Cru (until 2011 known as Campus Crusade for Christ—informally "Campus Crusade" or simply "crusade"—or CCC) is an

interdenominational Interdenominationalism is an evangelical Protestant movement of cooperation among various Christian denominations. History The movement has its origins in the founding of the London Missionary Society, a missionary society, in 1795 by variou ...

Christian

parachurch organization Parachurch organizations are Christian faith-based organizations that work outside and across denominations to engage in social welfare and evangelism. Parachurch organizations seek to come alongside the church and specialize in things that indivi ...

. It was founded in 1951 at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

Bill Bright William R. Bright (October 19, 1921 – July 19, 2003) was an American evangelist. In 1951 at the University of California, Los Angeles he founded Campus Crusade for Christ as a ministry for university students. In 1952 he wrote The Four Spir ...

and Vonette Zachary Bright. Since then, Cru has expanded its focus to include adult professionals, athletes, and high school students. In 2020, Cru had 19,000 staff members in 190 countries. Campus Crusade for Christ relocated its world headquarters from

Arrowhead Springs, San Bernardino, California Arrowhead Springs is a highly mountainous neighborhood in the municipality of San Bernardino, California, officially annexed to the city on November 19, 2009. The neighborhood lies below the Arrowhead geological monument, which is California Hist ...

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

in 1991. The president of the organization is Steve Sellers. In 2011, Campus Crusade for Christ changed its name to Cru. The name change was intended to avoid association with the word "crusade", which can lead to offense, especially in Muslim countries. A spokesperson for Cru also noted that the organization's work is no longer limited to campuses..

History

Early beginnings

Campus Crusade for Christ was founded in 1951 at the

and Vonette Zachary Bright as a ministry for university students. According to historian John G. Turner, Bill Bright and Vonette Zachary Bright were influenced and mentored by

Henrietta Mears Henrietta Cornelia Mears (October 23, 1890 – March 19, 1963) was a Christian educator, evangelist, and author who had a significant impact on evangelical Christianity in the 20th century and one of the founders of the National Sunday School Ass ...

, the director of Christian Education at the

First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood has had a significant impact on both the Presbyterian Church and evangelical Christianity around the world. The church was founded in 1903. A large brick gothic sanctuary was built in 1923, and seats 1,8 ...

. In addition, Bill was also influenced by the theology and teachings of the prominent American evangelist

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. He was a prominent evangelical Christi ...

. While studying at

Fuller Theological Seminary Fuller Theological Seminary is an interdenominational Evangelical Christian seminary in Pasadena, California, with regional campuses in the western United States. It is egalitarian in nature. Fuller consistently has a student body that compri ...

, Bright felt what he regarded as the call of God to reach out to university students. Abandoning his studies at Fuller, Bright started Campus Crusade at the UCLA campus. By 1952, Campus Crusade had converted 250 UCLA students including decathlete and future film actor

Rafer Johnson Rafer Lewis Johnson (August 18, 1934 – December 2, 2020) was an American decathlete and film actor. He was the 1960 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, having won silver in 1956. He had previously won a gold in the 1955 Pan American Games. ...

. With the establishment of other Campus Crusade branches in other universities, the ministry hired six staff members. In 1956, Bright developed a 20-minute evangelistic presentation called "God's Plan For Your Life", which set the tone for Campus Crusade's evangelism and discipleship programs. In 1953, Campus Crusade rented a tiny office on Westwood Avenue in Los Angeles, which served as the organization's headquarters until the 1960s. According to Turner, Cru's expansion across US university campuses during the 1950s and 1960s created friction with existing Christian campus groups including the

InterVarsity Christian Fellowship InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA is an inter-denominational, evangelical Christian campus ministry founded in 1941, working with students and faculty on U.S. college and university campuses. InterVarsity is a charter member of the Internat ...

and liberal campus chaplains. According to Turner, Campus Crusade had a conservative

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

and

anti-Communist Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, w ...

orientation. While Bill Bright initially cultivated friendly relations with the fundamentalist

Bob Jones University , motto_lang = Latin , mottoeng = We seek, we trust , top_free_label = , top_free = , type = Private university , established = , closed = , f ...

