a first priority in their life, and God is just a nice source of comfort and strength.  I think it’s a struggle for Cornell students to balance their academics with their spiritual walk.  And sometimes I think there’s not enough margin in the student’s life to really have a spiritual life.  So probably the biggest idol is maybe the sense of fear, and the desire to compare yourself the opinion of man and your non-Christian friends.

Joel: Ditto. 

[Laughter]

Hee Sung: How do you think these strongholds can be torn down?  As staff workers and leaders, how can we help the students get over these idols and avoid these traps?

Charles: In my experience, most of these problems are relational in nature.  The only thing that helps is being grounded in relationships to people who can give you a context to see yourself as you really are.  That takes time and commitment, which is again, something that is taken away.   So yea, it’s an intense battle.  And there are some students involved in Crusade, [that] I’m not sure if they have a single real friend.  There’s a real superficial acquaintance level interaction.

Joel: I think the one step that can really help is perspective.  Somehow, students need to get their brains around a perspective on life that is built from kind of a kingdom of God framework.  Because in light of that, you can decide how to spend your time that [is] more sensible and sustainable, and give more priority to relationships rather than cramming for hours in the library.  I agree with what Charles said, too.

Charles: I think there is also some deep hurts and incidents in the past, regarding family upbringing or experience that cause people to react a certain way.  Most Cornell students like to believe that they are rational, and they make their choices for logical reasons, but I don’t think that’s the truth in my experience.  People are more driven by emotions and sentiments.  Sometimes it’s a matter of digging past the response into what is the real emotional drive.  In particular, what is the event that happened in the past that caused them to think along these certain lines that’s conditioned them to respond this way?

Hee Sung: We as staff workers have a long-term vision for this campus.  What do you hope the Christian community will look like in 15 years here at Cornell?

Joel: I think one thing that would really excite me in 15 years would be for the Christian community at Cornell to have a voice that is articulate and informed and respected on campus, and not marginalized.  And I don’t necessarily think that the university will make space for us in that.  I think we really need to be proactive in making sense of the Cornell world from the Christian perspective.  And that would be cool.

Charles: I think at least every year, the incoming class has 25-30 percent Christian students.  But the vast majority do not commit to fellowship or practice to develop their spiritual life.  I would like to see that basic percentage that comes in to be involved in Christian fellowship.  And I think that involves a good initiative for groups to reach those people.  And also to have morality to become an accepted part of campus dialogue again.  Because right now, if you bring up morality, you bring up right and wrong, it’s considered subjects unfit for college campuses. And I think it’s that fundamental breakdown of Christian influence at Cornell that I would like to see reversed.

Hee Sung: A lot of times fellowships are looked upon and seen as barely staying afloat.  And I think every school and fellowship has a season of that.  I just want your honest opinion.  In general, what do you think is the state of Christian community here at Cornell right now?

Charles: I would say maintaining, but still a little isolated in their impact on campus, and even in their ability to think outside their own community.  I could speak from my own experience at Crusade, that the lack of godly stable leadership affects the fellowship the most.  If you were to have a stable staff team, or a tradition of good stable student leadership, that could solve 80-90% of your problems.  So I think staff volatility on different teams affects the quality of student leadership, which affects the quality of the whole movement.

Joel: I think one of the struggles that a lot of fellowships face is the feeling that before we can reach out on our campus, we need to really fix ourselves, and deal with in-house issues and growth issues.  And I think there’s a piece of truth in that.   But at the same time, because Cornell students tend to think linearly a lot of the times, I think the reality is that because of the high student turnover rate, every year you have to teach the same lessons and the same truths.  And for that reason, if we wait to reach out until we’re perfect, we’ll be tweaking our spirituality for eternity.  And we’ll never take bold steps.  And that’s a boat that I’ve seen InterVarsity on, and I think it’s present to some extent in a lot of fellowships.  And so I agree with Charles that as a community of fellowships at Cornell, we’re in a place of status quo maintenance.  Occasional flashes of brilliance and exciting, bold, activity for the sake of the Gospel.  But it’s hard.  And in terms with what could turn the tide, I agree with Charles that strong consistent staff leadership is key.  And somewhere in there, prayer corporate prayer.

Hee Sung: The topic of student leadership is something I want to ask you about.  So what are some desirable traits of a student leader?

Joel: Character!  Character!  Character!  Character! 

Hee Sung: Character.

Joel: Cornell is full of gifted leaders.  A majority of the students at Cornell know how to organize an event, mobilize, delegate.  But the mark of an effective student spiritual leader starts with character.  It starts with who they are on the inside when they are not in front of a room, but when they are alone and when no one is looking.  That is the key.

Charles: I would agree.  Perhaps most of our spiritual growth revolves around that.  But also, willingness to enter into the process.  And again, I think it’s commitment.  To have someone who is fully committed and not pulling out halfway through.  So probably character and commitment, those two together, I think that will take care of a lot of deficiencies.  But having said that, you only have four years, so sometimes, a lot of the work has to happen before college, too.  And some changes that happen in college may take years.  Then you are limited in what that individual can do.

Joel: Yea clearly the quality of student leaders here at Cornell is largely dependent on the kind of discipleship and nurture that they experience before coming to Cornell.

Hee Sung: What gets in the way of students developing character?

Charles: Culture that largely that doesn’t talk about right or wrong, or about the need for character.  I don’t see character education anywhere.  I see basically an administration that is hesitant to lay down any moral framework at all.  I think sexual morality on campus is a reflection of that.

Joel: Maybe one other aspect of that would be an under-appreciation of the importance of the little things.  We live in a society that generally values the big the flashy and the high profile.  And character is something that is built over time, brick by brick in the decisions that we make in everyday life to obey Christ rather the voices around me. 

Hee Sung: How about the other quality?  Commitment?  What’s getting in the way of commitment?

Charles: I would have to say… the quantitative nature of the Cornell college experience.  The precision by which grading is done at times.  And the pressure it creates sometimes.  That grading is the only arbiter of worth.  And slowly, that does become the focus of your life.  Students always talk about schoolwork.

Joel: I really think it’s a lordship issue.  Who calls the shots?  Who determines what my commitments ought to be?

Charles: I think Joel has it.  I think it is a lordship issue.  If the Lord is really God, and He is the provider of all things, then things are obvious and clear.  But if it is my own ability and the need to perform a certain way, to get the recognition from someone else to get the job I need, then it will become very short sighted and your commitment will wane.  Because in the short-term, commitment to God doesn’t seem very cost effective.  But doing well in school, in the short term, seems great.

Hee Sung: How can the readers pray for each fellowship on campus?

Charles: I think what Crusade needs is a class of students that desire to reach out to other people.  You always gather students, because students want a place to belong they want to have a sense of community, but the problem is that Crusade can become a little bit too comfortable with that community.  Reaching out seems tiring and hard.

Joel: I think for me, my prayer would be for students to inspire their peers to take risks for the sake of the gospel, particularly in the area of evangelism.  I think as a ministry right now, we have some strengths in terms of building community, and some good bible study going on, but I do worry about how a student might exist in our fellowship for a long period of time, and not be challenged to put the great commission into practice.

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Panelists seek Christ's space in the workplace

Is there Room for Jesus in the Workplace?
Posted November 10, 2004
by Elyse Lee '08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - With graduation looming for seniors here at Cornell, the idea of what the future will be like is an ominous and overwhelming one. But on the minds of many students is not only what profession they will have or where they will live, but also how they can combine their jobs with their faith. With that in mind, senior Christina Branche of Cornell Christian Fellowship initiated a panel discussion entitled, “Is There Room for Jesus in the Workplace”. The purpose of the discussion was “to illustrate that Christianity is simultaneously a deeply personal faith and also a worldview with public implications for the practice of any career or profession”. Four professionals were invited to share their personal experiences in the work environment and how they combine their faith with their work. Jimmy Lee, a Cornell alumnus who first worked as an investment banker, then in a Christian non-profit, and currently works for American Express. Lydia Branche is an attorney working for the government and Certified Professional Accountant. Julian Branche is a Chief MRI Technician. Lastly, Lynn Velasco is an Executive Manager of Human Resources at a large German bank.

As an introduction each panelist shared what his or her profession was and how he or she chose that field. For two of the panelists, God took them on a journey through three careers thus far. Though each of the panelists are in different fields and come from different backgrounds, they all agreed that above all else they were servants of God before all else. The main point of the afternoon was that as Christians in the secular world we should strive to live so that our actions are scream the gospel so loudly that our words cannot be heard. Recognizing that there are limitations in how much one can say in the workplace about Jesus Christ, the way in which one lives one’s own life becomes the most effective witnessing tool. Each spoke about his or her own personal struggles and temptations in the workplace in terms of finding a balance between being Christian and being an employee or employer. Another point which was strongly emphasized by all of the panelists was being a good steward of what God has given you, utilizing all you are blessed with for the sake of the Creator.

The discussion was focused on how one can be wealthy and successful and still glorify God. The assertion was made that God created each one in attendance with a brain, and with an Ivy League education, and therefore we could not settle for second best. “Poor Christianity” was not advocated; however, the panelists did make the point that God puts His children in many different positions on earth. The talk was limited in that it made the assumption that all Cornell graduates were going to go into high-paying, powerful positions. Seniors in attendance felt that the discussion did not help show them what career they would be in, but did give them a different perspective on how to examine their roles in the future workforce.             

Lee gave a perspective unique from the other panelists in terms of what students can do now at Cornell in order to prepare for the struggles one may face in the workplace in the future. Lee said the advice he would give to a graduating Cornellian would be to wrestle with God while in college to know how to live out life in a way that is countercultural. He emphasized the importance of living a life which is different from the stereotype of a wealthy and powerful person, meaning deliberately make decisions about where you live, what you wear, how you spend your money to look materially different as well as spiritually different from the rest of the world. Lee longs to see a generation which does not bear Christians who are only evangelists in their workplace, but Christians who also lead compelling lives against what society dictates.

The panel discussion was open to all Cornell students, and thus a vital part of the discussion was demonstrating to non-believing students in attendance where in Scripture the panelists derived their convictions. Each panelist shared one or two passages from which they drew their strength-Matthew 6:33-34, Isaiah 41:10, Micah 6:8, 1 Peter 3:15, and Ecclesiastes 3. Other questions that were asked were how Christians handle power and authority, how have the panelists been faithful in what they have been through, specific ways in which the panelists had to depend on God, and how do we govern personal success.  

