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Historic
Atlanta, July 21, 2010 -- The U.S. Student Christian Movement (SCM), which
has lain dormant for more than 40 years, will be reborn October 8-11 at a
historic gathering at Morehouse College in Atlanta.
The organization, called the University Christian Movement in the
But
sensing a growing need for new structures to respond to moral and social
crises today, students have been gathering in campus chapters of the SCM
around the country. In October, student representatives from seminaries,
colleges, universities and current SCM "Students will come together to discuss how they will collectively put their faith into action towards progressive Christian concerns," said Luciano Kovacs, North America Regional Secretary of the World Student Christian Federation.
"SCM
The theme of the gathering is, "Overcoming Violence: Encountering the Past,
Engaging the Present, Empowering the Future."
Momentum for the event began in
January 2009 the World Student Christian Federation held a regional
conference and consultation in
Historically, Student Christian Movements have been deeply involved in
enabling young Christians to respond to crisis and current events from the
basis of their faith. These responses have played a part in the confessing
church in Germany during the Second World War, in the formation and action
of churches and students Christians during the Civil Rights Movement of the
1950’s and 60’s, and today in the response to issues of oppression,
devastation, injustice, war and homophobia.
Current
leaders of the ecumenical movement recognize the debt they owe to the
Student Christian Movement. The rich legacy has fostered nascent leadership
for over 100 years, including the involvement of such figures as Martin
Luther King Jr. and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. "Students
have struggled, and sometimes even died, to build a movement that follows
the radical life of Jesus Christ," said Alice Hageman, an alumni and
co-chair for the
The
World Student Christian Federation (WSCF) is a network of more than 100
national movements in every region of the world. Founded in 1895, the WSCF
was a precursor to the World Council of Churches (WCC) and now has advisory
status with the WCC as well as consultative status with the United Nations
and UNESCO.
The
Student Christian Movement of the United States of America (SCM-USA),
founded in solidarity with the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF), is
a student-led, grassroots organization rooted in Christ which actively seeks
justice and peace, speaks truth to power, and works to overcome oppression
in communities on local, national and global levels by empowering students
and young people to claim their voice, exercise leadership skills, and build
transformational networks of relationship. Registration and other information is available at scmusa.org. or by emailing SCMalerts@gmail.com. For more information, contact: Luciano Kovacs, North America Regional Secretary, World Student Christian Federation, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 810, New York, NY 10115, 212-870-2470, wscfna@gmail.com Since its founding in 1950, the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA has been the leading force for ecumenical cooperation among Christians in the United States. The NCC's 36 member faith groups -- from a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, Evangelical, historic African American and Living Peace churches -- include 45 million persons in more than 100,000 local congregations in communities across the nation. NCC News contact: Philip E. Jenks, 212-870-2228 (office), 646-853-4212 (cell), pjenks@ncccusa.org |