(BJU), Bright's relations with

Bob Jones Sr. Robert Reynolds Jones Sr. (October 30, 1883 – January 16, 1968) was an American evangelist, pioneer religious broadcaster, and the founder and first president of Bob Jones University. Early years Bob Jones was the eleventh of twelve child ...

and his son

Bob Jones Jr. Robert Reynolds Jones Jr. (October 19, 1911 – November 12, 1997) was the second president and chancellor of Bob Jones University. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Jones was the son of Bob Jones Sr., the university's founder. He served as president f ...

deteriorated after the former sided with Billy Graham, who had accepted the sponsorship of liberal Protestants during his 1957 New York City crusade. As a result, Bob Jones University ended its support for Campus Crusade. Turner argues that the deterioration of Campus Crusade's relationship with BJU led the former to gravitate towards the "new evangelical" wing of the American evangelical Protestant movement by late 1958. Following the split with Bob Jones University, Campus Crusade came to emphasize the importance of the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

in its theological teaching and evangelical outreaches; which coincided with the growth of the

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

and

Charismatic Movement The charismatic movement in Christianity is a movement within established or mainstream Christian denominations to adopt beliefs and practices of Charismatic Christianity with an emphasis on baptism with the Holy Spirit, and the use of spirit ...

s during the 1950s and 1960s. While Bright and Campus Crusade did cultivate friendly contacts with Pentecostal and charismatics, Bright disagreed with the Pentecostal and Charismatic theological view that

glossolalia Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is a practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid vocalizing of sp ...

(speaking in tongues) was a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. As the wedge between evangelicals and charismatics deepened during the 1960s, Campus Crusade issued a ruling in 1960 banning staff members from "speaking in tongues." During the mid-1960s, Campus Crusade adopted the

cessationist Cessationism versus continuationism involves a Christian theological dispute as to whether spiritual gifts remain available to the church, or whether their operation ceased with the Apostolic Age of the church (or soon thereafter). The cessation ...

standpoint that spiritual gifts such as the speaking of tongues, prophecy, and healing had ceased with the

Apostolic age Christianity in the 1st century covers the formative history of Christianity from the start of the ministry of Jesus (–29 AD) to the death of the last of the Twelve Apostles () and is thus also known as the Apostolic Age. Early Christianity ...

. According to Turner, the

dispensationalist Dispensationalism is a system that was formalized in its entirety by John Nelson Darby. Dispensationalism maintains that history is divided into multiple ages or "dispensations" in which God acts with humanity in different ways. Dispensationali ...

theologian

Robert Thieme Robert Bunger Thieme, Jr. (April 1, 1918 – August 16, 2009) was pastor of Berachah Church, a nondenominational Christian church in Houston, Texas, from 1950 to 2003. Affectionately called "the Colonel" by his congregation, he was a dispensation ...

had an influence on Bill and Campus Crusade's opposition to glossolalia; which prevented Campus Crusade from forming close ties with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians. Following a fundraising drive and some litigation with local authorities, Campus Crusade opened a headquarters in

in the

Arrowhead Springs Hotel Arrowhead Springs Hotel a resort hotel, and during World War 2 Naval Convalescent Hospital Arrowhead Springs, is near the City of Arrowhead Springs, north of San Bernardino, California. Naval Convalescent Hospital Arrowhead Springs was a US Navy ...

. This facility was equipped with a series of dormitories to accommodate thousands of students who received evangelistic training. During the mid-1960s, Campus Crusade's rapid expansion led to the creation of separate overseas, lay, and athletic ministries. Some notable former Campus Crusade staff members have included the evangelist

Hal Lindsey Harold Lee Lindsey (born November 23, 1929) – known as Hal Lindsey – is a best-selling American evangelical writer. He is a Christian Zionist, a dispensationalist and a television host. He wrote a series of popular apocalyptic books – beg ...

, author of the apocalyptic ''

The Late, Great Planet Earth ''The Late Great Planet Earth'' is a best-selling 1970 book by Hal Lindsey with Carole C. Carlson, and first published by Zondervan. ''The New York Times'' declared it to be the bestselling nonfiction book of the 1970s. The book was first feature ...

'', and Marabel Morgan, the author of '' The Total Woman''.