The discussion ended with some tips on how to practically apply one’s faith in action, not only in intention and heart. Becoming rooted in a Christian community, finding a mentor, and being part of an accountability group are all critical tools for the frontier ahead. And if you still feel alone in the workplace despite the efforts to find this support, panelists urged to do the subtle things that will attract other Christians: praying before eating, the words you speak, or the attitude you express in hard situations. And even then if you still feel alone, the only option left is to lead someone else in your workplace to Christ.

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InterVarsity Retreat

The Journey: InterVarsity Fall Retreat
Posted October 28, 2004
by Hee Sung Shin

SARANAC LAKE, NEW YORK - On October 22 24, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship of Eastern New York and Vermont held the annual fall retreat called The Journey.  Seven students and three staff from Cornell Christian Fellowship and Grace Christian Fellowship attended the weekend retreat.  Over 220 students and staff attended The Journey at a YoungLife camp, which is located on the shore of Saranac Lake.

The Journey is different from typical retreats that feature main speakers.  Instead keynote messages and sermons, InterVarsity has designed this retreat to be a weekend of intense study, discussion and fellowship through “tracks”.  The Journey featured four different tracks, including Map & Compass, The Great Adventure, Two by Two, and Genesis.  Each student was given an opportunity to choose a focus of study for his or her weekend.  The main sessions when all the students and staff met together consisted of a short opening talk about the lordship of Christ, and worship sessions during the mornings and evenings.  A visiting worship team from the University of Rochester led the worship for the weekend.

One member of Cornell Christian Fellowship, Jen Peth, who was in the Two by Two track noted that she “most enjoyed the panel discussion about hearing people’s actual experiences discipling people.”  After having participated in the discipleship track, Jen Peth said “[the track] has given [her] practical ways to entering into a discipling relationship and … [the] inspiration to focus on further developing my own in walk in order to disciple people.”

Mike Kim, the president of Grace Christian Fellowship participated in the Genesis track and said that he most enjoyed “seeing details in the lives of patriarchs that [he] wouldn’t have noticed or might have just skipped before.”  Also, Mike Kim said that “[the track] gave me a greater appreciation for the Old Testament and how real these people really were, rather than just vague historical figures that we learn about in church.  It was cool to study scripture together with brothers and sisters that I never met before.”  Han Chang, the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship intern working with Grace Christian Fellowship, said that “[the track] helped to provide a good framework for how to explore through Genesis, and how that framework can work through the rest of the Bible and our faith in general.”

Fifteen schools from the Eastern New York area attended the retreat jointly with five more schools joining the weekend from Vermont.  Though The Journey is typically limited to Eastern New York, Vermont was included because of its proximity to the campsite on Saranac Lake.  The campsite, which is owned by YoungLife (an international ministry for youth) has been a frequent host for various InterVarsity events, including Basileia, a four and a half day retreat in May for the New York and New Jersey regions.

Glen Ewart, the associate regional director for New York and New Jersey kicked off the weekend with a message about faith and the lordship of Jesus Christ.  He challenged the students to ask introspective questions, such as “what is so amazing about your faith”?  Throughout the weekend, and including in the various tracks, the issue of lordship was central and promoted as an issue to ponder.

While the weekend was an intense and filled with a very large amount of spiritual learning and exercise, there was plenty of time to take advantage of the wonderful recreational activities available on the campsite.  Students were able to canoe and kayak on the lake, as well as endeavor on a challenging ropes course that runs through the forest on the campsite.  Disc golf, ultimate Frisbee, soccer, basketball and tennis were just a few of the activities that many students participated in.  Enjoying the beauty of the campsite, for Cornell Christian Fellowship member Jen Peth, “was a great help in doing quiet times.”

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Christians United by Student Volunteer Movement 2: Seeking Repentance, Transformation and Revival
Posted October 19, 2004
by Elyse Lee '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Student Volunteer Movement 2 (SVM2) came to Cornell on Friday, October 15, 2004 to lead a 4 hour prayer gathering. Titled “Abandoned Devotion,” the night focused on repentance, living sacrifice, and world missions. SVM2 travels to different campuses and churches across the United States and Canada and start a prayer movement for the world. SVM2’s goal is to raise 100,000 young people to devote two years to missions, and start global prayer teams who regularly meet to pray for God to use this generation of young people to bear the message of Christ. The second day of each month is also dedicated to prayer for the world, and individuals can join with SVM2 by praying for the world monthly. Ryan Shaw, founder of SVM2, started out the night by sharing the Biblical basis of Abandoned Devotion as a command of the Lord. God has mandated that prayer, as the foundation of the body of Christ, be done for all nations (Mark 11:17), and that we go out to the ends of the earth and make disciples of all men (Matthew 28:19-20).

Chloe Teller ‘07 shared on repentance, and the vileness of sin compared to the holiness of God; even our “Christian sins” need to be repented for daily. Alex Lee ‘07 shared on being a living sacrifice, not that we have anything to offer God because He has already been the greatest sacrifice, but, in view of God’s mercy we should offer ourselves as reasonable, or expected, sacrifices to Him. Following each testimony, students had the opportunity to pray and worship in response individually. There was then small group prayer for revival, repentance, and transformation on Cornell campus-a time which can only be described by tears and passion ringing throughout the Multipurpose Room at Robert Purcell Community Center.

Five students then stood to lead prayer as intercessors for the entire campus. They lifted several different areas of bondage on Cornell campus specifically- materialism and other idolatries, pride, immorality and pornography, lack of commitment, and indifference toward the lost and a lack of taking Great Commission seriously. The auditorium filled with shouts and applause of agreement, as well as hanging heads of acknowledgment of personal sins as the prayer intercessors lifted their voices asking for the forgiveness of those who know not what they do.

Students then dispersed to various stations around the room which was designated for different people groups around the world. The people groups were from all over the world-Bangladesh, Somalia, Vietnam, Turkey- with less than 1% of the population being Christian, some churches having only 3 members. Over 200 people fervently praying and devoting each of these people groups to the Lord, senior Evelyn Ngeow describes it as “enthralling.”

Abandoned Devotion then turned towards personal response in action and prayer. SVM2 calls young people to missions as “message bearers”.  Another group of 6 students rose to pray for the hindrances which keep students from going out and reaping the harvest in the field right now-family, finances, singleness, concern for safety, self-condemnation and feeling unusable, and not feeling like one fits the stereotype of missionary. Shaw then gave out cards asking for students to devote two years to missions, praying that at least 50 students would dedicate themselves to that work.

The night ended with the question that still burns in my mind: so what will you do now? After a night of abandoned devotion, or heartfelt and spirit-led prayer will this evening become a memory of a good time of fellowship? Or will this night resonate in our lives and change our perspectives, our relationships, and our daily behavior? Speaking with several students and fellowship staff members after the program had ended I found that there was more recognition of how this prayer gathering affected the corporate body of Christians at Cornell than individual transformation. Louie Rudin on staff at Young Life was thrilled about people coming together and praying, and “knows that these kinds of activities will change the campus.” Colleen Dougherty ‘06 sees that this night is part of what God is doing on campus already in terms of molding believers to corporate dependence upon Him. Angela Zimmerman ‘06 said that this “start of inter-fellowship gathering is where we are headed. It is wonderful to share the vision.”

Cornell is truly in a time of passionate prayer for God to turn His face towards His children, who are returning to Him now. Seeing videos at SVM2 showing entire nations being completely transformed and governments devoting the country to the work and power of the gospel of Jesus Christ gives hope that Cornell can and will be known as a godly campus and that it all begins with prayer.

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Campus on a Hill Focuses on Prayer, Building Relationships
Posted October 14, 2004
by Elyse Lee '08

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Campus On A Hill (COAH), an umbrella organization uniting all the Christian fellowships at Cornell University, heads into its second year of existence with the goals of transforming each individual student and building relationships between Christians across denominations, fellowships, and races. Since COAH’s inaugural year, its immediate and long-term goals have been refined. COAH’s immediate goals are based upon the struggles that COAH has witnessed since its establishment in the fall of 2003: Christians’ lack of trust in other believers, and individual revival. This semester, COAH will be focusing on: 1) building relationships among Christians; and 2) praying for revival and transformation on campus within each person individually and then throughout the entire campus. Last year, God showed COAH President Alex Lee (Class of 2007) that there was still a significant distrust among Christians, especially across denominations. This semester COAH hopes to develop first an understanding of other believer’s traditions and then go beyond understanding towards appreciation, sharing and learning from one another’s worship styles. Lee realized that these relationships cannot be built through huge, once-a-year events, but must be a continual and gradual process of breaking down barriers individually and corporately. COAH’s long-term goals include serving and assisting campus ministries and local pastors, and seeing strong, sincere Christian influences in each sub-culture (dorm, athletic team, club, major, department, etc.) on campus. COAH desires to be a body which serves the entire Christian community in practical ways. It is planning on distributing a spiritual mapping survey in which students will answer questions regarding their spiritual lives, struggles, weaknesses, and strengths. The purpose of this survey is to better equip COAH to pray for and reach out to Christians at Cornell.

COAH has already begun to accomplish its goals through its first event, “See You On The Quad,” which was on September 13, 2004. Michael Dill ‘07 initiated “See You On The Quad” to mimic “See You At The Pole,” a day on which high schools and colleges all over the nation gather at their school’s flagpole to pray for the school. There were only two weeks to prepare for this event, and the gathering was comprised of several worship songs, and large and small group prayer. “See You On The Quad” began early at eight o’clock in the morning on a Wednesday, but attracted over one hundred Christian students and faculty alike. Waking up extra early, some coming on crutches, some leaving midway to get to class, each and every person with the heart burdened to pray for Cornell. Lee’s acknowledged that “See You On The Quad” was, “It’s a step in the right direction, but it’s only a step”.

On October 15, 2004, COAH is partnering with SVM2, a national organization that travels all over the country to pray for world missions, to sponsor a night of “Abandoned Devotion” and prayer. The focus of the meeting will be praying for an understanding and application of repentance and sacrifice. COAH hopes to see a room overflowing with students understanding what it means to be a living sacrifice and in turn devoting their lives to world missions. However, COAH has faced many obstacles in planning this event, the biggest challenge being to find a place to hold the event. COAH settled on Robert Purcell Community Center in a room which is undersized for the potential and hopeful magnitude of this event. Another challenge has been finding volunteers to be prayer warriors during this event, to specifically pray for students who need prayer. COAH hopes that this event will inspire Cornell to be a campus which sends students to make disciples to the ends of the earth.

