Cultural Engagement

Dr. Craig Keener Makes His Case

Science and faith are always in opposition, right? It’s a basic assumption that most modern people take for granted, but is it true? Dr. Craig Keener, in this article for Christianity Today, dives into one of the most misunderstood assumptions of our time—that science and faith are contradictory.

Seeking God Is Not a Priority for Most Christians

Annie Dillard famously said, “How we spend our days is of course how we spend our lives.” For most, our days are filled with common things like work and relationships; the elements of life that are necessary. But we also fill our days with shows and movies, social media, and endless hours staring at a screen. 

Students Challenged to Be Salt and Light at 2019 Nexus Conference

By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor

Editor's note: This article, which features coverage of Christian Union's Nexus Conference, originally appeared in the Spring 2019 edition of  Christian Union: The Magazine and is reprinted in conjuction with the publication's "Throwback Thursday" series.  

Esau McCaulley Opines About a True, Biblical Union

In the past fifty years, marriage has become less popular, divorce rates have gone up, and the rise of no-fault divorce laws have introduced an era of the contractual—not covenantal—marriage. What happened to marriage? Is it that our modern sensibilities have finally realized that being joined to one other person for all of life is an unreasonable and impractical idea? Or perhaps, as Esau McCaulley posits in the New York Times, our views of work and personal ambitions have become more important than stable, sacrificial relationships.

Flynn Cratty Speaks at CU Gloria Lecture Series

By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor

“Harvard is a place of extraordinary achievement, but not always true flourishing.”

CU Lumine Provides Treats, Answers Questions about Christianity

By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor

“Does belief in Christianity work with belief in evolution?”

“Will God ever forgive me?”

“How can you say there’s only one true faith?”

These are a sampling of the questions submitted by Columbia students when Christian Union Lumine hosted its Message Me for Macarons outreach in December. After publicizing the event, students with CU Lumine delivered the macarons and answered questions via text messaging, all while earnestly praying.

How Can Christians Bear Faithful Witness?

As the United States America grows increasingly secular and the Bible is often perceived as offensive in culture, how do Christians think about thoughtfully, strategically, and winsomely sharing the gospel?

"Jesus Stood Up for Children"

The killing of babies has had a place in our world for centuries. From abandoning newborns with deformities to killing female babies, each culture has had its own reasons for ignoring their personhood and allowing for lives to be discarded. Even today, in nations like India and China, female babies are regularly aborted or killed in favor of males, leaving a drastic gender gap in the population. 

Q and A with Professor David Gustafson

Editor's note: This Throwback Thursday article originally appeared in the Fall 2018 edition of Christian Union: The Magazine.

Podcast: "How to Reach the West Again"

Though American Christians once lived in a culture that was infused with Christian morals and understandings of reality, American culture today is the least Christian our nation has ever seen, forcing believers and the Church to reconsider how they might embody the gospel in their unique spheres of influence.

"Resolutions Don’t Honor the Way Change Usually Happens"

We are just about two weeks into 2022—how is your new year’s resolution going? For some, it might be thriving—a necessary and welcome change in your life—but for most, the sparkle of resolutions on January 1 quickly dim as we head back to work and into a new year of the same challenges.

Author of Irreversible DamageDelivers Poignant Message at Princeton

In our increasingly polarized society, university campuses have become a hotbed of cancel culture and diminished free speech. Though organizations like Academic Freedom Alliance have emerged from leading institutions with the sole purpose of defending professors' and students' constitutional right to freedom of speech, majority views tend to dominate public thinking and discourage dissent, even when dissent is grounded in research. 

Slowing Down to Acknowledge "Endarkenment"

The Christmas season is upon us which means shoppers are shopping, homes are being decorated, city streets are filled with Christmas trees and garland, and a festive air seems to sparkle around us. But this kind of Christmas season stands in stark opposition to the Church’s season of advent. Advent is decidedly not about shopping and decorating. It is about waiting, watching, and hoping in the darkness of our world. And perhaps, that is the timbre of the season that we need most.

"That None Would Perish"

By Christopher N. White, Evangelist

As Jesus makes abundantly clear, the heart of God is never satisfied while even one soul is still lost, wandering in the darkness of sin:

A New Realm of Social Media 

When Facebook debuted in 2004 from a dorm room at Harvard, the world didn’t have any idea what the social media platform might become. Social media itself was still in its infancy, relegated to corners of the internet and certain affinity groups. But today, Facebook is preparing to enter an entirely new realm of its social media dominion—it’s called the metaverse.

Our Complicated Relationship with Eating and Drinking 

As the holiday season approaches, most people begin to anticipate the culinary experience of feasting. Thanksgiving turkeys or Christmas hams, pies and frosted cookies, sparkling ciders, and holiday cocktails—they’re all part of our tradition of feasting with those we love during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s.

CU Lumine Introduces Student Leaders Via Social Media

By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor

Prior to hosting its Freshman Welcoming Campaign this fall, CU Lumine embarked on a social media campaign that introduced first-year students to the ministry and gave them practical wisdom and biblical insight before they even arrived on campus.

Nothing Less Will Change Our nation and Its People

Planned Parenthood recently distributed information to eleven-year-olds advocating for them to have sex with anyone they liked who was under the age of thirteen. The pro-abortion organization also communicated to these children that their parents can't control if they take birth control or get tested for sexually transmitted diseases, and that, ultimately, their sex life was up to their discretion. How our culture understands sexuality has been changing for a couple of generations, but in the past decade, the sexual norms have changed drastically. 

Dr. Anna Hampton Offers Insight, Clarification

Three weeks ago, a gang in Haiti kidnapped 17 North American missionaries as they were leaving an orphanage; the group who is taking responsibility is demanding a $17 million dollar ransom. Though Haiti has struggled to become a stable nation, the past several years have been particularly challenging and produced increasingly dangerous and unpredictable situations in the country. Because of this, the missionaries have received both praise and criticism for their willingness to remain in such dangerous circumstances rather than returning home to a safer place.

Social Critic Speaks at Christian Union NY Forum

By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor

“America, who has bewitched you?” That was the question posed by English author and social critic Os Guinness when he spoke at a Christian Union New York virtual forum on September 21. The title of his lecture was “1776 versus 1789 — A tale of two revolutions and America’s present crisis.”