LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Laying Foundations
DEAR FRIENDS,
One thing you’ll notice, when you read this issue of The Study Center, is how much “exile” is on our minds. Katie’s staff reading pick is Exiles: The Church in the Shadow of Empire by Preston Sprinkle. She and Fitz will be leading students in a discussion of this book in the fall. Fitz also recommends The Way of a Pilgrim and the Pilgrim Continues His Way, a story about the physical and spiritual wanderings of a Russian pilgrim. It’s good to remind ourselves and our students that we are “strangers and exiles on the earth, . . . [desiring] a better country, that is, a heavenly one” (Heb. 11:13-16, ESV)
At the same time, we’re busy laying foundations here at the Study Center. Fitz writes about our Foundations Week ministry, a retreat for incoming students that is expanding this year to two cohorts (of roughly 12 each). Hannah explains our plans for an Exam Snacks-like meal on the first day of classes—another way in which we hope to lay good foundations for students at UVA. We’re also finishing our new building, just in time for the school year, and welcoming two wonderful new staff members, Lydia Marlin and Chloe Carter.
It may seem that being in exile and laying foundations are two very different things. One is marked by the desire to pack up and head home; the other involves planning for a long stay. Yet as Katie and Fitz remind us in the coming pages, the response of God’s people to exile is to be one of planting and building for the long term (Jer. 29:4-7), of being rooted and grounded in love (Eph. 3:17).
That’s what we’re doing here at the Study Center these days: building and planting for this year and the decades to come even as we eagerly await “a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1, ESV). That’s something we’ll be celebrating on our 50th anniversary later this year. (You’ll also find more detail on that in what follows.) I hope you can join us. Enjoy the newsletter!
YOURS IN OUR LORD,
Bill Wilder Executive Director
STAFF
BILL WILDER Executive Director
FITZ GREEN Senior Director for Education & Programming
KATIE BLACK Director of Undergraduate Ministries for Women
RICK CAMPANELLI Director of Graduate Ministries
CHLOE CARTER Ministry Intern
HANNAH FRITZEEN Director of Hospitality
STUART HORNSBY Director of Development & Parent and Alumni Relations
DREW MASTERSON Director of Undergraduate Ministries for Men
JAN MATHEWS Administrative Assistant
LYDIA MARLIN Communications & Project Manager
TRISH OWEN Librarian
DEBBIE RODRIGUEZ Director of Finance
DANIELLE WILCOX Advisor for Strategy & Advancement
Summer Fellowship
BY KATIE BLACK
This summer we are watching the video series “For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles.” As we do so, we are asking: How might we use our gifts for the good of the world God created?
The theme of exile is prevalent in Scripture. In the Old Testament, the Israelites are exiled due to their failure to keep God’s covenant. In the New Testament, Christians are called exiles, citizens of a different kingdom, living among people whose values contrast with their own. In each instance, God’s people find themselves living under rulers who are opposed to the purposes of God and among people who do not understand them. What, then, are they to do?
Jeremiah admonishes the exiles in Babylon to build families, houses, and gardens, and to seek the good of the city (Jer. 29:4-7). Peter calls Christians to abstain from the practices of pagans and to live such good lives that their neighbors will glorify God (1 Pet. 2:11-12).
As Christians, it can be tempting to either shut ourselves off from the world or simply blend in. Yet Scripture calls us to engage with the world in such a way that our lives reflect the goodness and beauty of God.
We asked... What was meaningful about your time as an intern?
What We’re Reading
FITZ’S PICK
THE WAY OF A PILGRIM AND THE PILGRIM CONTINUES HIS WAY Trans. by Helen Bacovcin
This book tells the story of a pilgrim who wanders the Russian countryside, seeking to “pray without ceasing” and encountering other holy men and women along the way. The faith of these Christians from far away challenges readers to look at their own faith in new ways.
KATIE’S PICK
EXILES: THE CHURCH IN THE SHADOW OF EMPIRE by Preston Sprinkle
In a time of increasing political polarization, this book reminds Christians that their primary identity is as citizens of the kingdom of God. Sprinkle challenges the Church to be a people who embody the upside-down values of King Jesus.
DREW’S PICK
HOW TO KNOW A PERSON: THE ART OF SEEING OTHERS DEEPLY AND BEING DEEPLY SEEN by David Brooks
More than merely offering advice on how to gain conversational skills, Brooks makes a compelling case that our “simple” acts of attention and engagement with others actually hold world-changing potential.