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Chalking up, inviting out, frosh outreach

Frosh Outreach
Posted September 22, 2004
by Hee Sung Shin

ITHACA, NEW YORK - In conjunction with the freshmen move-in weekend, Christian student groups on the Cornell University campus prepared for their annual student outreach events.  Over twenty Christian fellowships on campus shared the common goal of reaching out to students and inviting them to a Christ-centered fellowship.

Typically, the first few weeks of the semester are a popular time for student groups to advertise.  “It’s the most effective period of the year to attract the crowd,” Prudence Chow of Cornell’s Chinese Bible Study remarked.  “Although it might be expensive and time-consuming,” she noted, “it’s cost effective.”

Cornell Christian Fellowship, the multiethnic chapter of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, sponsored various outreach events including their annual Freshman Fondue Night.  Hosted by large group coordinator Brett Sauve and outreach coordinator Bethany Tong, the Freshman Fondue Night was designed to expose the students to the vision of Cornell Christian Fellowship and to offer to the students a community of believers.  “I attended both the ice cream social and fondue night for Cornell Christian Fellowship.” says freshman Adam Sidor.  “Through the events, I met many friendly and helpful people.  In a new school with thousands of unfamiliar faces, I felt welcomed and, in a sense, ‘at home’ with CCF members.”

The leadership of Grace Christian Fellowship, another chapter of Cornell’s InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, also planned several outreach events to kick off the new year.  GCF sponsored a series of outreach events such as an ice cream social, and the Bubble Tea Night.  The GCF Outreach Coordinator, Liz Leong, says that the basic goal of these events is to “show Christ’s love to [the freshmen] and let them know that there is a Christian presence on campus”.  The president of GCF, Mike Kim, commented that the aim of these events is also to “help make [the] transition into a new environment easier [for the new students, and to] answer any questions that may be on their minds”.

At the start of the 2004-2005 academic year, fifteen different student-led Christian fellowships began their outreach programs.  Most of these groups are affiliated with Cornell United Religious Work, which is a department in the division of Student and Academic Services.  The CURW provides many resources for all religious groups on campus, including Campus Crusade for Christ, Chi Alpha, Inter Varsity Christian Fellowship, Lutheran Church, Navigators, and Protestant Cooperative Ministry.  The goal of these groups is to make an impact on campus for Jesus Christ, not only on the more than 3,000 freshman, but on the entire campus community.

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Lamont Hiebert of Ten Shekel Shirt

Concert for Disconcerting Issue
Posted May 17, 2004
by Corene Luh '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - On Tuesday, April 27th, Ten Shekel Shirt, a band whose self-described style “merges melodic college rock with Brit pop/rock,” came to Cornell University in its last stop on an awareness tour across the United States.  Tickets sold out and students packed Anabel Taylor’s worship hall in anticipatory excitement of the popular Christian band.

Liz Cho, a law student, and Moses Song, ’05, along with an executive board of five other members, organized months of planning to bring Ten Shekel Shirt to Cornell.  Cho had gone backstage at a concert months ago and had met lead vocalist Lamont Hiebert, who told her about a newly hatched organization he and his fellow band members, Austin Morrison (drums), Jake Carey (guitar), and David Benedetti (bass) had founded.  Justice For Children, International (JFCI) works to raise awareness of the sexual exploitation of children in Cambodia and parts of Thailand, and seeks to promote justice through rescue, preventive, nurture, and aftercare measures.  After they mentioned the Benefit/Awareness tour they were planning, Cho invited them to stop by Cornell.

The most difficult part of organizing the concert, says Song, was the promotion.  The e-board gave brief presentations to almost thirty Christian organizations across five college campuses—Cornell University, Ithaca College, Cortland County Community College, Binghamton University, and Syracuse University—and sent posters and flyers to additional groups.  The presentation was very effective in garnering attention; after seeing the startling and very eye-opening slide show included in the presentation, students were more than willing to help, out monetarily and otherwise.  The e-board was able to raise the needed $2,200 to bring Ten Shekel Shirt to Ithaca, for coverage of travel, housing, and venue costs, and other additional expenses.  The fundraising was done mostly through the Korean Church at Cornell and the Law and Business Schools, by such resourceful means as candy grams, tax returns, bake sales, and resume critiques.  In addition, they were able to raise $5,000 in donations at the presentations, with more money coming in through a love offering at the church and personal letters to family and friends at home.  Altogether, this amounted to almost $8,000 in donations.

For an hour and a half, the band filled the room with music and short testimonies.  Just that morning the band had been in need of $1,200 to finish covering the costs of the concert.  They had played three sessions at a local church in Lancaster and made exactly $1,200 that very morning.  The band members also ran a disquieting slide presentation with clips of undercover footage showing scenes of child exploitation.  Infused among the painful images were verses and hopeful scripts that cited children who had been successfully rescued, and their perpetrators arrested.  The message, indeed, was one of hope—of complete faith, Hiebert said, “in a God who is willing to suffer for and with us.  We have a God who says, ‘I’m on your side.’”

The concert ended on a high note with a double encore, their first on the tour, by the charged and enthusiastic crowd.  After the concert, the four band members went out to local Collegetown with the volunteers and executive board members.  “They’re really down-to-earth people,” Song says, “really easy to talk to.”  He said that Ten Shekel Shirt was “very generous” for their part, asking for nothing more than housing, food, and transportation when they got to Cornell—having driven here themselves—and providing their own sound and lighting in what was a “very budget” tour.  Of all donations from the tour, fifty percent will be placed towards International Justice Mission (IJM), another organization promoting justice for oppressed people, with the other fifty percent used for the prevention and aftercare of abused children.

“The best part,” Song says, “is the blessing it was to see so many different people coming together for one cause,” explaining how he feels that there is a lot of Christian segregation, even on Sundays, when people part ways to go to different ethnic churches.  Additionally, he was encouraged by the response of students after the concert.  “Many people came up to me who were interested in helping out in some way with the organization, whether with money or with internships and mission trips.  Someone also told me that I had motivated him to think about creating a similar organization at Cornell to promote awareness of the situation.  That was very encouraging.”

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John Polkinghorne

A Commanding Interaction
Posted May 10, 2004
by Corene Luh '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Last Monday, April 26th, in a crowded Baker Hall lecture room, Reverend Dr. John Polkinghorne gave a talk entitled, "The Interaction of Science and Theology."  A particle physicist, Temple Prize winner, and Anglican priest who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 for his many services, Rev. Polkinghorne espoused the idea of a close relationship between the two studies of science and religion, and his lecture Monday was geared toward a broad audience that included representatives from both parties.

In his lecture, Rev. Polkinghorne insisted on the need for interaction between science and theology because the two certainly are not mutually exclusive.  Rather, both are active in the common pursuit of truth.  It is only the method to that end that is different: while science attempts to reach an understanding through facts, religion strives for truth by way of faith and a study of the nature of God.

Rev. Polkinghorne acknowledged that on both sides there exist fundamentalists who believe that their way is the only way to reach truth, and explained the danger of adhering to such extremist views.  In his talk, he mentioned six distinct and undeniable cases of common interaction between science and theology.  In one case, he used the example of the Heisenburg Uncertainty Principle to explain the existence of free will.  Many scientists, he said, disregard free will, arguing that there is always a complex set of equations that will determine every action and event.  However, there are situations in nature-such as the Heisenburg Uncertainty Principle-where there is turbulence and uncertainty.  Indeed, there are so many occurrences in nature that scientists themselves agree cannot be modelled, it would be absurd to say that humans, who encompass such a vastly higher degree of complexity, could be modelled and fit into an equation.

Rev. Polkinghorne went on to talk about other points, touching upon creation and the fine-tuned order of the world, the human capacity to understand this world, and love.  He repeatedly shared his observation that science is able to explain in an intricate and precise way the how's of life-for example, how the chemicals in the brain function to create the sensation known as love.  However, it cannot answer the why's-why there is love and marriage.  It is essential, Rev. Polkinghorne insisted, that we look through our "binocular vision," with one eye focused on science and the other trained in the ways of theology.  One eye is not enough. 

After presenting, Rev. Polkinghorne fielded questions from the audience regarding such topics as evolution, quantum mechanics, and creation, and justice.  Nick Wobbrock, '04, was impressed with the way the Reverend handled the questions and was glad he attended the lecture, saying that listening to Rev. Polkinghorne's views gave him more confidence in his own spiritual beliefs.  Says Wobbrock, "it was a great testimony about how someone can be comfortable with his intellectual background but also can see the things of greater meaning." 

Byron Norsworthy, '06, appreciated the lecture, although, "I would have liked to have seen him bring in theology a bit more, share more of his own faith and beliefs."  Still, the lecture struck him: "there is still a lot of narrow-mindedness that exists, both with scientists and with religious people.  There needs to be mutual understanding and communication if each were more open, there would be more appreciation of the other."

Wobbrock agrees, saying, "I am more convinced that people who are dogmatic on either side are missing a little bit of the picture.  It gave me a greater perspective of why God gave us brains and intelligence.  There is so much interaction between the two, its not fully living to ignore either aspect in our lives."

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Student reading Daily Sun Article

Obedient to the Call
Posted May 3, 2004
by Michael Kim '06

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Obedience to Christ is a challenge that we experience everyday.  Each time it comes down to our will versus His will, our desires versus His desires.  Sometimes we try to compromise, hoping that somehow we can have both.
 
One Monday afternoon in the Ivy Room, a dining hall on the Cornell campus, I was faced with this dilemma once again.  I bought my lunch, walked towards the back of the room and found an empty seat, which happened to be next to a student who was reading that day’s issue of the Cornell Daily Sun.  I pulled out some homework and began eating my sandwich, when suddenly the thought came to me: Here’s a guy reading the Cornell Daily Sun; this is a perfect opportunity to strike up a conversation. Isn’t that the purpose of those evangelism articles?  Immediately, my heart started racing and I felt hot as shifted my body from side to side, trying to control my nervousness.  But he’s busy reading.  It would be rude and awkward, I thought, trying to come up with excuses.  Reminded that timidity does not come from God, and of vows I had made to be more bold for God, and not to let an opportunity pass by which I would later regret, I tried to make a deal with God.  Fine, if he gets to the article then I’ll talk to him, okay?  So I continued to eat, trying to focus on my homework.  Every few seconds my eyes would glance over to see if he had reached the article.  All the while thoughts were rushing through my head as I tried to plan what I would say. 

