A PUBLICATION OF THE CENTER for CHRISTIAN STUDY
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SPRING 2022
THE STUDY CENTER
PHOTO BY PETER LARSEN
Executive Director Welcome A Letter from Bill Wilder
STUDY CENTER STAFF Friends, Allow me to take you on a journey I wouldn’t have imagined possible in the midst of the lock-down last year.
My office is tucked into a second floor corner of our historic building. Around midday, either the aromas from our kitchen or the need for a caffeine jolt prompt a journey downstairs. On my walk I first pass our library, full of students quietly immersed in books from our collection or their studies. Immediately past the library is a Director of Undergraduate Ministry office where I see Katie Hightower mentoring a student or preparing for her next small group. As I descend the stairs and enter the foyer, I watch as up to half a dozen students make their way to the Main Meeting Room where they’ll meet with friends, find a quiet space for reflection, or attend the next Lunch Club meeting. Finally, in the heart of our home, I greet the interns in the kitchen, busy preparing their weekly community dinner or researching recipes for a student-wide event. When I pause to consider this walk - one that I take frequently - I see God’s work through the ministry of the Study Center and rejoice at the privilege of sharing the gospel of Christ with our students. Over the past few years my early mornings have been spent immersing myself in Galatians for several research articles I’ve been writing. Once again I’ve been confronted with the truth of the gospel of Christ as so powerfully proclaimed and embodied in the life and ministry of Paul. It has rekindled my desire to see students hearing, speaking, and living out that same good news today. For Paul the really good news is that, in Christ, the new creation has begun. Around here I see its evidence in students beginning their faith journey or deepening their walk with Christ. I see it in the faithfulness of the staff caring for students and in the generosity of friends helping to make room for generations of students to come. And, of course, all those things are just the beginnings of God’s work in these students’ lives and in the world. One day the new creation will come in its fullness, in and with the person of the Lord Jesus when he returns, the object of our glorious hope and the reason we seek to glorify Christ at the University of Virginia. Thank you for your prayers and support. In these pages, you’ll take a journey of your own through our ministry and we hope you enjoy it! Yours in Him, Bill
BILL WILDER Executive Director
FITZ GREEN
Senior Director for Education & Programs
RICK CAMPANELLI
Director of Graduate Ministries
HANNAH FRITZEEN Director of Hospitality
RACHAEL GREEN Librarian
ETHAN HIGHTOWER Director of Undergraduate Ministries for Men
KATIE HIGHTOWER Director of Undergraduate Ministries for Women
STUART HORNSBY Campaign Manager
JAN MATHEWS
Administrative Assistant
TRISH OWEN Librarian
DEBBIE RODRIGUEZ Director of Finance
CALLIE WEST
Director of Communications
DANIELLE WILCOX
Director of Development & Parent and Alumni Relations
We enjoyed a packed house for Tim Jones’ (cover) lecture ‘Anxious and Faithful’ in early February. Tim is the director and co-founder of New City Counseling in Charlottesville. Listen to his talk at www.studycenter.net/lecture-archive
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CONTACT US Phone: (434) 817-1050 Email: info@studycenter.net Website: www.studycenter.net Find us on social media: @studycenterUVA
The Study Center seeks to promote Christian formation
A Voyage to the Holy Land This summer, a number of students and staff member Fitz Green will be traveling to Israel for a ten-day journey through the lands of the Bible. Undergraduate and graduate students will visit the Sea of Galilee, Bethlehem, the Mount of Olives, and more. Aided by insight from local guides, participants will explore the history and religious significance of the land of Israel as well as the complexities of the modern-day Israel-Palestine conflict. The opportunity to walk where Jesus and his disciples actually walked, ate, drank, performed miracles, and lived their daily lives is a formative and unforgettable experience for Christians who want to explore the roots of their faith.
“It’s one thing to read about all of these locations in Scripture. It’s another thing to go to a place, read Scripture, and be able to say, ‘This happened right where we’re standing.’ You realize these aren’t hypothetical places or stories. The events we read
about actually happened, in real places to real people.
My first trip to Israel was just magical. I look forward to leading these students through the same experiences.” Fitz Green, Senior Director for Education and Programs
To help participants prepare for their journey at the end of May, Fitz is leading a five-week discussion group this spring to provide biblical and archaeological context to the locations students will visit on the trip. While open to anyone at the Study Center, this small group will also serve as an avenue for the traveling group to bond and learn together before their journey. Please pray for these students, and Fitz - for safe travels, for educational and spiritual growth, and that the Lord would meet each of them in unique and powerful ways.
