Speaking about God’s glory in the university and the work world
“My entire life has been a personal faith divorced from my public life,” said Dawn. “It isn’t until I started worshipping here that I started hearing that it doesn’t have to be that way.”
On September 25, Dawn, along with more than 70 graduate students, university faculty members and young working professionals, gathered at Bellefield Presbyterian Church to hear and talk about what it means to integrate their Christian faith into every area of their lives, particularly their studies and vocations. Located in the heart of the University of Pittsburgh’s campus, this event drew students and faculty members from both Pitt and Carnegie Mellon University.
Mitch Hill, who partners with the CCO and Bellefield Church to reach out to graduate students and young adults, was excited about the opportunity to bring together students in the arts and sciences to engage this topic. Those involved in Mitch’s ongoing ministry had spent the weeks preceding this event doing a Bible study on calling and vocation, and they had been encouraged to email him key ethical and biblical framework questions about their own particular areas of expertise, which Mitch then passed on to the keynote speaker, Byron Borger, owner of Hearts and Minds Bookstore in Dallastown, Pennsylvania and CCO associate staff member.
After his presentation, Byron interacted with many of the participants one-on-one. “I talked with a guy working with ‘thinking machines’ who is designing ‘smart wheelchairs’ and I talked with an insurance agent,” he says. “There were chemistry PhD researchers and social workers doing urban ministry and a specialist in international economics. A pacifist and an Air Force pilot had respectful conversation. How do our Christian convictions impact these fields?”
Click here to read Byron’s reflections on his time in Pittsburgh.
to develop men and women who live out their Christian faith in every area of life.