''Four Spiritual Laws''

In 1959, Bill Bright developed the ''Four Spiritual Laws'' talking points in consultation with the salesman Bob Ringer after he and his team encountered difficulty disseminating the Gospel message. The ''Four Spiritual Laws'' consisted of the following points: * God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. * Man is sinful and separated from God, thus he cannot know and experience God's plan for life. * Jesus Christ is God's provision for man's sin through whom man can know God's love and plan for his life. * We must receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord by personal invitation. In 1965, the Toledo businessman Gus Yeager took the initiative to compile the ''Four Spiritual Laws'' into a booklet, which was accompanied by supporting Bible verses, some commentary, and support diagrams. Bright had large quantities of the booklet printed and distributed in campuses across the United States. These ''Four Spiritual Law'' presented a concise, four-step process of how to become a Christian and became one of the most widely distributed religious booklets in history. By 2006, the booklet had been translated into over 200 languages and more than 2.5 billion copies had been distributed worldwide. Due to its simplicity, it continues to be used in various forms by Cru and its international affiliates.

Confronting the counter-culture movement

To compete with contemporary popular musicians such as

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

and

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, Campus Crusade sponsored its own Christian popular music band called the New Folk. According to historian John G. Turner, Campus Crusade under Bright's leadership also actively sought to confront the counterculture movement during the 1960s and 1970s. One notable Campus Crusade campaign was the "Berkeley Blitz" in January 1967 which saw 600 Campus Crusade staff and students organize a series of events including concerts, dinners for

international students International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internati ...

, a performance by the illusionist André Kole, and a sermon by evangelist Billy Graham. Campus Crusade also claimed to have converted 700 students and faculty members. During the late 1960s, Campus Crusade in line with its conservative, anti-Communist orientation organized counter-demonstrations against

New Left The New Left was a broad political movement mainly in the 1960s and 1970s consisting of activists in the Western world who campaigned for a broad range of social issues such as civil and political rights, environmentalism, feminism, gay rights, g ...

and anti-war demonstrations including those by the left-wing

Students for a Democratic Society Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) was a national student activist organization in the United States during the 1960s, and was one of the principal representations of the New Left. Disdaining permanent leaders, hierarchical relationships ...

(SDS). Several Campus Crusade members also took the opportunity to evangelize during the

1968 Democratic National Convention The 1968 Democratic National Convention was held August 26–29 at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Earlier that year incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson had announced he would not seek reelection, thus making ...

in Chicago. Campus Crusade also ran a

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

–oriented outreach called the

Christian World Liberation Front The Christian World Liberation Front (CWLF) was a campus outreach at the University of California, Berkeley. It sought to appeal to disenfranchised young people by adopting the mode of dress, methods, and language of the radical counterculture. It ...

(CWLF) to engage the New Left. CWLF's ministry focused on establishing safe houses and "crash pads" for drug addicts, infiltrating SDS meetings, and persuading student radicals to abandon violence. While CWLF received funding and support from Campus Crusade, the latter was discreet to conceal its involvement to avoid antagonizing conservative donors and potential CWLF converts. In 1972, Campus Crusade in coordination with the

Jesus Movement The Jesus movement was an Evangelicalism, evangelical Christian movement which began on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s and primarily spread throughout North America, Europe, and Central America, before it su ...

organized a week-long International Student Congress on Evangelism at

Cotton Bowl Stadium The Cotton Bowl is an outdoor stadium in Dallas, Texas, United States. Opened in 1930 as Fair Park Stadium, it is on the site of the State Fair of Texas, known as Fair Park. The Cotton Bowl was the longtime home of the annual college football p ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

known as

Explo '72 Explo '72 was an evangelistic conference sponsored by Campus Crusade for Christ, planned and directed by Paul Eshleman. Explo '72 has been called the most visible event of the 1970s Jesus movement, and came to be associated with the same, even thoug ...

. The Explo '72 conference featured evangelism and discipleship training and contemporary music events. It was attended by 80,000 college and high school students and was nicknamed as the "Christian

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

" in the media. Besides Billy Graham, the event featured several contemporary popular musicians including

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Nig ...

, the Christian band

Love Song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

Andraé Crouch Andraé Edward Crouch (July 1, 1942 – January 8, 2015) was an American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, record producer and pastor. Referred to as "the father of modern gospel music" by contemporary Christian and gospel music profess ...

, and the Disciples. The historian Turner regards Explo '72 as Campus Crusade's first significant exposure to the mainstream media and a success due to the positive media coverage. Turner also argues that Campus Crusade during the 1970s sought to become more "socially aware" by recruiting more African American speakers and delegates. According to Turner, the large Pentecostal and charismatic presence at Explo '72 signaled Bright adopting a more conciliatory stance towards the Charismatic movement. However, Campus Crusade maintained its opposition to glossolalia.

