Emerging Scholars Blog

InterVarsity's Emerging Scholars Network

African Americans

Highlighting Community: Princeton Grad IV Social Justice Discussion

At ESN, we like to share about various campus ministry settings, including InterVarsity graduate and faculty local fellowships. We usually do this in our Highlighting Community series. Today, we highlight the relaunch of the Princeton InterVarsity Grad Student Group. 

I’ve recently moved to the Princeton (NJ) area, and while here I have the privilege of helping restart the Princeton Grad IV chapter. My main responsibilities continue to be with the ESN blog and our national events, but I’m also delighted to be serving on campus at Princeton. I thought I’d share about our first gathering. I hope it may provide some ideas or encouragement for other groups. We’re starting with once a month meetings. Our goal is to encourage graduate students and postdocs to make an impact for God’s Kingdom through their academic work and presence on campus.

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Learning from our Brothers and Sisters after Charleston

charleston ame photo
Photo by jayayess1190

The shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston is heavy on my heart because 10 years ago I, too, stepped into an AME church as a young white man. I didn’t know anyone there and was anxious about how I would be perceived. But the pastors and members showed me hospitality that forever changed my life.

I went on to become a member of the AME Church and learn from its rich heritage of faith in Jesus in the face of suffering and injustice. I joined the choir, attended prayer meetings and Bible study, and preached my first sermon. Every step of the way, the congregation fully welcomed me as a brother in Christ, and we became family. They celebrated our wedding, officiated by our AME pastor. They witnessed us dedicate our four children to God. They affirmed my calling to pastoral ministry. And after nine years of worshiping together, they sent us out to bless our community beyond the AME Church. [Read more…] about Learning from our Brothers and Sisters after Charleston