and promote tolerance, peace, and understanding of all faiths and spiritual traditions.

Our programs include celebrations and interfaith gatherings, educational events including religious study courses, community service, worship / meditation, spiritual care and counseling to students, faculty and staff, strengthening a campus wide sense of spirituality, providing a spiritual perspective for various academic and educational programs and events on campus, increasing awareness of options for spiritual life on campus

Sex - Part I

Posted by Pamela 1/27/10

A few months ago, one of the Newman Center students, Andrea, asked me about organizing a UIC forum on Sexuality and Spirituality. She said: "I feel this is an important topic for people of faith, especially since the Christian Church is unwilling to engage in conversation about it. In college people are exploring their sexuality, whether they consider themselves spiritual or not. I think it would be wonderful to engage in conversation that is open and not controlled by leaders who are simply shouting 'abstinence only' without a reason why.
read more...

Who Is Really Following Jesus?

Posted by Peggy Pollard 1/02/10

One of my modern Christian heroes who I believe effectively lives out Jesus’ message is the head of the University of California Merced, Chancellor Steve Kang. According to the book “Everything must Change” by Brian McLaren, Jesus’ original message is full of radical socio-economic-political statements, much less concerned with our personal comfort than that we each serve God's purposes for ALL people, most of whom have much less power, wealth and opportunity than we Americans.
read more...

Health Care and the Cash Cow

Posted by Herb Schmidt 11/28/09

The debate about health care in our country rightly should be of great concern to people of different Faith Communities. With over 40 million Americans without health insurance, with people facing bankruptcies because of health costs, others dying because they can't get medical assistance, people of faith need to add their voice to this important issue. It is a matter of Justice and good Stewardship of the resources God has given us.
read more...

What Caused God?

Posted by Peter Payne 11/4/09

Many people use as an argument for belief the creation of he universe. This is called the "first cause" argument: if the universe had a beginning (i.e., the Big Bang,) then the cause of the Big Bang must be something that transcends the physical universe. Coupled with the apparent fine-tuning of the natural laws which make life possible and the claim that it would take a super-intelligent Being to so arrange natural law, this argument designates "God" as the transcendent cause of the universe. There are objections to this position. read more...

Freedom of Speech

Posted by Pamela 9/12/09

I was an undergrad at Berkeley at the time of the Free Speech Movement (1964-65.) This Free Speech was not about shouting four-letter words from the steps of Sproul Hall, as most people think. This was about the freedom to say "I am, or was, a member of the Communist Party," and not lose your job. read more...

Envy

Posted by Pamela 4/29/09

When we fist started looking for speakers for our series on "The Seven Deadly Sins," I had no idea that the one topic no one wanted to cover was Envy. Not any less than the others, anyway. But I've learned something. No one wants to admit they've been envious. No one wants to talk about it. Apparently, envy is not sexy. Read more...

Should God's Name Be Heard on Campus?

Posted by Pamela 4/9/09

"Certainly not!" say a loud number of voices. "Religion is the embodiment of irrationality and a threat to liberal values. Religious people are crazy. They'd as soon bomb you as look at you. It's too much trouble! Best leave it alone."
And didn't your mother tell you the same thing? "Don't talk about religion, politics or sex," she cautioned," and you'll get along with everyone." The post-Enlightenment modern university agrees with your mother, but for other reasons.Read more...

The Post-Modernist and Belief

Posted by Pamela 2/11/09

My niece, Sam, is a Post-modernist. Raised half a Catholic and half a Jew, she sees no problem in following two religions at once (she hasen't done a lot of theological study and will probably add Buddhism in there, just to round things out. Still, she likes Jesus and thinks he's cool. She's not too concerned that she will ever find Truth, Eternal Truth, or True Truth...Read more...

The Modernist and Belief

Posted by Pamela

My father-in-law is an agnostic, a wishy-washy position, in my opinion. Even atheism is better than such vague confusion.
"Make up your mind," I yell at him. "Is there a God, or not?"
Yet he always demurs, "Really, there's no way to know."
His refusal to commit used to frustrate me, but now I see...Read more...

What is the point of an Interfaith Council?

Posted by Pamela

That’s a question I get asked all the time. The speaker usually goes on to say, “What good does it do us (fill in the name of your faith group) to associate with Catholics, Jews, American Indians, Evangelicals or Buddhists?” Some even add, “The disgusting, heretical (any name here) are all of the devil anyway! Why do you bother?” Read more...



HUMAN TRAFFICKING ON THE CENTRAL COAST

Tuesday, February 24, Kresge Seminar Room

Speakers include:
John Vanek, San Jose P.D. Task Force on Human Trafficking
Truett Bobo, member of the Central Coast Coalition to Stop Enslavement.
Kimberly Bell, Bethany University International Justice Mission Representative

A Film on the Global Reach of Trafficking, SVETLANA'S JOURNEY,
will be shown March 1 at 7pm in Kresge 321.
Q&A to follow with forum speakers.

Sponsored by the University Interfaith Council, Kresge
College and The UCSC Women's Center

..........................................................................................

GLOBAL CHRISTIANITY: What Does Jesus Look Like in SUDAN?

Thursday, March 4, 7:30, Stevenson 175

Speaker: John Deang, Lutheran Minister to African Immigrants

Sponsored by The Veritas Forum, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship and Lutheran Campus Ministry


.......................................................................................


ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE

February 17, College Eight, Room 240

Sponsored by Newman Catholic Center, Lutheran Campus Ministry, United Christian Campus Ministry and Antioch Church