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Through the communication of
biblical truth
LUNCH CLUB 2022 DO THE PSALMS TEACH CHRISTIANS TO HATE? · HOW DO HEAVEN AND TIME WORK? · GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY AND OUR RESPONSIBILITY · MOMENTS IN CHURCH HISTORY · WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT EVOLUTION? Katie Hightower Director of Undergraduate Ministries for Women
We started Lunch Club in the spring of 2020 knowing it was a perfect combination of our heart for hospitality and our eagerness for educational opportunities for students. We would serve up homemade meals and fellowship around the table, then a staff member would teach. We finished with Q&A, and further discussion often continued into the afternoon. After our first two weeks of Lunch Club, we outgrew the Richman Room and had to move into our largest meeting space in the building! Of course, students didn’t return to Grounds after spring break that year, and our programs moved online for the remainder of the semester. Lunch Club continued in homes across the country, and it became something like “Breakfast Club” for our students on the West Coast. It was a way to remain connected to the Christian community at UVA that we were so abruptly missing. Lunch Club was a hybrid event in the fall of 2020. Many students – and some community members – joined us over Zoom while those in the building socially distanced in small groups. While we were grateful for the opportunity to reach students during this time, it just wasn’t the same as having everyone together in the same room. What had once been one of our favorite programs was now tinged with sadness and disappointment. This semester we are overjoyed to welcome back a fully in-person Lunch Club! We’ve been delighted to fill the building once again with the tantalizing smells of a home-cooked meal and gather around the table to learn together in community. During Exam Snacks last December, we asked students to write down questions they had about God, theology, and the Bible. We have been addressing these during our meetings this semester in our favorite Lunch Club series, “Questions You’ve Always Wanted to Ask.”
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For the good of
the University community A CONVERSATION WITH HUGH COMER
Q
With so many demands on your time, what has motivated you to stay involved with the Study Center after your time ended at UVA?
A Hugh Comer Exxon Mobil Corporation (Retired) DCF Alumnus, Study Center Board Member
Q
Before coming to Darden, I wrestled with the notion of vocational calling and the idea that there isn’t a dichotomy between the sacred and secular. God calls people to a host of different places to serve him, including the secular workplace. It was in this spirit that I chose to pursue my MBA. I connected with [former Executive Director] Drew Trotter through Darden Christian Fellowship and he was really helpful in thinking through this concept of calling. A decade or so after I left Darden, I began to return to Charlottesville to recruit for my company. I’d reach out to Drew and we’d meet up at the Cavalier Diner. During our visits, I learned about other Study Center ministries and got to know Bill when he transitioned in as Executive Director. As I came to appreciate the full impact the Study Center was having on Grounds—in addition to what I experienced at Darden—the more I felt called to support its ministry. It was just really exciting to see.
How did your time in Darden Christian Fellowship shape your outlook on your professional career?
A
The Study Center embodies two things really well. It is not only a welcoming community where people can form strong, lasting relationships but it also challenges you to think deeply about your Christian faith and how it relates to all of life. Those two notions do not compete against each other, but rather work together. When I was at Darden, the community there was a haven. We could share frustrations and anxieties about our next steps in life and bounce questions off each other: “What does it mean to be a Christian and pursue investment banking?” “Could jobs in finance be legitimate, God-centered work?” We found a space to discuss how our work and faith could be integrated. Darden Christian Fellowship gave me a foundation for pursuing these questions. I see more and more where the Study Center teaches students how to integrate their faith into their areas of study. Through Study Center activities, students are able to examine the Christian faith at the same level of depth and expertise that they get from their professors at UVA. And once you’re at Chancellor Street, you feel that community aspect as well. It gets students thinking about how to treat people as people, made in the image of God, rather than numbers or cogs. When I visit the Study Center, I see those values embodied at the house on Chancellor Street.
STAYING CONNECTED TO THE STUD AFTER UVA Anna Lockwood (‘16 Statistics & Econ) and Austin McPhillips (‘15 Electrical Engineering & Econ) connected through Cru in 2013 and were brought closer together through multiple years of Stud Beach Week. Having been discipled by Economics Professor (and former Study Center Board member) Lee Coppock since his first year, Austin was honored when he agreed to officiate Anna and his sunrise wedding ceremony in Vail, CO last year. Both are grateful for Cru, the Study Center, and Professor Coppock’s influence during their time at UVA and beyond!
