One of the frequent struggles that ESN hears from students and faculty is the difficulty in bringing it all together. Here, “all” refers to the vast scope of the Christian life in the context of campus. Read through InterVarsity’s 13 (!) core values, and you’ll see what I mean. Even InterVarsity Graduate and Faculty Ministry’s Four Core Commitments present a daunting challenge for anyone:
- Spiritual Formation
- Community
- Evangelism & Service
- Integration of Faith, Learning, & Practice
I would say that most Christian communities — on campus or not — have one or more flat sides among these four commitments, perhaps even within the commitment itself. For example, I’ve seen communities that are great at service but awful at evangelism, or doing groundbreaking work at integrating faith and learning, but never seem to get around to practice. Graduate and faculty fellowships sometimes live up to the stereotype of “all head, no hands or heart.”
When it all comes together, however, it’s beautiful thing. Last month, the Ohio State Price of Life brought it all together. [Read more…] about Bringing It All Together