Intellectual Engagement
Seek the Prince of Peace
Join Our 21-Day Fast
By chuck hetzler, PhD, vice president of biblical theology
Is Israel’s current war a sign of the end times? How should we, as Christians, think about the war? What can and should we do?
Christian Union is calling all American Christians to start the year with a 21-day fast, Tuesday, January 2, through Monday, January 22, 2024, to humble ourselves and seek God in light of the current events in the Middle East.
The upcoming CU National Fast is titled "Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace for All Nations." Christian Union faculty and staff will write devotionals based on Scripture, which will be sent to all signed-up participants by email each day of the fast.
United in Faith, Transformed by the Spirit
CU Fire Retreats Continue to Blaze Across America
By erin conner
“Once again CU Fire Retreats Delivered! Amazing!,” claimed one participant following the past Christian Union America Retreat held on October 13-14. CU Fire Retreats are multi-site, two-day simulcast retreats focusing on spiritual strengthening through prayer, fasting, repentance, and seeking the Lord. CU Fire Retreats are a part of Christian Union America’s efforts to bring sweeping change to our nation for God’s glory through the development and connection of transformative Christian leaders.
Are the Miraculous Gifts for Today?
The Debate of Cessationism v. Continuationism
By erin conner
Are the miraculous gifts for today? Dr. Michael Brown argues a compelling “yes” in his article entitled “The Reformed of the Lord Say No to Cessationism,” published on October 9 in Christianity Today.
“The cessationist debate is back, although in some ways, it’s never left,” Brown writes, in light of the recently scheduled 2024 Cessationist Conference led, in part, by Pastor John MacArthur. This conference is timed to coincide with the release of the Cessationist movie, “bringing an age-old topic back to the forefront of trending conversations, especially among Reformed believers.”
Revival: The Hope for America
Tim Keller's Final Articles
By Chuck Hetzler
Two of Tim Keller’s final written pieces, published just weeks before his passing on May 19, 2023, were on the subject of revival. One such article was directed to the church at The Gospel Coalition (March 17, 2023) and the other offered to all Americans in The Atlantic(February 5, 2023).
On The Road With The Holy Spirit
Christian Union Board Member Explores A Life of Signs and Wonders in New Book
By Anne Kerhoulas
Ken Fish wants believers to know that God is not in theory. So often in the western church, Christians read the stories of the Bible and assume that signs and wonders were events that occurred in biblical times and simply don’t happen today. Fish is here to tell you otherwise in his upcoming book, On the Road with The Holy Spirit: A Modern Day Diary of Signs and Wonders.
Free Speech Tested At Stanford
Judge Heckled and Insulted For Unpopular Views
By Anne Kerhoulas
On March 9, 2023, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan was invited to speak at Standford Law School. Duncan, a conservative judge who has opposed the right to same-sex marriage, ruled to restrict abortion, and held other views deemed unacceptable by Stanford students, was the recipient of heckling, threats, and insults during his talk. When Duncan asked for the moderator to intervene, the Stanford administrator took the side of the students, stating that his work had caused many of them harm.
CU Rise Campaign Seeks “To Make Jesus The Most Talked About Name On Campus”
Christian Union Embarks On Second Massive Evangelism Initiative
By Anne Kerhoulas
Last spring, Christian Union launched CU Rise, an evangelism campaign designed to share the gospel with students at ten of the nation’s most influential universities more boldly, strategically, and frequently than ever before. This week, Christian Union is at it again as CU Rise takes form for its second iteration.
Studying The Psalms
A Trio of Christian Union Bible Studies Explore the Psalter
By Anne Kerhoulas
Christian Union seeks a spiritually vibrant nation marked by Christian values permeating every corner of society. This vision is being advanced through the launch of Christian Union Bible Studies that are available to anyone who seeks to know the Lord and His word better.
By Grace, Not Works
Penn Sophomore Became A Christian Through CU Martus
By Anne Kerhoulas
What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. -1 Corinthians 3:5-7
For every Christian, the Lord appoints servants whom he uses to bring about our faith. Whether you grew up in a Christian home or an atheist home, God, in his perfect plan and kindness, placed individuals in your life who would speak the gospel to you, embody the love of Christ, help solidify theology, and love you into the kingdom of God.
For Stanley Liu, who grew up in Los Angeles in a secular household, the Lord appointed the Boy Scouts and a Catholic girlfriend to plant and Christian Union Martus to water.
Universities Need To Understand Religion
Ignoring Religion Fails To Prepare Students
Anne Kerhoulas
While it may not be surprising to hear that Christianity is declining in America, religion as a whole is actually growing throughout the world. China is on track to have more Christians than America in the next decade in spite of being an openly atheistic country. In the Middle East, the Islamic revival is producing more pilgrimages to Mecca than ever before. In Latin America, a once predominately Roman Catholic region, pentecostalism is booming. Even in America, though Christianity is waning, new-age spirituality is increasingly popular, and more and more people are religiously unaffiliated but interested and open to spirituality.