Riding the conservative wave, 1970s and 1980s

During the 1970s and 1980s, Campus Crusade increasingly became aligned with conservative politics, moral, and social positions. During the mid-1970s, Campus Crusade started a family outreach called FamilyLife to promote a Biblical view of the family, gender roles, homosexuality and abortion. Bill Bright objected to what he regarded as the "breakdown of the American family" and advocated a return to Biblical values. As part of the Evangelical Bicentennial of 1976, Campus Crusade launched an evangelism drive called "I Found It" which targeted 246 cities and involved 300,000 Christian volunteers from 15,000 churches. In addition, Campus Crusade worked with other evangelical leaders including Jack W. Hayford,

Pat Robertson Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson (born March 22, 1930) is an American media mogul, religious broadcaster, political commentator, former presidential candidate, and former Southern Baptist minister. Robertson advocates a conservative Christian ...

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...

William L. Armstrong William Lester Armstrong Jr. (March 16, 1937 – July 5, 2016) was an American businessman, administrator, and politician. He was a member of the Republican Party and served as a United States representative and Senator from Colorado. Early li ...

, and

Billy James Hargis Billy James Hargis (August 3, 1925 – November 27, 2004) was an American Christian evangelist. At the height of his popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, his ''Christian Crusade'' ministry was broadcast on more than 500 radio stations and 250 te ...

to build relationships with US politicians particularly within the Republican Party through outreaches such as "Christian Embassy." Bill Bright was also supportive of the

Moral Majority Moral Majority was an American political organization associated with the Christian right and Republican Party. It was founded in 1979 by Baptist minister Jerry Falwell Sr. and associates, and dissolved in the late 1980s. It played a key role in ...

and President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

, who was popular with many of Bright's evangelical contemporaries. Two Campus Crusade staff members Jerry Regier and

Robert Pittenger The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

also participated in the White House Conference on Families and the National Affairs Briefing in 1980. According to the historian Turner, Bill Bright and Campus Crusade's conservative political leanings created friction with the left-leaning evangelist

Jim Wallis James E. Wallis Jr. (born June 4, 1948) is an American theologian, writer, teacher and political activist. He is best known as the founder and editor of ''Sojourners'' magazine and as the founder of the Washington, D.C.-based Christian commun ...

. During the 1980s, Bright attempted to establish a graduate university for Campus Crusade called the "International Christian Graduate University" in

La Jolla La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. La Jolla is surrounded on ...

, San Diego. However, the project was fraught by fundraising problems, which almost bankrupted Campus Crusade. It also attracted opposition from the

Mayor of San Diego The mayor of the City of San Diego is the official head and chief executive officer of the U.S. city of San Diego, California. The mayor has the duty to enforce and execute the laws enacted by the San Diego City Council, the legislative branch. ...

Roger Hedgecock Roger Allan Hedgecock (born May 2, 1946) is an American politician and conservative talk radio host, who served as 30th mayor of San Diego between May 1983 and December 1985. His show is syndicated by Radio America. Early life Hedgecock was bor ...

and a coalition of environmentalist groups including the

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...

, who supported a ballot in November 1985 requiring the city's voters to approve any developmental projects in San Diego's northern land reserve. In March 1986, Campus Crusade filed a lawsuit against San Diego for US$70 million plus interest. However, the lawsuit failed and Crusade's subsidiary, University Development, filed for bankruptcy when a lender foreclosed on the property in late 1986. The Texas land developer Glenn Terrell helped Crusade offset its debts by purchasing the property. During the 1980s, Campus Crusade increased its cooperation with the charismatic, Pentecostal, and Catholic churches and denominations. Bright's personal friendships with charismatic and Pentecostal Christians and Zachary Bright's charismatic experience led Campus Crusade to soften its stance towards charismatic and Pentecostal churches. In 1983, Campus Crusade overturned its ban on staff members speaking in tongues. During the late 1980s, Campus Crusade also partnered with the

Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...

in missionary work in Africa and Latin America. In addition, Campus Crusade also collaborated with the Catholic Church to distribute the ''

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

'' film in Catholic countries.

1990s and 2000s

During the late 1980s and 1990s, Campus Crusade's Family First ministry endorsed the

complementarian Complementarianism is a theological view in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, that men and women have different but ''complementary'' roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership. The word "complementary" and i ...

position that men and women have different but complementary roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership. Bill and Vonette Bright served as board members of the pro-complementarian

Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) is an evangelical Christian organization promoting a complementarian view of gender issues. According to its website, the "mission of The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood is to set fort ...

and signed the

Danvers Statement The Danvers Statement is a statement of the complementarian Christian view of gender roles. It is not the product of any particular Christian denomination, but has been cited by the Southwestern Baptist Seminary, the Presbyterian Church in America, ...