Death.  My heart jumped.  There was the title of the article in bold letters.  Shoot. Okay well he has to read it, right?  It’s no good talking about it if he hasn’t read it.  If he reads the article then I promise I’ll talk to him.  Sure enough, he stopped turning the pages for several minutes.  Ah! Okay!  I surrendered; this was something God was not going to let go.  I waited for a moment, then came the opportunity to engage.  The student put down the paper, at which point I turned to him.

“Hey, are you done with that?” 

“Yeah, it’s all yours.” 

“Thanks, have you read those articles about the Gospel that come out every Monday?”  I blurted out.  There was an awkward pause as he tried to process what my question was.  I handed him the paper opened up to the article. 

Finally he answered, “Oh yeah, I’ve looked them over.” 

“Oh that’s cool.  So, what do you think?”  Here we go, I thought. 

From the look on his face I could tell his interest in the conversation suddenly died, as he replied in a blunt, polite, and somewhat cold manner, “Sorry, I don’t think about religion.”  He turned to pull out a book and started reading.  Oh no, I’m going to lose the conversation, I panicked.  I quickly formulated a different approach. 

“Well, how about death?” referring to the topic of that week’s article. 

“No.” 

And that was it.  In my heart I felt that if I pressed any more it would cause him to just get up and leave.  I thanked him for the paper and read it myself. 

I wish I had an awesome testimony of how God miraculously used that conversation to bring this fellow student to Christ, or that suddenly it got him interest in spiritual matters.  I left that table with many questions.  Did I do something wrong?  Should I have kept pressing the issue?  Did I not approach it the right way?  Could I have said something better?  I came away with mixed feelings of guilt and defeat.  To this day, I don’t have any answers to those questions.  But amidst these feelings, there is a glimmer of hope that I still cling onto, a small voice saying, “At least you were obedient.”  Often God uses what we think are failures to grow us and teach us.  If we are to spread the Gospel to the ends of the earth, certainly there needs to be servants who will remain obedient to Christ, even to the point of humiliation and death.  In faith we trust Him to do the work, despite our strengths and weaknesses. 

O Lord, please reveal yourself to that student who still does not know you.  May all those like him be mindful of you, that they may call out to you in times of trouble and you would save them.  Give to every child of yours the boldness of faith and perseverance to remain obedient to you.  And let this campus know of your great Love in Jesus Christ.

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Goldwin Smith

Seeking Answers
Posted April 26, 2004
Corene Luh '04 

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Amidst the many Bible studies on the Cornell University campus intended for believers seeking encouragement, intimacy, and spiritual growth, are pockets of seeker studies for non-believers.  One such study, led by Jeff Chang (’04) and Alice Yeh (’06), began during the fall of this academic year, meeting weekly on Sunday afternoons for an hour.  Attendance among those who come—mostly non-believers—is fairly regular, usually with anywhere from three to eight people.

While last semester focused on the study of the book of John, this semester the group has started using a discussion guide called Jesus with Dirty Feet, as part of a Groups Investing God (GIG) study series.  The discussions focus on a range of themes, such as stereotypes of Christianity and what Jesus would have thought about certain issues, with the Gospel always present in the themes.

To enhance the life application studies, Chang makes it a point to offer a challenge each week that the “seekers” can try to apply to their lives.  For example, recently Chang challenged them to start seeking the Lord through prayer, and has been encouraged by the results he has seen.  Chang is not the only one who notices that there might be changes happening.  Enid Wang (’05) first came to the study because she said that the name of the group then, “Christianity 101,” sounded attractive.  She knew it would be a group of people who, like her, did not know the Bible well and were going to learn together.  She says that in the beginning she was ambivalent towards learning about the Bible, but now she purposefully seeks it out because “it’s made me want to learn more.  I realized that these are passages I can apply to my life.” 

Because this is a seeker study with mainly non-Christians in attendance, Chang and Yeh strive to make it a comfortable and safe environment.  Says Chang, “We love them first—we’re not here to force anything.”  With that attitude comes honesty, openness, and love, and the students appreciate their efforts.  They understand what Chang and Yeh stand for, and know that their leaders do not try to “sugar-coat” the message that they present. 

Chang is encouraged on many levels by what he sees in his group.  The very first meeting this year, he broached the subject of hope, and whether or not hope exists if there is no God.  He says that the awkward silence that pervaded the meeting made him cringe; however, a discussion afterwards caused by this particular discussion ultimately led one person to give his life to Christ. 

Chang is also encouraged by the mere fact that they keep coming back, week after week, without pressure on his part.  “There is a hunger on campus.  People do want to know what Christianity is about.”  In addition, he acknowledges that the ups and downs of the study have challenged his own faith and enabled him to grow more dependent on God.  “I kept telling people that God really can answer prayers,” he said, “and then I had to ask myself, do I really believe this myself?” 

Ultimately, Chang knows that it’s not about what he, or Yeh, or even GIG does; victory lies in God’s hands alone, and this study is simply another tool to plant and water spiritual seeds.  And the seeds are indeed present.  “Sometimes I struggle thinking how becoming a Christian would affect the things I believe in, like abortion,” Wang, who attended a Catholic middle school, says.  “But I want to learn more about it and apply it to my life.  I don’t know why, but it’s interesting.  It makes me think that maybe someday I would like to become a Christian.”

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Panama City Beach, Florida Spring Break Trip

Spring Break Renewal
Posted April 12, 2004
Corene Smith '04

PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA - Panama City Beach, Florida is a popular Spring Break destination for millions of college (and high school) students each year, making it place of obvious hunger and need.  Thus, each year Campus Crusade on campuses all across the country send students there in an attempt to share the free and unconditional love of Jesus Christ.  This March, nineteen Cornell students, and 2,700 students in all, journeyed on the annual Campus Crusade for Christ-sponsored Spring Break trip to PCB.  Affectionately known as “Big Break,” the missions trip spans three weeks, and this year Cornell attended the last week, March 20-27.  The conference, an evangelistic experience for students both experienced and inexperienced in sharing their faith, calls students to step outside their normal, comfortable boundaries in a step of faith, trusting that God will use them powerfully in the lives of others.

The students lived in six-person houses intended to encourage house-intimacy, and divided their time amongst a plethora of activities, beginning with a morning large group meeting and capped off with another meeting in the evening.  Because the purpose of the conference was evangelism, the keynote speakers shared relevant themes, elaborating upon such Biblical examples as Paul’s experiences in sharing the Gospel, and offering guidelines for sharing on each specific day. 

Afternoons were spent on the beach conducting evangelistic surveys in pairs.  The surveys consisted of five questions of increasing depth, beginning by asking for three words to describe one’s life, and ultimately leading to the last question—asking people to rate, on a scale of one to ten, their desire to know God—designed to allow smooth transition into the Gospel.  Students were also armed with Four Spiritual Law booklets, which, in four simple and basic points, capture the message of the Gospel and extend an invitation to personally know Christ.  In addition, Spirit-filled Life booklets showed people how to renew their relationship with Christ.  Sharing one’s faith on the beach with strangers is not an easy ordeal.  According to Katherine Hunter, ’06, “it was a little sad because you want them to have the relationship that they may or may not know yet that they want…but it’s encouraging knowing you participated in their spiritual journey.”  In her experience, talking with Spring Breakers (who, for the most part, were friendly and open) was challenging but encouraging, although towards the end of the week, due to difficult and draining conversations and experiences, bits of discouragement, and exhaustion, many students found it difficult to maintain the enthusiasm. 

In addition to initiative evangelism in the afternoons on the beaches of Florida were men’s and women’s times, an instructional training session on how to use the Four Spiritual Laws, and nightly activities such as party-crashing, where small groups of students “crashed” parties on the strip in a bold attempt to share Christ, through a quick testimony, surveys, and booklets.

During the three weeks of Big Break, 622 students prayed to receive Christ, and an additional 165 more prayed to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  More than just these numbers, however, the personal experience of each student on Big Break was a powerful witness to the goodness, might, and faithfulness of the one true God.  Says Peter Ting, ’04, “What I was able to get most out of this trip was the strong sense of fellowship that our intimate group was able to develop.  God calls us all in our own ministries back on campus, but for one week, all of our own spiritual journeys converged together for us to be able to encourage each other and learn from one another.”
 
Relationship renewal was not limited only to friends.  Asked how she finally was able to regain her initial enthusiasm, after becoming tired and dispirited, Hunter responds that she was able to rediscover her connection with God.  Time to reflect upon and talk with her sharing partner about all that God had done in her life in the past year allowed her to realize that this mighty God—the one who had changed her life so much in just one year—was the God about whom they were sharing.  “It’s not just about getting through the survey,” she says, “It’s to get them to see God doing things in their own lives.”

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Robert Knight and Elizabeth Birch

A "Debate" on Gay Marriage
Posted April 19, 2004
Joyelle Lee '04 

ITHACA, NEW YORK - The verdict was out before the opening statements were even made.  Or at least that’s what the crowd’s response to the introduction of the two panelists made it seem like.  Elizabeth Birch, former director of the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender advocacy group in the nation was greeted by loud applause and cheering that filled Statler auditorium.  One daring person applauded for Robert H. Knight, director of the Cultural and Family Institute, while the rest of the audience laughed, and even gave him the “thumbs down.”  
 
At the heart of the Ms. Birch’s argument is that homosexual, tax-paying citizens should have the same rights and benefits as heterosexual citizens.  “The mark of a great civilization is how inclusive it is, not exclusive to an entire group of people.”  She also cited the high divorce rate as evidence that the institution of marriage is flawed, and even tried to use the Bible to support her stance.  One of her points was that in the Bible marriage was between one man and many, many women, as was the case with Solomon.  Therefore, marriage is not the union of one man and one woman as Christians claim it to be.  She also mentioned that Jesus did not mention homosexuality, and “If being gay is a sin, it didn’t make the top ten [commandments].”

