Case Studies
Theology Network
One of B-Less’ most long-standing partnerships has been with Theology Network in Oxford. Before the support of B-Less scholars, this group of undergraduate Christian theologians met sporadically, gaining momentum when supported by enthusiastic undergraduates but falling out of existence when they graduated. The longevity and organisational capacity of graduate B-Less scholars has ensured that the group has been a consistent place of support for undergraduate theologians for over a decade.
At the least, Theology Network serves as a ‘field hospital’ – supporting Christians as they face the full force of critical academic theology in lectures and tutorials, providing a stable foundation of orthodox and academically engaged theology. Graduate students who have faced and come through these same challenges – often the very same lectures and tutorials – are uniquely placed to support these struggling undergraduate students. Their academic experience brings something which, understandably, local churches are less able to provide in their valuable pastoral support of students.
But subject groups like Theology Network also provide a context for students to go deeper into their own subjects of study, guided and supported by graduate students, exploring the ways in which their faith and academic study interact and forming a Christian perspective on their subjects.
We are excited to be expanding our support of Theology Network groups to both Durham and Cambridge, equipping and resourcing graduate students to get alongside these undergraduate groups, responsive to the local differences and unique challenges their universities present. And the blessing that graduate students can provide is not limited to theology – B-Less scholars also support groups in the humanities and sciences in Oxford and Durham.
The Search
The Search is the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union’s flagship outreach initiative, a table discussion-based event which takes place on Monday evenings in Costa Coffee. Undergraduate students invite their friends for a no-holds-barred, any-question-welcome conversation about the Christian faith and the truth of the Bible. Table leaders from outside the undergraduate community support and guide the discussions, which are sparked by a gospel-based talk at the beginning of the evening.
B-Less scholars serving as table leaders provides much needed personnel to support this resource-intensive event. Their presence in the same environment as undergraduates, the credibility that university membership brings, and their involvement in the same conversations means that they are uniquely placed to support the mission of undergraduates. This consistent involvement with undergraduates presents the opportunity to build relationships with Chrisian and non-Christian students, allowing graduates to walk alongside and mentor them as they think through the Christian faith and face the challenges of studying in a secular context.
College Christian Unions
B-Less scholars, embedded as graduate students within colleges and university campuses, are ideally placed to get alongside and support college Christian Unions – groups of students in each college who meet to study the Bible, pray, and reach their friends with the gospel. With unlimited access into the same buildings, dining halls and common rooms as undergraduates, B-Less scholars can be a directly supportive presence as well as being able to make the most of the evangelistic opportunities that college life brings.
This is particularly necessary at a time when college CUs find themselves with fewer students, due to the multiplicity of Christian and local church-based initiatives within the university and increasing time demands on undergraduates. In the past, B-Less scholars have helped to revive struggling CUs, form a nucleus of freshers in the absence of reps in older years, or maintain a Christian presence in a college where there are no Christian undergraduates. Above all, graduate students can provide essential practical facilitation – supporting over-stretched undergraduates with organisation, providing a space for the group to meet, and fuelling conversations with tea and snacks(!)