Good News for the University
Jesus Christ is good news for the university and its scholars
That’s why we are cultivating a new normal where Christians at university reconnect the gospel and our academic work, serving both:
From CHRIST to our studies:
in our studies we pursue creation’s flourishing, working excellently and serving the good of the university under Christ’s Lordship and in the light of Scripture; and
From our studies to CHRIST:
as we trace the way our field of study points to God’s glory, we praise him and seek to bring others with us, turning our expertise toward persuasive gospel outreach through apologetics and evangelism.
That’s why we are cultivating a new normal where Christians at university reconnect the gospel and our academic work, serving both:
From CHRIST to our research:
From Christ to our research: in our academic roles we pursue creation’s flourishing, working excellently and serving the good of the university under Christ’s Lordship and in the light of Scripture; and
From our research to CHRIST:
as we trace the way our field points to God’s glory, we praise him and seek to bring others with us, turning our expertise toward persuasive gospel outreach.
‘…in him all things hold together…’
So when we gather around Christ we develop fellowship which brings together:
…all faculties…
…all career stages…
…all nations…
Serving one another across the European region sharing our resources
Good News for the University
The initiative comprises three main components working together:
Foundations
From 37 nations we are united in the gospel of Christ, on whom we build as our chief cornerstone. The gospel of reconciliation counteracts the fragmentation of our faculties and the isolation of our career stages. Across all these divisions we are drawn together to serve one another when we lift up Christ and allow the gospel to establish our:
- Shared Confession: We stand together on our faith which, as Anselm said, ‘seeks understanding’. We profess the same gospel across our different denominations, in line with the ecumenical creeds and with the Protestant Reformation, as summarised in our doctrinal basis.
- Shared Mission: We are committed to a twofold calling as Christians in the academic workplace: where Christ shapes our work, and our work helps us point to Christ.
- Shared Ethos: We want to learn together with biblical integrity: so that the gospel shapes the way we pursue our learning, including the way we relate well to one another in that process. Neither anti-intellectual nor theologically liberalising, we pursue truth in humility, faithfulness and love.
Programmes
Good News for the University serves the European national movements of IFES both by sharing news of inspiring ministry models across the region, and by offering direct participation in programmes hosted at a regional level on behalf of busy national movements.
The first phase of Good News for the University included the establishment of IFES Europe’s Postgraduate Initiative for those pursuing Masters’ degrees and doctorates. Along with the research and development of resources (see below), this comprises Conferences, an Email Network sharing readings and study questions, a Fellows Programme and the Association of Christian Postgraduate Groups, including student leader support.
Check out the pages under ‘Get Involved’ to see how you can connect.
Resource Development
At the heart of the ministry is the recognition that there is more work to be done by evangelicals in this area. So our resource-development investment, the Gospel and Academia Project (GAP), seeks to strengthen an evangelical contribution to the wider faith-and-scholarship conversation by providing a dedicated space for those whose primary confessional commitments are clear but who would like to help each other fill what is often perceived as a ‘gap’ in this arena.
This is a challenge and opportunity we share with the wider evangelical church which IFES is uniquely placed to serve. So GAP is a partnership with a range of ministries, researching, curating and commissioning foundational resources for Christians at the outset of their university careers, celebrating the goodness and relevance of a gospel-centred intellectual vision for fruitful and faithful academic service.
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