Mr. Knight used the story of a gay friend to illustrate what worries him about gay marriage: the health risks associated with a homosexual lifestyle and the eternal souls of those who participate in this lifestyle.  He approached the same issues Ms. Birch did, but from a different angle.  Instead of blaming marriage as a faulty institution, he attributed the divorce rate as a result of a weakening of marriage through things like no-fault divorce laws.  He also that commented that “marriage laws were made from necessity; any civilization that did not protect marriage crumbled.”  To counter the thought that because Jesus did not mention homosexuality there is nothing wrong with it, Mr. Knight drew that parallel that “Jesus didn’t talk about child pornography either, but it is still wrong.”  He acknowledged that the two panelists had different views of Jesus, which leads to their different opinions, but warned Ms. Birch against misquoting scripture, because she will have to face judgment.

Both speakers mentioned the importance of open communication and valued the truth.  However, they did not serve as examples of what they advocated by their frequent interruptions, and assumptions that they made about each other because one was a lesbian and the other a Christian.  Neither really listened to the other’s arguments to weigh its merits; rather they simply heard points to rebut.  The same goes for the crowd.  It seems like most people walked in there with their mind made up for which side they supported.  The most vocal were those in favor of gay marriage, who cheered wildly when they thought Ms. Birch made a good point, and hissed at Mr. Knight when he said something unfavorable. 
 
The day after the debate over 20 same-sex couples staged the “Big Fat Queer Wedding” on Ho Plaza.  According to the Cornell Daily Sun, “The mock same-sex wedding was organized to raise awareness on campus about civil marriage between same-sex couples.” 

The Christian community has yet to form a response to the recent rise of favorable sentiment to gay marriage.  Those present at the debate or mock wedding did not speak or even cheer in defense of marriage.  According to the Sun article, “When the Master of Ceremonies at the mock wedding said ‘Should there be anyone who has cause why these couples should not be united in marriage?  Speak now, or let them forever hold their peace.’ The spectators remained silent.”

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Cornell Philadelphia Missions Trip

Love for the City of Brotherly Love
Posted March 29, 2004
by Hannah Kim '07 and Luke Luan '04

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - God called 14 Cornell students--from different fellowships, churches, and backgrounds--to inner city Philadelphia to serve Him during our Spring Break. Working with Pastor Frank Vega with Inner City Missions (ICM) we continually experienced God's faithfulness in providing financial support, prayers, and even transportation. The week flew by as we helped with labor projects in the morning (tearing carpets out, breaking down, and cleaning houses), and Bible club with neighborhood kids during the afternoon. We also had opportunities for Prayerwalks, open-air street evangelism, and conversations with people at the local soup kitchen. God sustained us physically, emotionally and spiritually, and though we were only there a week, I have faith that God will do amazing things in Philadelphia--not by our efforts, but by his strength alone. For God says in Habakkuk 1:5, "Look at the nations and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."  Here is a glimpse into our minds as the trip progressed.
 
Wednesday, 3.24. 9:20am: Hannah
Debriefing from St. Francis Soup Kitchen: The team did body worship to "Amazing Love" and ministered individually to the homeless receiving food there. God kept pressing on my heart to share Proverbs 3:5-6 to the people I talked to: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." I spoke with Andy, Robert, John, James, Chickie, and Sidney. Some were actually receptive to prayer and the Gospel, though most had already heard about Jesus. I felt compassion so strongly for these people. James had been unemployed since 2000, he has a court date soon because of getting into a fight, and he asked me to pray for his family. I was so encouraged when he told me how grateful he was that we came out and prayed with the people. It hurts me to think that we live in such luxury yet these people have so little. God was really giving me a heart for the people in this city. I told him to keep praying and he understood that was all that he could do.

Friday, 3.26 9:10am: Hannah
Pastor Vega reminded us that we came not to make dramatic changes--only God can do that--but to make a difference in someone's life. Looking back on this trip, what have I learned? I've learned real compassion for people--I've gotten a chance to step into their lives, seeing a glimpse of what they go through. I've seen the weariness and hopelessness in their eyes, the tough exteriors the children have to put up to survive on the streets. But God, help me not only see the needs of those in the city, but help me to be a missionary wherever I am--help me to see the spiritual hopelessness of people at Cornell too. Help me to depend on You and Your providence more, help me to be passionate and really long to see your name be known in all the earth, praying on my knees for this generation.

Monday, 3.30 11:53pm: Luke
I think the best way to go about reflecting on a mission trip is to begin with my reasons for getting involved with it.  I wanted to explore the possibility of future service in inner cities, and saw Inner City Missions as a good means to do so.  Having been on short-term mission trips to Newark before, I figured that this spring break would just be a continuation of my exploration.  So, unlike most of the other members of the team, I had few reasons to go, and even fewer expectations.  That I did not know my teammates very well and knew that a lot of socio-cultural discomfort would be involved—despite my previous inner-city experiences—made me balk at the idea of going.  However, I also felt that I had been venturing beyond my comfort zone too infrequently in doing God’s work.  Accordingly, God answered my “Why go?” questions with “Why not?”  So, in a rather halfhearted manner, I decided to go.
 My low and few expectations—and the high and many ones of my teammates—were simply blown away by God’s power and provision throughout the trip.  On the 21st, some of the team members gutting a house stumbled upon $7,500—just $500 shy of what ICM needed at that moment in time.  For every member of the team at some time during the week, exhaustion could have hindered our performance.  There were times when I tried to bargain with God: “If you want me to do your work now, then please give me energy and alertness.”  God answered with second winds that I completely did not expect.  He was also incredibly gracious to us in keeping most of us in good health, and rapidly restoring those who fell ill.

I should note at this point that one of our leaders was not able to join us for the trip for health reasons.  However, God took very good care of her at home.  I do not know for certain whether this was what God had in mind, but the fact that others stepped in to take over the leadership and did such a magnificent job attests to God’s provision yet again.

God also made His power known in the area I was most apprehensive about: team unity, particularly how I would relate to my teammates.  Our team was composed mostly of members of the Korean Church at Cornell and Grace Christian Fellowship, with what I had initially believed to be an overabundance of underclassmen.  As a January graduate and a member of Chinese Bible Study, I was the lone representative from my fellowship, and a relatively old one at that—a definite misfit.  Somehow, God turned our awkward and missions-inexperienced group into a cohesive and well-functioning body of Christ.

While God deserves the credit for all this, I believe He was only able to use us so much because everyone was humble, encouraging, constantly in prayer, reliant on God, and willing to extend themselves.  Personally, reliance on God became very necessary not only during those times when I was physically worn out, but also when I was dealing with the kids who came to Bible club.  There were times when some of the boys would fight, throw rocks, and curse us off as we tried to discipline them.  It was at these times that God made it blatantly clear that my own competence falls well short of God’s own wisdom.

As a parting thought, I would like to say this: God can blow our minds with what He can do through His people if only we are willing.

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The Johnson Museum

The Masquerade
Posted March 22, 2004
Corene Luh '04 

ITHACA, NEW YORK -  At times, safe in our Christian bubbles, we may forget the weight of Christ’s actions, reflected in these words that Jesus says to the Pharisees in Matthew 9:11-13, in answer to their accusation that he was mingling with “sinners:” “‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  But go and learn what this means: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”  For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.’”  That Christ incarnate descended from heaven to walk this desolate earth, choosing to leave the safety and goodness of all that he knew for such an uninviting place, is difficult to comprehend.  As we consciously attempt to shed our old, worldly skin and seek after a new identity in Christ, we must respond to his call for us to imitate his attitudes and actions, and this includes a willingness on our part to exchange a position of comfort for one of challenge and faith.  While Christian outreach and ministry events can take on many forms, the outpouring of love and unconditional acceptance is no more apparent than when Christ’s disciples willingly and graciously leave their “bubble” to extend Christ’s love in an environment where others will fear no judgment, discomfort, or “proselytization.”  

On Saturday, March 13, Cornell’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) held a Masquerade at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art.  The event was tri-sponsored with CUTonight, a student committee whose purpose is “to provide event-oriented funding to student organizations for innovative late-night programs for Cornell University” and the Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC), whose purpose is threefold: to act as a liaison of sorts between student athletes and the administration; to promote unity and camaraderie in student athletics; and to seek to “promote and support athletics on the community, state and national levels.”  Together, the three organizations coordinated the event to benefit the Special Olympics, suggesting a $5 per person donation.  The flyer-invitations that the organizations distributed around campus requested black and white attire and was signed by a mysterious “Masker” who beckoned all to “disguise, dine, dance, and un-mask in an evening of suspense and enchantment.” 

When doors opened at 9:30, masqueraders swept into the Museum and were given masks to don for the night.  After ample time to mingle, sample a wide assortment of refreshments, and enjoy the smooth melodies of the live jazz band, the museum lights flickered to signal the commencement of the night’s activities, which kicked off with the contest of unmasking the Masker.  Around the room were placed various cut-out masks, each with a clue on the back that offered a brief hint regarding the identity of the Masker, such as the fact that he/she had six letters in his/her surname.  As masqueraders scampered around the room searching for clues to uncover the Masker’s true identity, the Masker himself, who sauntered unknown amidst the partygoers, himself a seeming fellow partygoer, would tap people subtly on the shoulder to disqualify them and thereby reduce the pool of contestants.  After the unmasking successfully revealed Tim Hanley (‘05), a member of FCA, to be the Masker, the night’s festivities resumed with dancing and more mingling.  Meanwhile, for those who wanted a break from the dancing and from the crowds, the Museum’s art exhibits on the quiet upper levels of the building stayed open to the “revelers,” who were able to enjoy a late-night viewing of all the beautiful artwork the Museum has to offer.

The successful turnout of roughly 250 people gave FCA members opportunities for sharing and personal ministry.  Although the event was not a strictly “Christian” or “ministry/outreach” event, the fun and sociable tone of the night’s events did provide a favorable setting which enabled plenty of friendly and natural conversation with strangers or non-Christian pals.  Leah de Riel, ’04, attests, “Personally, I was able to talk to a couple people about God.”  Because of the setting, Christians were able to gather with non-Christians in an atmosphere dissolved of any possible fears or judgment.  In addition, because there was no overt Christian twist, and because of the all-embracive advertisement promoting fun and entertainment in an easy, relaxed atmosphere, the Masquerade—besides allowing Christians and non-Christians to meet and mingle comfortably—gave Christians an opportunity to show the Cornellian world that the stereotyped stigma that “Christians can’t have fun” is quite untrue.  As de Riel put it, the event was “a hangout time where Christians and non-Christians could just hang out together and have fun.”  The broad scope of individuals in attendance and the general enjoyment had by all testified to the power of God’s presence and to his love, which knows no bounds.

