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Home > Resources > Worshiping Communities > Campus > MinistriesSeattle Pacific University
Seattle, Washington
| Denomination: Founded in 1891 by the Free Methodist Church of North America | Size: Nearly 3000 students |
| Affiliation: Member of the CCCU | Website: www.spu.edu/depts/ocm |
Mission Statement
"Seattle Pacific University seeks to be a premier Christian university fully committed to engaging the culture and changing the world by graduating people of competence and character, becoming people of wisdom, and modeling grace-filled community."
Excerpts from the full Statement of Faith at Seattle Pacific University. We seek to ground everything we do on the transforming gospel of Jesus Christ. .
Our position of faith within the Christian Church is shaped in four ways:
1. We Are Historically Orthodox.
2. We Are Clearly Evangelical.
3. We Are Distinctively Wesleyan.
4. We Are Genuinely Ecumenical.
Campus Ministries Mission
Campus Ministries serves the students, faculty and staff of Seattle Pacific University as we grow in our commitment to explore the meaning and implications of the Christian faith for all academic disciplines, for our society and world, and for our life and relationships. .
We are committed as a University to the five-fold vision of:
growing as a truth- and grace-filled worshipping community,
nurturing people of competence and character,
pursuing the scholarship of wisdom,
equipping one another to engage our culture with the Gospel, and
releasing one another to participate in the Spirit of God's transformation of the world.
Chapel
All chapels are held Tuesdays from 9:30-10:20 a.m. in First Free Methodist Church sanctuary.
Chapels are a creative, multi-traditional, student-led worship service with speakers from the SPU campus and around the world.
Attending chapels can be counted toward the CFE (Christian Faith Exploration) Program Requirements: All full-time undergraduate students are required to participate in:
A. Ten (10) campus-based faith exploration activities per quarter, including two community events per quarter (convocations, chapels or lectures); eight other general CFE on-campus events;
B. Five (5) hours of community service per quarter.
Sundays
There is a fairly comprehensive directory of churches in the Seattle area.
Other Worship Opportunities
A liturgical service of quiet prayer and communion is held Friday mornings from 7:30-8:00 a.m.
In addition to regular discussion in the classroom, faculty, students, staff and special guests are invited to participate in Faith Learning Forums. These interactive Forums address various contemporary topics relating to the Christian faith.
Forums typically take place on Thursdays from 9:30-10:20 a.m.
Many guest speakers are brought to SPU for both Chapels and Forums.
Other Highlights
The Cadre program at Seattle Pacific University aims to provide students with opportunities to foster relationships with other students, faculty and staff through discussion, study and/or prayer focusing on specific issues or academic disciplines. All cadres are led/facilitated by an SPU faculty or staff member.
Sharpen groups meet in times and places that are convenient for members. We believe students benefit most from focusing on the following six areas. Groups choose particular areas depending on their needs.
Fellowship - Walking through the good and bad times of life together.
Prayer - Lifting up our lives to God.
Confession - Acknowledging our imperfections and practicing forgiveness.
Bible study - Exploring God's world through his word.
Life Purpose (vocation) - Discovering why we are here.
Service - It's not all about us!
Service learning efforts are an integral part of the educational experience at SPU. Latreia exists to strengthen the partnership between students, campus departments, and community needs.
SPU sponsors an annual summer retreat, or discernment pilgrimage, to Iona, Scotland.
There are a number of photo galleries on their site, some with beautiful pictures of the Iona pilgrimage, service days, and SPRINT mission trips.
Many of the chapel talks and forums are archived and available as downloadable files.
The site includes a page with links to worship resources to facilitate discussion and creativity.