To Think Christianly – A History of L`Abri, Regent College, and the Christian Study Center Movement

Table of Contents:
Foreword by Ken Elzinga Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction Part 1: Innovation 1. L'Abri 2. Regent College Part 2: Replication 3. The C. S. Lewis Institute 4. The Ligonier Valley Study Center 5. New College Berkeley 6. The Center for Christian Study Part 3: Multiplication 7. The Consortium of Christian Study Centers Conclusion Bibliography Archives List Interview List Figure Credits Name and Subject Index

About the Author :
Charles E. Cotherman (PhD, University of Virginia) is pastor and planter of Oil City Vineyard Church in Oil City, Pennsylvania. He is the project director of the Project on Rural Ministry at Grove City College and has taught church history at Fuller Seminary and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary.

Review :
"As a Christian study center director serving a large public research institution, I am grateful for this exceptional book that provides rich historical context for the changing contours of faith, vocation, and learning within secular higher education. Those of us in the study center movement seek influence through thoughtful intellectual engagement, deep relational connection, and hospitable service. This faithful and consistent presence does not always garner front-page headlines, but it does change the lives of faculty, staff, and students, and even the academy itself. Dr. Cotherman's book tells the story of how this holistic approach has evolved over the past fifty years, and why it offers so much promise for the future."--John R. Terrill, executive director of Upper House and the Stephen & Laurel Brown Foundation, serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison "Charles E. Cotherman has written a fascinating history of a type of Christian higher education that has been growing in importance: Christian study centers, often adjacent to secular campuses. The first such work, To Think Christianly, contextualizes the movement and in so doing provides wisdom for its future development. This history is sympathetic but not hagiographic; Cotherman points out both strengths and weaknesses. He is also particularly attentive to how these centers have facilitated women's theological training. I commend the book to all those interested in the development of Christian higher education."--Andrea L. Turpin, author of A New Moral Vision: Gender, Religion, and the Changing Purposes of American Higher Education, 1837-1917 "To Think Christianly is a pioneering work of scholarship which sheds light on a movement richly deserving of historical attention. Over the past few years Charles Cotherman has interviewed many people who have been part of Christian communities of study, and in doing so he has refreshed our memories and offered the clear-eyed view of a knowledgeable observer who cares. As the director of a Christian study center for more than twenty-five years as well as a regular visiting professor and former board member at Regent College, I'm grateful that what has been, largely, a scattered oral history now is written in this thoughtful and respectful book. It will guide all of us who hope to invite people to 'think Christianly.'"--Susan S. Phillips, sociologist and professor of Christian spirituality, executive director of New College Berkeley, an affiliate of the Graduate Theological Union