The Movement of "Christians on Campus"

It was announced at the "Christians on Campus" dinner that there will be a weekend long conference entitled "The Heavenly Vision and the Divine Commission" between April 17-19.

The conference is an opportunity to meet other Christians on Campus (C.O.C.) members from universities in Southern California, as well as to dig in the word of God and grow spiritually.

Carol Ross, one of the leaders of C.O.C. in Long Beach said in an e-mail interview that the club was established at CSULB in 1978, 10 years after its establishment at UCLA. Its founders had in mind the purpose of "leading students to Christ and helping them grow in Him."

C.O.C. is made up of undergrad and graduate students who share the same beliefs of the Trinity and desire to fellowship with one another. Approximately 30 students are active participating members and contribute to potluck dinners that take place before the official Bible study every Thursday night.

The club is funded by its staff members, CSULB alumni donors and anyone willing to help others with expenses such as the up coming retreat.

The Heavenly Vision and the Divine Commission conference is priced at $65, which includes food, study, and fellowship and will be held at a conference center in Anaheim. Address coming soon.

Muslim Awareness Week

The Muslim Student Association (MSA) hosted a three day event in awareness of their religious heritage.

The Islamic Awareness Week, which started Tuesday, was an event to bring knowledge and understanding of the Islamic faith, as well as to break the stereotype people develop due to the media. (photo from google)

President of MSA Farah Admani says that by “just answering questions and putting info out there” can help deal with discrimination towards them. “We want to inform students on campus what Islam is about.”

The event hosted a number of informational tables about the five pillars of Islam, prayer sections, and free henna tattoos.

The 30 to 40 club members hold no animosity towards other religious clubs as they have previously worked with clubs such as Campus Crusades for Christ.

“Cooperation is important” Admani explains about working with other religious clubs.



Sources
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nja3R3qCaoM
interview with president of MSA Farah Admani

Reverend Killed During Church Service

(photo from google)
On Sunday March 8, there was a shooting at a local Illinois church, killing one and wounding two others.

The victim shot and killed was Rev. Fred Winters from the First Baptist Church and the two wounded were members of his congregation.

ABC news reported the the attack occurred at 8:15 a.m. local time during the preachers' sermon. Rev. Winters was up on the pulpit when a man, dressed in dark clothes, walked down the aisle, said a few remarks and shot at him four times.

The first shot struck the tip of his Bible, causing pages to flutter into the air as if it were confetti. Members of the church thought it was part of a skit until the second shot hit him in the chest and killed him.

When the shooter's gun jammed, two church members tackled the man as he tried to inflict pain on himself with a knife. Trooper Ralph Timmins of the Illinois State Police said the men suffered "non-life-threatening" injuries.

Many of the 150 church members do not identify the shooter to be a member of the church. The 27-year-old is being treated for serious injuries and his identity will not be revealed until criminally charged.



Sources
http://abcnews.go.com/US/Story?id=7033937&page=2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBM_ISVN5DE

What's the deal with handing out Bibles on campus?

(photo from google)
At the beginning of the week, a group of suited-up men began to hand out pocket sized green Bibles with a familiar symbol on the cover. The Gideons International is a worldwide Bible distributor, and has resently made CSULB their mission to spread the gospel through their Bibles.

The Gideons International is a nondenomination, non-profit organization made up of pastors, theologians and sponsors across the world. The organization has distributed over 1.5 billion Bibles since they began in 1908.

George A Darby Jr., member of The Gideons International and representative from Palmdale camp says the organzation has travelled to over 180 countries to distribute Bibles. Besides hotels and hospitals, they target schools, secondary and college campuses, as well as local prisons.

The students reaction to this act of community service was both enlighting and offensive.

Pre-medical student Elizabeth Tecuanhuehue thought it was a nice gesture that the members "would take their time and effort to care for students who would otherwise avoid them." Tecuanhuehue is not a religious person but says she will most likely read her new Bible when there is spare time.

On the other spectrum, students such as Alma Perez do not think it is necessary to "bug people with contraversal things."

Although what these men are doing may disturb students, it is the freedom of speech that allows them to continue.



Sources
http://www.gideons.org/Splash.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cTWBlaZR40&feature=related
interview with George A. Darby Jr.

Mission Statement

The purpose of this blog is to present and discuss news reported on religion and how it affects College campuses, in particular, California State University Long Beach (CSULB). By evaluating issues or dilemmas from various articles, this blog will record opinionated responses given by teachers, students and staff at CSULB. It will also report on impacting religious events hosted by clubs on campus and how non-religious students feel about such activities.