College of Theology

Story by Janie Magruder Photos by Darryl Webb GCU Today Magazine The trinity of sacredly held campus ministries at Grand Canyon University — small group Bible studies, chapel services and local/global outreach activities — not only are surviving unprecedented student population growth, they are thriving amidst it. Call it a God thing. “The more people who come, the more opportunities we have to impact the kingdom, and it’s up to us to figure out how to reach them,” said Dean of Students Pastor Tim Griffin. “God is allowing thousands and thousands and thousands to come to this campus, and it’s a great opportunity that we don’t want to miss.” Upon Griffin’s arrival at GCU a little more than four years ago, he spelled out spiritual life at GCU and drew a line in the sand with Christian organizations clamoring to provide those services on campus. In those early days, Griffin might have felt like Daniel in the lion’s den. “We told them they were welcome on campus but that they would have to do something different from small groups, worship and outreach,” he said. “We defined our field of play, what the rules would be and how we would engage […]

Grand Canyon University’s non-traditional commencement ceremony returned to campus and to the more spacious GCU Arena on Saturday. The extra seats were a blessing as family members and friends of nearly 1,900 online students for morning and afternoon ceremonies.

By Rick Vacek GCU News Bureau Christians talk about getting their hands dirty and their feet wet in practicing their faith. Dr. Palmer Chinchen takes it to a whole new level on the lower extremities. Chinchen, lead pastor of The Grove in Chandler, spoke and his pastor of worship, Josh Havens, sang Monday in the second installment of the Grand Canyon University College of Theology’s Ministry Forum. Together, they challenged audience members to practice what they preach. “A lot of people are willing to follow Jesus into an air-conditioned church,” said Chinchen, whose mantra is, “Take off your shoes and walk the holy ground of a broken world.” Not long ago, Chinchen created what he calls “The Barefoot Tribe” and challenged his congregation to wear their favorite shoes to church, then take them off, throw them in a pile and walk barefoot the rest of the day. The shoes would be donated to people who don’t have any shoes to wear, and for one day the Chandler churchgoers would know what it feels like to walk in the footsteps of those people. He wasn’t sure how many people would participate, but he was overwhelmed by the response. A movement was born. Call it sole […]

Grand Canyon University is in the process of updating how its Public Safety force responds to emergencies and how the campus community is alerted to potential threats.

Trying to bring Christianity to Muslim countries can be risky business, but the speaker at the first College of Theology Ministry Forum said it’s a mission that can be accomplished. Bob Blincoe, U.S. director of Frontiers USA, believes it’s one of the most important challenges facing Christians.

By Rick Vacek GCU News Bureau It was the first meeting of the “Lunch and Learn” Series, sponsored by the College of Theology at Grand Canyon University, but it still brought back memories for the guest speaker, Cindy Seminoff. The first time she taught on that same stage, in Howerton Hall, she was pregnant with her daughter, Cassandra. Cassandra will turn 13 on Tuesday. Her mother has been at GCU for 18 years. So when the associate professor in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology addressed a large group of faculty members Friday on “Knowing God and Self,” part of the University’s Integrating Faith, Learning and Work (IFLW) program, she came at it with considerable knowledge of GCU’s recent history. Judging from the lively question-and-answer session, her knowledge of integrating her faith into her teaching methods was considerably appreciated, too. A year ago, Seminoff said she introduced a “Scripture of the Week” and other forms of prayer into her exercise science and nutrition classes. The response, she said, was “overwhelmingly positive.” Of the 48 students who responded to an end-of-year survey, 45 said they liked her use of Bible verses in communications to them and her practice of leading them in prayer […]

John Frederick is the new worship coordinator of the Center for Worship Arts at GCU, but he also is one of the editors for an important new book on Pauline theology — the study of the teachings of the apostle Paul.

Two new recurring events — a Lunch and Learn for faculty members and a Ministry Forum open to anyone on campus — are important additions to the activities in the College of Theology. The first Lunch and Learn is Friday, Sept. 12, and the Ministry Forum starts Monday, Sept. 15.

GCU Arena is back in business, and it showed well Saturday when a free concert featuring Switchfoot provided a spirited finale to Move-In.

“Essential degree” for those called to a ministry career has been a long time coming to GCU. The 90-credit-hour program will take most students three to four years to complete.