Lean Back, Push Forward // The (Continued) Mission of Broadway’s Atlas Campus Fellowship.

In 1946, as the story goes, ‘the boys’ were coming back from war and heading into college–from one warzone to another, we might say–and they and their parents knew that they’d need God’s presence, teachings, and guidance if they were to survive this new arena of university life. Of course, some sent their boys and girls to Abilene Christian College or other similar places; but those colleges didn’t offer all the career and vocational opportunities that a secular university might offer. On the other hand, while these universities offered many good opportunities for ‘secular’ learning, they were also seen as being full of temptations both intellectual and moral, and almost entirely void of those spiritual opportunities peculiar to the Christian colleges. 

Thus, The Bible Chair was born with a singular mission:

to make a dedicated space–a Christian home of sorts–for university students attending a public university, so that they might discern their place in the broader story of Christianity, and they might dig roots deeply into the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Over the years, of course, this singular mission took various forms and ‘flavors.’ In the beginning, and for the first 30 or so years, this meant we provided Christian coursework for Texas Tech credit; L.D. McCoy and others taught courses over the Old Testament and New Testament, presenting to Christian and non-Christian students the story of the Gospel, so that they might either firm up their roots in the faith of their childhood, or send out new roots into freshly tilled soil.

The late 60’s throughout the 70’s showed an energetic turn towards evangelism, with Rex Vermillion and Jim Bevis directing Campus Evangelism, and many others–Jack Paul, Charles Mickey, Milton Jones, Jay Wischkaemper, etc.--going out on mission on campus to ensure every door in every dorm was knocked and a bible study was offered, a focus captured in the changed name of the ministry: Campus Advance.

In the 80’s and 90’s, there was a turn towards providing a True Home in a world that was clearly not a true home, and people like John Tyson, Pat King, Adam Looney, and others worked to cultivate a community that provided home for students who were seeking a Christian home in a desolate world.

By the early 2000’s, the flavor of the ministry had naturally shifted to being a counter-cultural community dedicated to the deep streams of Christian faith in a shallow world, and welcoming all who came to our doors, regardless of background: a ministry re-named in the 90’s to Christ in Action in order to signal the honing of focus in a new era. We see this focused mission in the ministries of Dean Barham, David Pounds, and Rebecca and Tim Talley–the latter of which started our International Student Fellowship, a ministry that has brought thousands of people from all over the world through the campus center at 2406 Broadway.

In the two years since we began the transition from Christ in Action Student Ministries to Atlas Campus Fellowship, our students have come to learn a few words by heart: “Making room for restless hearts to find home with Christ.” This is the vision for Atlas Campus Fellowship, the heartbeat for all of our ministry efforts.

And while the poetic words might be unfamiliar to our alumni, I don’t think the mission is strange at all; in fact, we believe it is the self-same mission that we have had all along, now articulated in an evangelical tone for a post-Christian world. During the whole transition–the name change, the renovation, the restructuring of our staff, everything–our primary goal has been to find our roots but rearticulate and refashion them for a post-Christian world.  

Milton Jones, an alumni and former campus minister with us, described our efforts at re-discovering our historical mission like this: “in a swing set, you have to lean back to go forward.”

That’s what we are doing at 2406 Broadway with the new vision, name change, and mission focus. We’ve leaned back into our rich history of education, evangelism, hospitality, and counter-cultural community, and creatively and prayerfully re-articulated that mission for a post-Christian world.

Though the flavor might seem a bit too sweet, sour, or just plain strange for some of our alumni, we believe it is the path on which Christ is leading us to continue the mission at 2406 Broadway.