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McGraw Tower

Jesus In Islam
Posted March 15, 2004
Joyelle Lee '04, with Brett Sauve '05 and Oliver Chow '06 

ITHACA, NEW YORK - The publicity was very basic: a rather plain poster or simple email with only the words “Jesus in Islam,” the location and date of the talk.  But those three words were compelling enough to draw a diverse crowd of over 75 people representing a variety of religions to hear Dr. Zeki Saritoprak speak. 

Zeki Saritoprak holds a PhD in Islamic Theology from the University of Marmara, Turkey. He earned his Master's degree in Islamic Theology and Philosophy, and his Bachelor's in Divinity from the same university. He also attended Al-Azhar University in Cairo for several years for Arabic language studies while researching for his dissertation. In addition, he has taught at Harran University in Turkey.  He is the Founder and President of Rumi Forum for Interfaith Dialogue in Washington. Currently, he is a Visiting Assistant Professor in Religious Studies at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. The subjects on which he has taught have included the Science of Kalam, Sufism, the Qur'an and Hadith, Islamic Sects, contemporary Islamic movements, and Islam in America. Additionally, Dr. Saritoprak is the author of several books and articles on Islamic Studies in Turkish, Arabic, and English.

The talk was sponsored by the Cornell Society for Islamic Spirituality and the Department of Near Eastern Studies.  The Cornell Society for Islamic Spirituality is a graduate group and one of the two Muslim student organizations on campus.  The stated organization purpose is “Increasing awareness about the basic concepts related to spiritual dimension of Islam. Bridging the gap between Islam and other religions. Breaking down stereotypes of people of different religious background by means of giving them voice to express themselves to our community.”  Past events sponsored by this group have included talks entitled “What is Islam?” and “Why Interfaith Dialogue?”  They also hold the annual Iftaar Banquet held in the fall.

The talk by Dr. Saritoprak was not apologetic in nature, but explanatory.  Dr. Saritoprak merely presented Islamic beliefs about who Jesus is, without defending the faith against other religions or attempting to convert audience members.  For those who are unfamiliar with the Qu'ran, just seeing how many times Jesus is referred to in the Qu'ran was eye opening.  It also helped to learn where in the Qu'ran Jesus is mentioned to point out passages about Jesus and discover how well respected Jesus is in Muslim teachings.  After the hour-long talk there was a question and answer period, where questions were mostly asked to clarify points Dr. Saritoprak had made rather than challenge Islamic beliefs.  Even the speaker admitted that a lot of Muslim theology is vague, and that some issues or doctrinal points aren’t entirely clear. 

As members of an interfaith dialogue, people tried to be respectful of the other religions that were represented in the room rather than being controversial.  At one point, Dr. Saritoprak referred to the movie “The Passion of the Christ,” which seemed amusing to one of the Muslim members of the audience, presumably because the premises of the movie are ridiculous when taken in the context of Muslim beliefs.  The interfaith dialogue is generally perceived to be good on many levels.  Socially, it is constructive for people of different cultures to talk to one another, and not make assumptions that lead to misunderstandings.  As Christians, it is positive from a witnessing standpoint, because it allows us to share about the merits of our faith, as well as strengthen it.  The more you learn, the more you realize that Christianity has a lot of intellectual depth that a lot of other faiths don’t have.

Attending the talk had a personal as well as educational purpose for one student who has a Muslim roommate.  The two postponed watching “The Passion” to listen to the talk, since they were both interested in knowing more about Jesus’ place in Islam.  Although the talk seemed more geared toward people who do not have much knowledge about Islam, it was informative for people at all stages of faith by bringing up questions regarding issues that don’t have obvious answers.  The Christian student felt that the talk increased his confidence in his own faith, because he is now able to discuss certain issues about Islam with his roommate.  One of the points brought out in one of their conversations is that his roommate conceded was that in some ways, Jesus even outranks Mohammed in Islam, because Jesus was considered to be the only one that showed some “divine” attributes.

Although Christians in the audience may not have agreed with every point Dr. Saritoprak made, since they believe in Christianity and not Islam, the event was viewed as successful and informative.  There was a clear presentation about what Islam says about Jesus, which lives up to the unexpected pairing of words in the title, “Jesus in Islam.”

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The Passion Forum at Cornell

"The Passion" Draws Discussion
Posted March 8, 2004
Corene Luh '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Although Cornell students may feel at times like they live sheltered in the “Cornell bubble,” off-campus news and influences still very much hold reign, and this has held true for Mel Gibson’s controversial movie “The Passion of the Christ.”  A smattering of editorials have hit the pages of the Cornell Daily Sun and various groups and affiliations, including the Atheism and Agnosticism Awareness Society, have held discussions in response to the release of the movie.  Members of twelve Christian fellowships have joined together, driven by a common purpose; they are unified by one single white button that asks simply, “Have you seen it?” 

Such a movie, which has elicited its own class of passion in its viewers’ responses, cannot creep by unacknowledged.  On Wednesday, March 3, Cornell University students were invited to attend an Inter-Faith Discussion of the movie.  The panel included five members of Cornell United Religious Work: Reverend Robert Smith, Dick Gilbert of the First Unitarian Church, Campus Crusade for Christ’s Charles Kim, lay chaplain Theresa Miller, and Rabbi Ed Rosenthal.  After introductions were given, each chaplain gave a brief personal testimony of his or her response to the movie.  Afterwards, the discussion was opened to the students, who included a mix of varying religious backgrounds, although most identified themselves as Christian, Jew, or atheist. 

Perhaps one could say that the statements given by each chaplain reflected expectations based on religious affiliation.  Father Smith posed the question of cinema as an appropriate medium to portray religion, although he believed that the deeply personal character of the movie perhaps would allow viewers the ability to “enter into each other’s worlds and reactions.”  Miller mentioned some historical inaccuracies in the film and talked about the role of the “Christian imagination,” which would make it difficult for those without a Christian background or mindset to connect to the profundity of the theme.  Gilbert, who explained that his movie experience was from a Unitarian viewpoint, found the unremitting violence difficult to endure, and felt moreover that Gibson “neglected a wholistic view of Jesus,” showing only a few flashbacks of Jesus’ life.  Kim’s reaction to the movie was “stunned silence and hope.”  He cited the image of redemption, and the promises of renewal and hope, as perhaps a very real cause of the current controversy; people take offense to Jesus’ claims because no one wants to willingly admit to insufficiency and need. 

Much interest was given to Rosenthal’s thoughts, as the outrage and protests of the movie’s alleged anti-Semitic overtones cannot have escaped anyone.  Rosenthal talked about the difficulty of seeing the movie “through Jewish eyes,” defining the movie as anti-Jewish, which bears a clear distinction to the term anti-Semitic: while anti-Semitism is the hatred of Jewish people, anti-Judaism is the hatred of the Jewish religion.  To explain his choice of terminology in labelling the movie, he explained that while the Jews in “The Passion” initially display all the negative, stereotypical traits so often attributed to Jews, a radical change occurred in the Jewish composite: they transformed into the beautiful, compassionate figures of Simon and his wife at the precise moment that they “saw the light” and understood finally who Jesus was.   

The questions students asked encompassed all aspects of the film: How historically correct was the film?  Was Pontius Pilate’s depiction accurate?  What was Gibson’s point?  Why did the movie cover such a small segment of Jesus’ life, excluding all his teachings and miracles?  In answer to this question, Kim posed another: What was the purpose of Jesus’ life?  After all, why did he come down to live, if not to die for us?  As Kim says, “We are each unique but our equalizer is the saving of our souls by Jesus.”  Perhaps Gibson chose to focus solely on the last twelve hours of Jesus’ life, and to incorporate such a high degree of bloody violence, because he wanted to submit to our rational minds the mind-numbing question, How costly, exactly, was it?  Were the scenes gratuitous, with a bit of Hollywood magic mixed in, as some insist, or was it an excruciatingly real account of the price that had to be paid? 

Throughout the evening, much emphasis was made on openness, respect, and understanding between different religious groups, who will surely view the movie through radically different lenses.  As Rosenthal said in his opening statement, the movie everyone sees is a different movie.  What for Christians may have been an “intensely spiritual experience” was for him “one of the most painful experiences,” even on a personal level, and he urged everyone to take up the challenge of viewing the film through the eyes of “the other.”  The resounding question therefore is, can this be done?  The question applies not only for non-believers, who may angrily or defensively view the movie as a fundamentalist tool of proselytization, but also for Christians, who perhaps may become so emotionally involved that they refuse to or are unable to understand others’ perspectives. 

As varying as the five viewpoints were, in addition to the various students who offered opinions, one point of accord was the encouragement of understanding and respect that the open forum offered.  The chaplains came with the open ease of those who know they have the ability to share very personal opinions and discuss contentious themes without fear of hostility or contempt.  When asked what he could take away from the experience, Rosenthal said he had renewed faith in the ability of Cornell students to convene in disagreement, yet maintain a mutual respect.  And though small, this is a significant step.

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Flyer for the Festival of Black Gospel

One Vision, Not Division
Posted March 1, 2004
by Joyelle Lee '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - After almost four years at Cornell, I feel like I’ve seen it all.  I’ve been exposed to every facet of campus, from the view at the top of the clocktower to inside Lynah rink to buildings in the vet school that classes should never be held in because they are way too far from central campus.  Little did I know that there was a whole part of Cornell that I had been missing.  Even more surprising is that it was right here within the Christian community.

The Festival of Black Gospel (FBG) has been an annual event at Cornell for the past 28 years.  Starting after the Willard Straight Hall takeover, the purpose of the event was to bring together members of the community to presenting a program representative of the growth and accomplishments of the African American traditional art form known as Gospel music.  The weekend typically held several performances, with a recording artist on Friday night, a mass Gospel choir of members from other area schools on Saturday, and a worship service on Sunday. 

