May update
Dear friends,
My favorite workplace at the Center is a single table along the front wall, so much so that MCSC staff members often refer to the table as the Director’s Office. Lately, however, the office has welcomed a new occupant. Hasan is a senior Psychology major at Michigan who grew up in a Muslim family in Jackson, Michigan. His older brother attended Princeton and converted to Christianity as a student there. Soon after, Hasan read the Gospels and became convinced of the truth of Christianity as well.
A few months ago, Hasan noticed the Michigan Christian Study Center sidewalk sign and wandered in. At first, he generally studied alone on the second floor, but eventually he became a regular on the first floor. A voracious reader, he often can be found sitting in the Center in the morning reading page-turners from our library such as The Transfiguration of Christ: An Exegetical and Theological Reading (I’ve started him on the more accessible Screwtape Letters).
Hasan also developed a liking for the front table, which meant that our conversations about school, faith, and life in general have become more frequent. While I’m less productive, I enjoy having such an interesting suitemate in the office. When I asked about including him in our monthly update and what the Center has meant to him, he remarked, “It’s been a real blessing to be able to study here and feel at home. It’s a ‘reset’ place where I can figure things out about life, and has become an important place in my spiritual and intellectual journey.”
Hasan’s experience illustrates how the Michigan Christian Study Center’s various components work together to impact lives. In a culture in which 65% of University of Michigan students report feeling isolated from others either “often” or “some of the time” (according to a recent survey by UM Counseling), the Center provides a welcoming community where students are seen and known. That sense of welcome leads to deeper engagement in practices that foster Christian thinking and life transformation. Hasan, for example, has become a regular at our Friday lunches and is enrolled in our Story of Scripture course next fall.
The images below illustrate the many facets of a vibrant Christian learning community during the final month of the semester at Michigan.
Christian Community
As part of our final exam week ritual, the Center once again hosted our Study Day Waffle Bar, in which a team of workers served 300+ waffles to over 200 students. The beautiful spring weather made for a memorable event that enabled the Center to extend Christian hospitality to the U of M community.
The Center also welcomed two dozen professors to a year-end faculty lunch. Professors enjoyed food and interaction and heard reflections from Professor Emeritus Steve Telian on the importance of Sabbath-keeping in the Christian scholarly life.
Christian Formation
Our final Friday lunches featured UM Alum Sean White, associate professor of anesthesiology Michael Buist, and Spanish lecturer Stephanie Goetz, who explained how she views learning a new language as a way to extend Christ’s love to others. The final Friday lunch included testimonies from graduating seniors and a benediction by Director of Spiritual Care Kristin Wong.
On a recent Wednesday morning, the Christian Life and Calling class enjoyed a closing breakfast, during which we recognized and awarded “certificates” to six students who have completed our four-semester Program in Christian Studies (Bible, Christian Theology, Christian History, and Christian Life and Calling). In addition, Kristin Wong had a final meeting on the patio with one of our Life Lab cohorts, which have engaged in eight spiritual practices over the course of the semester and met weekly to reflect on their experiences.
Christian witness in the academy
Extending our impact to the broader community, on April 14, the Center hosted our final public event of the semester, “Welcoming the Stranger in an Unwelcoming World: Immigrants, Refugees, and Religion in Modern America.” UM American Studies professor Melissa Borja and Ann Arbor social worker Sofia Ortiz articulated the biblical mandate to care for those in need and described real-life examples of Christian communities that have made a difference in refugee resettlement.
This week the Center transitions to more limited hours for students who continue their studies into the summer, and we’ll punctuate the Spring Term with some cookouts and other social gatherings. We’ll also embark on our year-end Annual Fund campaign to ensure that the Center's financial foundation continues to expand to support our remarkable growth.
God has blessed this thriving Christian learning community that impacts the lives of Hasan and hundreds of others at the University of Michigan, and we are grateful for your partnership with us in this journey.
Sincerely,
Rick
Dr. Rick Ostrander
Executive Director
Michigan Christian Study Center
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
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