PHOTO BY NATE SHEPERD
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MAKING ROOM BUILDING CAMPAIGN As we continue to work toward reaching the goal of our Making Room campaign, we have been encouraged to see God’s faithfulness and his provision through your generosity. We plan to break ground this summer and, Lord willing, move into the finished space in early 2024! Throughout the building process, sections of the building will remain available for study space, programming, and gatherings. We ask for your prayers to reach our campaign goal and for a smooth construction process!
BREAK GROUND ON CONSTRUCTION
LIBRARY RENOVATION BEGINS WALLS & ELEVATOR TOWER FOR ADDITION BEGIN
JUNE 2022
FINAL SITE WORK MAIN MEETING ROOM RENOVATION BEGINS
JANUARY 2023
SEPTEMBER 2022
JUNE 2023
JANUARY 2024
Dates are subject to change throughout the construction process.
With
hospitality and care Since 1976, the Study Center has been known for providing thoughtful Christian education and warm, Christ-like hospitality. But, did you know that we also provide free coffee 24/7? Not just good coffee. Great coffee. No wonder so many Study Center staff members are caffeine fans! Get to know some of our staff better through their favorite coffee order.
Vanilla latte with almond milk
Caffé Americano, no milk or sugar
Black coffee
Hannah Fritzeen, Director of Hospitality
Rachael Green, Librarian
Bill Wilder, Executive Director
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In unity
with other Grounds ministries
BOOK REVIEW BY LIBRARIAN RACHAEL GREEN
Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper. (Jeremiah 29:7)
God’s call to Israel in exile, and the Church today, is at the heart of Amy Sherman’s upcoming book Agents of Flourishing. It is a valuable resource for Christians looking to take up the call found in Jeremiah to “seek the peace and prosperity” of our communities. Sherman identifies six spheres or “community endowments” that she borrows from The Thriving Communities Group; the Good, the True, the Beautiful, the Just and Well-Ordered, the Prosperous, and the Sustainable. Sherman clearly describes each endowment, reflects on what Scripture teaches, and identifies how each has been malformed by sin and how it might be re-formed. My favorite part of the book, and what distinguishes it from other books I’ve read on human flourishing, is the real-life examples of churches already engaged in this work. These success stories are meant to spark our imaginations. Sherman concludes with suggestions for how to seek shalom within our own communities. I highly recommend Agents of Flourishing to all Christians who desire to see their communities flourish.
In partnership with InterVarsity at UVA, the Study Center was proud to host local author, speaker, and founder of Abundant Life Ministries, Amy Sherman, on February 24th. In her lecture, and her new book Agents of Flourishing, Amy argues that God’s call to the exiles in Babylon to “seek the peace and prosperity of the city” is still highly relevant to Christians today. At the Study Center, lectures are one of the primary resources for engaging students, parents, and community members in biblically rich and culturally relevant content. Our online Lecture Archive houses all of our recent lectures as well as content dating back to the 1990s! These are always available as a free resource on our website at www.studycenter.net/lecture-archive.
Watch or listen to Amy’s lecture, Pursuing Peace and Prosperity in the City, through our online Lecture Archive.
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Center for Christian Study 128 Chancellor Street Charlottesville, VA 22903 www.studycenter.net
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MARK YOUR CALENDAR!
March 22 Chuck DeGroat Lecture Where Are You? Listening for God’s Invitation to Wholeheartedness in a Frantic and Fragmented World UVA Chapel, 8:00 p.m.
May 5 - 12 Exam Snacks
May 21
Stay in the loop on everything happening at the Study Center!
Graduation Lunch
May 23 - June 2 Trip to Israel
Visit our online calendar for event dates, small group meeting times, and more.
August 15 - 18 Foundations Week
www.studycenter.net/calendar
August 19 - 20 Move-In Day Lunches
SUPPORT THE CENTER FOR CHRISTIAN STUDY Donations to the Annual Fund and Making Room Capital Campaign are both appreciated at this time. We know that you may have to choose to support one or the other, but know that whatever gift you are able to make will help support our ministry at the University of Virginia! 1. Give online - www.studycenter.net/give
2. Send in a check - Note “Annual Fund” or “Building Campaign” in the memo line. Envelope enclosed. 3. Through the UVA Fund - Give online, by check, via donor-advised fund, gifts of stock, and more. 4. Through the National Christian Foundation 5. Give cryptocurrency
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