Graduate Faculty Ministry happenings are pretty different than things one might see in undergrad IV groups.  They have to be.  Undergrads have time and proximity that give them a lot of room to work with.  Grads and Faculty just don’t.  In the next few posts I’ll point you to some recent and upcoming outreach events taking place in GFM.

Here’s a list of upcoming GFM events.   Take a look at the Finding Calucutta book discussion happening at The Well in next month.  Details below.  Later in the year our group at KU (Lawrence, Kansas) is hosting a Veritas Forum with Mary Poplin.

The Well is a forum for Women in Academics – they’re the ones hosting the book group.  Since The Well deserves it’s own post let me just say for now “Stay Tuned”.  Details for the Finding Calcutta book group are here if you’re interested in signing up!

Mary Poplin is a professor who met Jesus out of her background as a committed secularist.  As a researcher in poverty work, she was compelled to meet Mother Theresa and learn everything she could from direct contact with her.  She travels and speaks about her conversion, her faith and her perspectives on poverty and justice.

You can click here to listen to Mary tell her story.  As I watched just now, I was impacted by several things.  The peculiar twists and turns in her journey of faith to Jesus.  Her mentoring style of connecting with the students in her audience.  Sharp minded.  Warm hearted.  A life of mature reflection on social justice and the Gospel.  I love her insight into the meaning of forgiveness.  Give it a watch next time you have 25 minutes to meet someone new.   You’ll see other Veritas Forum presentations while you’re there.  More on Veritas in my next post.  As I make my way into this thing called GFM, I’m so inspired with the conversion narratives of a group of people I used to think NEVER become Christians.  I think you’ll be inspired too!  We’ll revisit Mary Poplin in the weeks leading up to the KU event.