I myself had never attended the festival until this year, when I was asked to help mobilize some of the Asian Christians on campus for this year’s festival.  The request surprised me, since I wasn’t sure how Asians could help during a weekend of African American culture.  But I quickly realized that the organizers of this year’s event had something different in mind from past festivals.  As stated on the organization website, “Today, our goals have morphed as we have pledged to meet the vision head on -- UNITY IN THE BODY OF CHRIST. FBG endeavors to maintain the traditional celebration of the African American art form, but in so doing, we strive for the higher goal...that we might spread the Gospel, the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ, to all the nations starting here in Western New York.”  In changing the purpose of the festival, the arrangement of the weekend changed as well, to meet these new goals.

The opening event of FBG was the Unite Basketball Classic the night of February 20th.  From the start, the weekend’s themes of “One.  Vision…not Division” and evangelism were highly evident.  The 200 people in attendance that night watched two teams of Cornell students from several different Christian groups: the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Higher Calling, Pamoja-ni, Souldierz, as well as non-Christian outreach players compete in a high-energy athletically astounding basketball game.  Throughout the entire game a DJ was spinning Gospel music and Christian hip-hop, except during halftime, when students from the crowd were invited to share a song, testimony or poem about their faith.  A few of the brave ones got up and sang, ranging from an impromptu rendition of “Jesus Loves Me” to a lovely a cappella harmony to a careful rewriting of the popular hip-hop song “Hotel” by Cassidy and R. Kelly to make it glorifying to God.  The “Club Jehovah” Afterparty, with more Gospel music, followed the game.  Students throughout the night demonstrated the love and joy of Jesus in a relaxed atmosphere that was ideal for non-Christian friends who might be hesitant to go to something more formal.

Saturday was another day full of Gospel music, entitled the “The Explosion: Mass Choir Workshop / Gospel Music Extravaganza.”  The Mass Choir Workshop was taught by Min. Maureen Wilson and was open to any student interested in Gospel music.  That evening was an almost sold-out concert with a diverse audience of 340 members: students of all ethnicities, members of the community of all ages.  It showcased the talents of Min. Troy Ellis and Friends and Guest Gospel Recording Artist Keith “Wonderboy” Johnson, whose older sister happened to be a Cornell alumna.  Mr. Johnson reminisced on the days when his parents struggled to pay the tuition of the school.  “I sacrificed a lot when my sister was a student at Cornell.  Her baby brother had to eat a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.”  The concert was not just a performance, but also a participatory event of worship.  There is no doubt God was present in that auditorium, as five students received Christ as their personal savior by the end of the night.

Sunday closed the festival with a worship service led by Pastor Joan Simms.  This was a time for those who worked so hard to make the festival successful to sit back and be ministered to.  Of the 100 people in attendance, at least 20 students recommitted their lives to Christ, and one was saved.   This was a very appropriate way to end a weekend of both corporate and individual spiritual growth.  According to Jeff Chang, ’04, “I thought the weekend was awesome cause it exposed me to a part of the campus fellowships that I haven’t seen very much of, and it was encouraging to see how God was working through brothers and sisters outside my immediate circle.”

 For more information on the Festival of Black Gospel, visit http://www.rso.cornell.edu/fbg/

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Greg Ganssle, speaker at the North East Winter Conference

Mindful Love
Posted February 23, 2004
by Corene Luh '04

PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND - How can we love and serve God with our minds?  For college students, this is can be an especially difficult question.  We have long heard about learning to love God with our hearts and strength, but the mind is something we tend to associate with scholarly learning and worldly fine-tuning, especially in such a rigorously academic setting as a university.  Our lives, it seems, during these four (or more) years, are almost entirely concerned with the idea of the mind—how to outwit, outperform, and outscore the other millions of students for better jobs and better futures.  However, during this year’s North East Winter Conference, which fell on the weekend of February 6-8 in Providence, Rhode Island’s Westin Hotel, 850 college students from regional colleges were called to surrender their minds in a whole new way—not to the constant, fierce battle of achievement and recognition, but rather to the freedom and liberty that come with truly knowing God with the minds He has given us, and thus understanding the personal relationship to which God has called every one of us. 

As Eric Barlow, class of ’05 explains, Christians are often “intimidated” by the very faith they profess.  We are reluctant to question our faith, to reveal natural doubts, to discover for ourselves the truth we have been taught for so long to believe.  While our tendencies to rely on the teachings of those before us—those whom we have deemed worthy of respect and credibility—is not in itself incorrect or faulty, we oftentimes allow this to overshadow the individuated mind, free will, and agency God has given each one of us.  All too often, it seems, we are afraid to be seen as weak and to show doubt, fearful that if we seem just a little too human, the Christian world will judge us as somehow being “unqualified” believers. 

The keynote speaker, Greg Ganssle, a member of the Rivendell Institute for Christian Thought and Learning who has been on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ for twenty-five years, encouraged a new perspective.  In a series of four talks entitled “Loving God with all your mind,” Ganssle stressed the importance of renewing our minds for the purpose of serving the Lord, and challenged students to actively engage their minds in their beliefs and to apply these beliefs to their lives.  So very often we limit our mind-relationship with God to the reading, study, and memorization of Scripture in an effort to grow deeper in our faith and to arm ourselves with the tools we believe necessary to live the Christian life.  However, deepening our relationship with Christ requires relating to God on all levels of thought and action—and this can only be done in a meaningful way if we understand exactly why we choose the words and actions that characterize us to the world.  Romans 12:1-2, the theme verse of the study, says, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.  Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good pleasing and perfect will.” 

Beginning with the subject of God’s mercy, and underlining our service to God as a natural and joyful response to its all-encompassing nature, Ganssle continued his series with the topics of being a living sacrifice, transformation versus conformation, and life application.  Ganssle related the theme by using the metaphor of a stream, with disciples spiritually feeding the inhabitants from both upstream and downstream.  We need ably educated people upstream to research and outsource information, and active people downstream to disseminate this information by pouring into the lives of others.

The series struck a chord with the students in very universal and in very individual ways.  For college students in general, who have been so blessed with the privilege of receiving a college education, we often forget that we are called to use our minds, this gift that the world has so exalted, to glorify the Giver.  However, for most students, the impact was also very personal.  For Barlow, who struggled at times to focus his attention on God, with a heavy load of work and duties awaiting his return to Cornell, relief came when he finally was able to grasp the lesson in a personal way and completely surrender his worries to God.  As he put it, “God really showed me what it meant to serve Him with my mind and surrender to Him.  After all, self-worth does not depend on class assignments.” 

North East Winter Conference allowed students to re-evaluate their relationships with the Lord from a very real perspective, in dealing with issues that are existent yet very much neglected.  Abby Huber, class of ’06, can relate very well to the difficulties that may arise from relinquishing oneself completely to God: “I absolutely love [the theme verse] but sometimes have trouble actually applying it to my own life.  I think that is what hit me the hardest: God does not just want control of our lives but also our minds.  So frequently I struggle with the issue of control; I want everything in my life to turn out a certain way.  Surrendering our lives and hearts to God means that we must also give him our minds and our every thought.”

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Worshiping God

Campus on a Hill
Posted February 16, 2004
by Alex Lee and Joyelle Lee '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Cornell University has twenty-four registered student organizations that proclaim the name of Jesus Christ in their mission statements.  And that’s not including the ministries of Cornell United Religious Works or faculty.  So why would a group of students feel the need to start yet another Christian organization?

In a word, unity.  The vision of this new interfellowship network, Campus on a Hill, explains its purpose in much greater detail:

“The goal of Campus on a Hill is to unite all believers on campus, regardless of age, ethnicity, denomination, etc., in order that we might live as Jesus called us to live, and in order that we might shine God’s light on campus as a credible and powerful witness to His life-changing love and grace, bringing glory to God.  Simply put:  we want to see Jesus lifted high in our community!

“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” - Romans 15: 5-6

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” - Matthew 5:14-16

We seek to shine as a city on a hill by loving our fellow brothers and sisters for the reason that…

"By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." - John 13:5

And that's the key part:  all men will know...if you love one another.  We want to reach our campus by first loving and uniting with each other through this all men will see that who we believe in is REAL.

Our focus also reaches to racial reconciliation and inter-denominational community.”

Campus on a Hill didn’t start because its founders thought that the other twenty-four groups on campus were inadequate in meeting the needs of the university.  Rather, they saw God moving on campus in each of the organizations, but realized that so much more could happen if all the groups were working together.  Practically speaking, Campus on a Hill serves as a network for outreach events and to facilitate communication.  It is not a new fellowship at Cornell there are no weekly Friday night Campus on a Hill fellowship meetings or Bible studies.  In fact, it would be going against the vision of the organization if they did hold events that drew away members of other fellowships.  The intent of Campus on a Hill is not to disband the current fellowships on campus to form one large one.  After all, God’s body is diverse, and this diversity is not something that should be dissolved; rather its members should be working together as one body.  As part of the body of believers on campus, one fellowship can be seen as an eye, another as a hand.  The eye doesn’t need to become a hand to be useful, but it would be beneficial for the eye to know what the hand is doing to coordinate their efforts.  Part of being unified is simply being aware of the different parts of the body and what they’re doing so that they can work together.

 Campus on a Hill plans to share its vision of unity in the body of Christ at Cornell on May 8, 2004 at a large inter-fellowship / evangelistic event.  There are several goals of this event:

1. For Christians to come together to worship God, pray and fellowship, and hear the vision of acting as one church working on the same mission field.
2. Evangelism.  The very core message of the church and the reason behind unity is Jesus.  It would be impossible to talk about unity without talking about Jesus and the Gospel.
3. This event is a celebration of what God has been doing, is doing, and will do on this campus. 

The goal of Campus on a Hill and this large inter-fellowship event they’re planning may sound familiar.  In Fall of 2001, an organization called Flood of Faith also tried to unify the Christian groups at Cornell through a huge gathering.  This year, however, Flood of Faith ceased to be an organization.  Campus on a Hill picked up where Flood of Faith left off.  In fact, the leaders of Flood of Faith are permitting Campus on a Hill to use the vision of their organization: “Seeking for unity and evangelism through praise and prayer.”  Because the two groups share the same mission, if Flood of Faith was still active, there would be no need for Campus on a Hill.

