News
Recently some leaders of the Madison Christian Giving Fund met to pray. We figured that since we exist to advance the Kingdom of God by supporting grass-roots ministries who serve people and lovingly share the gospel with them, we should be praising and listening to the King.
Madison-based Upper House is developing a cutting-edge Fellows program to help University of Wisconsin students integrate their academic studies with their Christian faith and vocation. This program will launch publicly in Fall 2020. To help hone the program, we are inviting students to participate in a Spring 2020 Pilot Cohort. Students in the Pilot Cohort will engage with rich content that aligns with the aim of the Fellows Program: to fill a gap in the life of the mind for Christian students at UW-Madison. The new Fellows Program and Pilot Cohort will be led by Dr. Daniel Hummel, Program Curator…
Over a decade ago, a few pastors were lamenting how they’d come to the end of an Advent season exhausted and sensing they’d missed it – the awe-inducing, soul-satisfying mystery of the incarnation. “For many of us, we were drowning in a sea of financial debt and endless lists of gifts to buy. We struggled to find the connection between our Christmas to-do lists and the story of Jesus’ birth,” they said. An overwhelming stress had overtaken worship and celebration. The time of year when focusing on Christ should be the easiest was often the hardest. Somehow, this had become the…
For Geneva Campus Church, it was collecting backpacks for students at West High School. For The Church at Christ Memorial, it was taking the teachers from Leopold Elementary out for a social get-together. For Redeemer City Church, it was taking care of kids at Huegel Elementary School so the African-American parent group could have a time to meet. For many congregations, linking up with Madison-area schools covers a wide range of activities, For some, it also involves providing food through a network of food pantries that serves low-income families. All of those connections came together on Nov. 19 as representatives of a range of…
Life is busy for most of us and so it’s no wonder that the first thing to go by the wayside is self-care. Pastors and those who work in the church-sphere are no exception to this. In fact they may even have a harder time than others since it is their job to be “selfless”. This faulty thinking is damaging and needs to be counteracted. Pastors need to be provided the space to recharge and feel healed of the cares of their work. Some avenues exist – conferences, vacations, and getaways are some but tend to be expensive and time consuming.…
A panel of five local pastors responded to the survey of Dane County churches presented by Dubuque Seminary professor Christopher James at Upper House on November 19, 2019. The survey results presented a view of the Madison area in contrast to the popular perception of the city once described as the Athens of the Midwest. For one thing, Madison is not a bad place to plant a new fellowship. “It is possible to start new churches here,” James said. His research found 34 churches started since 2010 in Dane County are still going, and 52 churches started since 2000 are…
As Christopher James surveyed churches in Dane County and talked with pastors here and visited some of the churches, he began to get a sense of varied texture the religious landscape in a community not always thought of as religious. He explored the divisions in the community and among the churches. He looked at the differences in the ways Christians give voice to their priorities and go about their worship. In the process, he opened up possibilities for churches in this area to find new ways to shape the future. James is an associate professor of evangelism and missional Christianity…
Merry Christmas! If this seems like an unusually early greeting when Thanksgiving is still more than two weeks away, you must not be a member of the Wisconsin Assembly. Tuesday was the final day of a very short Assembly floor session for 2019 and the two dominant themes were religion and December holidays — and religious December holidays.
College is a time of self-exploration for students. Many students are entirely on their own for the first time and they are looking for places and ways to learn about themselves and the world around them. College campuses support and host many groups and organizations for its students to experience and join if they choose to. One of these organizations is the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF). IVCF is an interdenominational, faith-based, student-led ministry group that has chapters located all over Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The ministry chapter at UW-Whitewater has over 100 members and its mission is…
As you walk into Redeemer City Church on Fitchburg’s north side, there are no crosses, pictures of Jesus or stained glass windows. A communal kitchen is at the heart of the 11,000 square foot building, with office space and an auditorium-style room to the side for its services. The only indication that the 5356 King James Way facility houses a church is the portable banner that reads “Welcome.” Redeemer City, formerly set up and torn down weekly at Chavez Elementary School, has been in the new location for seven months, and its lack of religious decor is intentional, pastors Casey…