2023 Book Recommendations
Start Your Year Off With A Great Book
By Anne Kerhoulas
Our 2023 book recommendation list includes an array of Christian books. From classic theology to leadership development to biography, there is sure to be something that will encourage your spirit this new year.
God in the Dock is a collection of essays and speeches from C.S. Lewis. Its title implies "God on Trial" and the title is based on an analogy made by Lewis suggesting that modern human beings, rather than seeing themselves as standing before God in judgment, prefer to place God on trial while acting as his judge.
Recommended by Chris Coppernoll, Ministry Director, CU Nova
For The Love of Tolkien and Lewis
Author and Scholar Joseph Laconte Discusses C.S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien Projects
This article was originally published in the Tristate Voice. Blake Whitmer ’23 is a Dartmouth student.
Joseph Loconte, PhD., is an author, Senior Fellow in Christianity and Culture at The King’s College, and the Director of the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies at the Heritage Foundation. In 2015, he wrote the New York Times bestseller A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War. In 2016, he wrote the award-winning op-ed “How J.R.R. Tolkien Found Mordor on the Western Front.” His most recent project is a documentary on Lewis and Tolkien, with an emphasis on the way that war shaped their friendship and writings. Tri-State Voice writer Blake Whitmer recently sat down to interview him about his work.
Understanding and Responding to the Transgender Moment
CU New York Hosts Dr. Ryan T. Anderson
Christian Union New York invited Christian Union Alumni, CU New York participants, and friends of Christian Union to gather on November 29, 2022, for a virtual forum with Dr. Ryan T. Anderson. Drawing on the best insights from biology, psychology, and philosophy, Dr. Anderson offered a nuanced view of human embodiment, a balanced approach to public policy on gender identity, and a sober assessment of the human costs of getting human nature wrong.
A Discussion on Biblical Complementarianism
Four Respected Leaders Explain The View
By Anne Kerhoulas
What is complementarianism and why is it important? This question is at the heart of this 2021 Gospel Coalition Conference discussion between Nancy Guthrie, Ligon Duncan, Melissa Kruger, and Kevin DeYoung.
Biblical Principles of Free Speech
CU Gloria Law Student Argues For Biblical Precedent of Free Speech
By Jess Tong
The Nature, Purpose, and Manner of Speech
The Bible reveals the nature of speech as something that belongs to both God and man. The Bible tells us that speech is something God does, for He spoke the world itself into existence. God speaks to communicate with His people, for He spoke to the prophets, Jesus spoke to people on earth, and God speaks to us now through the Bible and His Holy Spirit. The Bible also tells us about our own speech – that it is something God can control and take away from us, as He did with Zechariah, that words have the “power of life and death,” and that our speech is a reflection of our heart.
CU Gloria Prepared Alumna For A Life of Faith
How One Alumna Learned To See The Lord In All Things
By Kate Lucky, Harvard ’15
In college, I spent many mornings talking about stories: analyzing characters and structures and metaphors, voicing my ideas about plot and motif. At the end of these classes, we closed our novels and ventured out into the cold. I was an English concentrator.
Busting Atheism’s Biggest Myths
Dr. Shenvi Discusses His Book on Apologetics
By Anne Kerhoulas
But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect. - 1 Peter 3:14-15.
Five Reasons Every Leader Should Be A Reader
“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.”
By Anne Kerhoulas
Harry Truman said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” In our day, however, far too many people claim they don’t have time to read. It’s not high on their priority list, it's too time-consuming, and you can’t do it quickly. Reading is all too easy to forego, but as Carey Nieuwhof argues in his article, if you want to be a good leader, you must be a committed reader.
The Parallels Between 5th Century Roman Culture & Our Secular Moment
What The Fall of Ancient Rome Teaches Us About the Future of the Church
By Anne Kerhoulas, Staff WRITER
Much of the modern world operates with a total disregard for history. Where previous generations would look to the rich history of those who had gone before them and their collective wisdom to learn from them, our culture today operates as if we have no intellectual or historical inheritance. We believe, as Marx argued, that history is merely the story of oppressed vs oppressor, and rather than the past being a source of knowledge and insight, the future is where human good lies.
Charismatic or Cessationist? Are the gifts of the Spirit still in operation?
Dr. Michael Brown and Pastor Doug Wilson explain the rationale behind the two views
By Anne Kerhoulas
The charismatic church is the fastest-growing movement of Christianity today. It seems clear that people are drawn to the power of God at work today through the Holy Spirit. But for many Christians and evangelical denominations, the gifts of the Spirit that mark the charismatic church—prophecy, tongues, and healing—are believed to no longer exist, having ended with the apostolic age.
