USA (MNN) — This weekend, more than 800 students and 200 volunteers will converge on Indianapolis, Indiana, for the 12th annual Greek Conference put on by InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. The conference is a place where students discuss real-life issues of life and ministry in fraternities and sororities on U-S college campuses.
The conference is an extension of their campus ministry, says InterVarsity’s Andy Dalton, “The goal of the Greek ministry is to reach fraternity and sorority students with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So the Greek conference comes alongside what we hope to see happen on campus, and it provides two things. One, it provides training for students who want to do ministry in their Greek system on their campus. And then secondly, it provides a place where they can invite their friends to hear the Gospel.”
It’s a time for fun, says Dalton, and also for gaining practical tools for living in the Greek system. “Students talk about the fact that they come hear and leave encouraged that they’re not the only ones who are trying to take a step of faith and take some risks in their houses. And that alone gives them encouragement to go back to campus and maybe start a Bible study in their fraternity house or start a group on campus.”
Dalton says he’s anticipating a tremendous weekend of seeing what God is doing in the Greek system. “It’s always fun to see God kind of shake our stereotypes as to what students on campus we think might be interested in learning about Him and learning about faith. And I think the Greek ministry does that many times because this is usually the last population on campus that many people, especially the churched community, would expect to be interested in God.”
And the ‘Greeks’ are not only interested, says Dalton, but they’re “doing stuff about it and taking risks and steps of faith and that type of thing. And so, it’s always fun, not only to see what’s happening with the students but how it impacts the greater church as they see what God’s doing.”
InterVarsity hopes to expand their conferences into other areas. Currently, they hold conferences in Los Angeles, California, and Charlotte, North Carolina, in addition to the Indianapolis event. Dalton says they’re dreaming of some key places, “We start new conferences based upon, one, where it’s strategic to have them, but two, where there’s a lot of Greek ministry happening because we want to get closer, so that it’s easier for students to attend and we want to provide momentum for what’s already happening locally.”
If you’d like more information on InterVarsity’s Greek Ministry or the Greek Conference schedule, visit their website at the address listed below.