“Through the Study Center I have been able to meet and grow closer to so many incredible people I might not have met otherwise. God has used the Study Center, and my time as a student intern, to give me a better understanding of Christian community, service, and hospitality.”
–SADIE SULLIVAN ‘25, CURRENT INTERN
Students gather for a meal at Summer Fellowship
CARTER
Foundations Week
Helping students be rooted and grounded in Christ’s love
BY FITZ GREEN
IN A FEW SHORT YEARS, Foundations
Week has become one of the Study Center’s signature programs. The idea to have a retreat for incoming first-year students came from the Veritas Forum and began with a cohort of 12 students. (This year we’re doubling it, with two full cohorts of first years.)
Starting out, we gave some thought to what our hope for these students is and summed it up with the word foundations, in two senses: We want to ground students with foundations in their faith as they enter college, and also with foundations in the rich Christian community at UVA.
Our curriculum ranges from how the gospel touches every area of life,
to consideration of formative spiritual practices for college, to an affirmation and critique of how UVA seeks to shape students in their time here.
Beyond the curriculum, we also seek to ground students in Christian community by placing them in community with other Christian first-years and by introducing them to Christians who are current students, faculty, and ministers on Grounds. We’ve already seen many students who started with these foundations go on to thrive in their time at UVA.
Our inspiration for the term foundations comes from Eph. 3:14-21. There, Paul prays for the Ephesians, “that Christ may dwell in your hearts through
faith [as you are] being rooted and grounded in love” (ESV).
Have you ever noticed that Paul has this lovable quirk—namely that he loves to mix metaphors? Run the race, like a good soldier, sow like a farmer. He just mashes them together. Here he uses a farming word, rooted, with a building word, grounded
Of course, being Paul, it works! You get the firmness and stability of a building—a foundation doesn’t move—with the dynamic potential for growth that resides in roots. Roots stay where they are, but they also grow up and flower into a plant or a tree. This is our prayer for students: that, grounded in Christ, they would grow and bear fruit for Him.
Welcoming Two New Staff Members
Law Christian Fellowship Highlight
“SIMPLY PUT, LCF has been the most tremendous blessing of my law school experience. I have been consistently struck by the simple beauty of meeting multiple times weekly with fellow believers who are experiencing and enduring many of the same challenges and rigors while wrestling with and growing their faith in a wholly new context. Through the financial and prayerful support of the Study Center and many generous alumni, LCF maintains an active presence on Grounds through weekly fellowships, Bible studies, retreats, service opportunities, worship nights, and much more.”
—David Reed
(Law Christian Fellowship president, UVA Law School ’25)
LYDIA MARLIN Communications and Project Manager
Lydia was raised in a military home filled with ministry. Her parents led a discipleship ministry to fellow service members at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi. There she grew to love a house filled with people eating good food and asking hard questions about the gospel.
In 2018 Lydia moved to New York City to pursue a degree in politics, philosophy, and economics at The King’s College. Almost accidentally, she fell into working in marketing and communications and quickly found a passion for the art of digital media. Soon after graduating, she discovered the Study Center movement and joined their internship program. She served a year at Cambridge House Study Center at William & Mary—a research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Outside work, Lydia enjoys running, reading, exploring new places, and having long conversations over good coffee.
CHLOE CARTER Ministry Intern
Chloe is part of an internship program of the Consortium of Christian Study Centers, and she’ll serve as a full-time ministry intern at our Study Center this academic year.
Chloe recently graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she studied philosophy and criminal justice. She grew up in Goochland County as the youngest of three, and in high school she began pursuing her faith more intentionally. During her time in college, she held leadership positions with Cru, where she led small groups, served on the executive team, and went on mission trips. It was there that she discovered a love for connecting with others in their faith journey and walking alongside them.
After her internship with the Study Center, she plans to pursue law and bring the love of Christ to people through legal support.
Chloe enjoys thrifting, painting, snowboarding, and spending time with friends and family.
Center for Christian Study
128 Chancellor Street
Charlottesville, VA 22903 www.studycenter.net
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Mark Your Calendar
MOVE IN DAY LUNCH
August 23
FIRST DAY OF CLASS DINNER
August 27
VERITAS FORUM EVENT with Curt Thompson
October 30
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Students at Spring 2024 Exam Snacks
Students celebrate with their families at Graduation Brunch 2024