The two organizations do differ, however, in the way the vision is carried out.  Since September, Campus on a Hill has held weekly prayer meetings, which is the core of the ministry.  The purpose of these prayer meetings is to share, edify and pray for one another and the community.  This is a way of drawing people out from different places that might not have met one another otherwise.  When the weather was nice, jam sessions on the arts quad were also held twice a week, so that many could come together and worship God, as a consistent and visible testimony to the campus. 

Thus far, Campus on a Hill has the support of about half the Christian groups on campus.  Because it only became an official registered student organization this semester, there are many people who still don’t know about it, or are unable to attend the weekly prayer meetings.  The leaders are working hard to meet with all the leaders of Christian groups to pass on this vision of unity.

The leaders of Campus on a Hill would like to take this opportunity to thank all the alumni who have provided encouragement.  All that has already happened would not have been possible without the ministries previous students have put into action and their vision for the campus.  It was they who sowed the seeds of the harvest that is now being reaped.

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Kadee Hunter '06

Devotion to Christ in the Midst of Sorority Rush
Posted February 9, 2004
by Corene Luh '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - For most of us, God’s ability to answer prayers is a lesson in humility, love, and grace that we continually learn.  For Kadee Hunter, a sophomore at Cornell University, God knocked on the door of a grudge in her heart and brought about a change that has left her still in mingled wonder and joy.  And it happened at the most unexpected time: during formal membership recruitment, commonly known as rush, at the Kappa Delta sorority.

As a sophomore, almost a year after she had pledged KΔ, Kadee still had doubts about her Greek decision, and these doubts ultimately stained each and every one of her sorority activities.  The impending arrival of rush 2004 didn’t offer any solace or refuge; after all, rush, of all activities, has the definite possibility of confirming every stereotyped fear that has always placed Greek life in a dubious position in a Christian’s perspective.  Kadee, too, had doubts about rush: not least of all, the seeming superficiality of selecting and ranking potential new members based on a few minutes’ conversation.  However, this fear, and many more, have been wiped clean, and for Kadee, this signifies more than relief; it is the joy of beginning anew with a fresh set of attitudes and promises.

On many levels, God has enabled rush to impact Kadee’s opinions and reveal his love and sovereignty.  On a very fundamental level, rush was an “intense but wonderful” period of activity and emotion that allowed for a deepening of certain relationships where previously, her biggest bonding time had been nightly teeth-brushing together in front of the same mirror.  In addition, she has been able to get to know the new class of KΔ’s, girls she very enthusiastically loves and endorses.  More importantly, God has used this time to allow her to re-evaluate her heart, and to encourage and confirm her place in KΔ.

But, for instance, what of the supposed and aforementioned fear of superficiality in a process that judges personal worthiness based on a girl’s first impression?  “For me,” Kadee says, “the concerns of shallowness were put aside when I saw the genuineness of the girls’ motivations.  These were real people trying to make real connections, making genuine efforts to find out other people’s interests and personalities, and seeing what makes each person special.”  Kadee does not deny the potential difficulty of such sisterhood—there indeed can be a preset mentality of what is acceptable and what is not, and this is difficult especially for one who believes in the truth of God’s call for unbiased and unwavering love.  However, what Kadee has learned in a seemingly basic, yet undeniably difficult, lesson—and which has led her to encourage other Christians to take the step of faith and get involved in Greek life—is that KΔ, and every other house out there, is not only about struggles and temptations and hard mistakes.  As with all sectors of life and faith, it is dangerous to pigeonhole anything one does not understand, and sorority life is not a black-or-white, all-or-nothing experience. 

Seeing her sorority as her personal mission field has enabled Kadee to recognize certain self-inherent attitudes and beliefs, alongside her very real concern and love for her sisters.  This, in turn, has led to a constant struggle to entrust everything to God and to believe He can truly use her for His purpose—that, indeed, he has placed her in the Kappa Delta sorority for a reason.  As she explains, a rather daunting challenge has been the acceptance of being a minority voice in the sisterhood as a result of her faith in the Lord.  It is not the careful and reserved confession of bearing the Christian label, it is everything that Jesus’ death on the cross has taught her: the willingness to openly wear Jesus’ name across her heart and admit to holding certain beliefs, knowing the consequences of staking such a claim, and accepting that being a light to others means that there will be times when the light’s luminosity may falter.  However, as she has observed, holding firm to such beliefs can gain one admittance into the respect and esteem of one’s sisters—which means, for example, the possibility of bringing Christ naturally and casually into everyday conversation, while brushing your teeth at night with a friend in front of those same mirrors.  All of a sudden, it is no longer a “big deal” to try to create a spiritual atmosphere or painstakingly lay the grounds for a spiritual conversation, because it has all already been laid out in love and respect.

For a long time, Kadee was content to be in that infamously safe Christian bubble, even after she had joined KΔ.  There were the deep doubts that real friendships could be made outside the context of relationships mutually based in the love of Christ.  More importantly for Kadee, there was The Grudge.  A few negative experiences as a pledge herself last year at parties caused her to become bitter, and led her to view her sorority as something she would have to dread and endure.  However, the Lord used rush, with its imminent mixture of intensity, emotion, and high-strung fun and fatigue, to reveal to Kadee an oft-forgotten truth: that just because He has a plan for someone doesn’t automatically make it a vile and unbearable chore.  After doubting the fabric of sorority relationships, she is now touched by how deeply and obviously the sisters care for each other, and the proof has come through in countless ways, in innumerable activities.  In short, in a funny twist, rush has forced her to take away the grudge she so strongly held as a wall between her and her house, and to face the acknowledged yet undesired reality that she actually did like the sorority.              

It is difficult, and perhaps unfair, to decide whether rush is a “Christian” process or not.  Oftentimes, it seems like it is not, based on the stories we hear and the opinions we develop.  However, one of the most encouraging things out of Kadee’s mouth, surprisingly, was her careful consideration, when asked to analyze rush from a typical “Christian” perspective, that there really is not much of a difference; her opinion of the process does not change when she tries to constrain herself to a preset mindset.  Why is this encouraging?  It shows us again that the initial opinions we tend to form are so very often a result of ignorance and fear.

Kadee’s heart-transformation is very obvious when she assesses the past night’s whirlwind activities or when she raves about her diamond sister.  Delight has replaced doubt; reluctance has become eagerness.  For much of last year and last semester she had gotten down on her knees for her sorority; she had prayed for love for her sisters, for a bond and a connection that she didn’t yet feel, for the truth of a sisterhood that was not merely symbolic.  The Lord has answered these prayers when she least expected them.  Before rush, she brought the process to the Lord’s feet, praying for those traits that are always the first to go under the pressure of stress: patience, compassion, and love.  She prayed for protection against discouragement, and a loving bond between all.  And while she prayed for her sorority and rush, she unknowingly began to experience a personal transformation in relation to KΔ.  For her, it is still a wonder that God turned the tables on her to answer her prayers: while she has long seen Kappa Delta as her mission field and continually seeks ways to encourage her sisters, God used KD to encourage her in a much-needed way.

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The Multicultural Banquet
Posted February 5, 2004
by Joyelle Lee '04

ITHACA, NEW YORK - Most Grace Christian Fellowship (GCF) or Cornell Christian Fellowship (CCF) members know that the two fellowships are sister InterVarsity chapters.  They also know that GCF is predominantly Asian-American, while CCF is multiethnic.  But ask them why there are two InterVarsity chapters at Cornell or to name five members of the other fellowship, and you’ll have difficulty getting a clear answer.  The Executive teams of both fellowships attempted to remedy this problem last semester by finding a common ground between the two fellowships: food.

December 6, 2003 marked the first ever CCF-GCF Interfellowship banquet.  Members of both groups brought dishes that showcased their ethnic heritage, from dumplings to plantains to macaroni and cheese.  After a time of eating came the program, which started with a game designed for people to reflect on their own subconscious preferences and opinions.  The group was asked to go to different sides of the room based on their answers to several questions, such as “Do you have close friends of a different race,” “Do you think Cornell is a diverse place,” and “Do you go to an ethnic-specific church?”  Each question was followed by an explanation from someone who answered “Yes,” and someone who answered “No.”  By doing this, there was a subtle discussion about racial identity taking place, where people of different races were able to explain their choices and learn what other people thought without engaging in an intense debate over race and who was right or wrong.

Following the game, the InterVarsity staff worker for both fellowships, Joel Miller, shared about the origins of each fellowship, why there are two IV fellowships at Cornell, and touched briefly on a Biblical framework for understanding race and ethnicity as it pertains to our mission here at Cornell.  According to Joel, CCF members have long asked why CCF and GCF didn’t just combine into one large multi-ethnic fellowship, but GCF members have never seriously considered such a possibility.  Though both fellowships are InterVarsity chapters, they are very different from one another.  Each appeals to a different type of person, which helps to explain why they both exist.  The purpose of a Christian fellowship is not only to help the members of its body to grow closer to God, but to reach out and make new disciples of Jesus as well.  Ideally, any Christian environment would be welcoming to a newcomer and the person would immediately feel comfortable, and continue to attend.  Realistically, however, people have different preferences, and there is a need for fellowships for those who prefer ethnic-specific settings.  At Cornell, there are multiple fellowships which are trying to meet this need; for Asian students alone there are six fellowships, distinguished by different languages and ethnic makeup.  This is not done to be exclusive, or because these students do not want to worship with those who are non-Asian.  It’s done to provide a fellowship for those students who would only attend an ethnic-specific fellowship, especially for a student who does not know Jesus as his or her personal savior, but is seeking to learn more about Jesus. So long as the Gospel is preached, the setting it is done in does not matter.

The InterVarsity mission statement states that “In response to God’s love, grace, and truth: The purpose of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship is to establish and advance at college and university witnessing communities of students and faculty who follow Jesus as Savior and Lord: growing in love for God, God’s Word, God’s people of every ethnicity and culture, and God’s purposes in the world.”  As CCF and GCF start down this road of helping one another grow in love for God’s people of every ethnicity and culture, please keep them in your prayers.  Having one joint dinner by no means makes these two fellowships the models for racial reconciliation, but it is a step in that direction.  Hopefully the relationships that were started that night did not end that night, but will help the members of the two fellowships to grow closer as brothers and sisters in Christ.  May the work of each GCF and CCF complement one another as they strive toward the same goals of loving God and sharing that love with their fellow students of every race and ethnicity.