. The historian Turner credits FamilyLife Director Dennis Rainey with advancing the complementarian position among Campus Crusade's leadership. In 1993, FamilyLife published the ''Family Manifesto'' emphasizing male leadership over the family and the female role as nurturers. In 1999, Campus Crusade adopted the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

's doctrinal statement on the family endorsing complementarianism. Campus Crusade has also endorsed the traditional evangelical positions on homosexuality and abortion. During the early 2000s, its family ministry FamilyLife supported California's Proposition 22 and opposed

gay marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

. In 1991, Campus Crusade moved its world headquarters from Arrowhead Springs, California to

. In 1992, Campus Crusade partnered with Co-Mission to evangelize in the

Former Soviet Union The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics and in Russia as the near abroad (russian: links=no, ближнее зарубежье, blizhneye zarubezhye), are the 15 sovereign states that wer ...

. During the 1990s, Campus Crusade launched a series of campus media campaigns promoting

sexual abstinence Sexual abstinence or sexual restraint is the practice of refraining from some or all aspects of Human sexual activity, sexual activity for medical, psychological, legal, social, financial, philosophical, moral, or religious reasons. Sexual abstin ...

and opposing alcoholism and racism. In 1996, Crusade drew controversy when it published advertisements containing testimonies by " former homosexuals" during the National Coming Out Week; several newspapers either declined to run the ads, or published editorial rebuttals. To combat the under-representation of African American and other ethnic minorities during the late 1970s and 1980s, Campus Crusade launched several ethnic-based student movements during the early 1990s. In 1991, Tom Fritz founded the Impact movement which sought to reach African Americans by organizing regional conferences featuring

Gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

. To appeal to Black students, Campus Crusade launched advertising campaigns highlighting Biblical arguments against racism and promoting the African roots of Christianity. The Epic and Destino movements were also launched to reach Asian American and Latino students. In addition, the Korea Campus Crusade for Christ also opened chapters in the

West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

to accommodate the

Korean-American Korean Americans are Americans of Korean ancestry (mostly from South Korea). In 2015, the Korean-American community constituted about 0.56% of the United States population, or about 1.82 million people, and was the fifth-largest Asian Americans ...

diaspora. In 2000, Bill Bright designated Steve Douglass, executive vice president and director of U.S. Ministries, as his successor. Douglass assumed the presidency of Campus Crusade in August 2001. On July 19, 2011, it was announced that Campus Crusade for Christ in the United States was changing its name to Cru to overcome existing barriers and perceptions inherent in the original name, particularly among

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

communities. In April 2020, Steve Douglass announced that due to health concerns, he would be stepping down from his role as president. On September 2, 2020, Cru announced that Steve Sellers, Executive Vice President and U.S. National Director would take over from Steve Douglass as president, effective in early October. Most recently, Cru is wrestling with troublesome divides amongst its members in regards to how race and diversity fit into its mission. As American culture as a whole critically examines and revolutionizes its perception of race, Cru is now trying to do the same in an effort to parallel these new developments. However, where some argue that these new adjustments in the theology and structure of the organization encourage much-needed diversity and promote the Christian ideals of acceptance and unconditional love, others push back, claiming that the issue of race is being overemphasized, causes divisiveness and disharmony, and that it distracts from the mission of the organization and from the Gospel itself. This tension has caused many staff members—especially staff members of color—to leave Cru altogether, and it threatens to fundamentally (and perhaps permanently) damage the unity of the entire organization.

Ministries and partners

The historian John G. Turner and pastor and theologian David Cobia have described Cru or Campus Crusade as a

parachurch Parachurch organizations are Christian faith-based organizations that work outside and across denominations to engage in social welfare and evangelism. Parachurch organizations seek to come alongside the church and specialize in things that indivi ...

organization, Christian organizations that exist alongside the institutional church (denominations and congregations). Throughout its history, Cru or Campus Crusade was best known for disseminating the "Four Spiritual Laws", a four-step Gospel tract developed in 1959 that distilled key evangelical Christian beliefs. By 2006, over 2.5 billion copies of the "Four Spiritual Laws" had been printed. It continues to be used in Cru and its international affiliates' literature.

Athletes in Action

Among the events sponsored by Athletes in Action is the NFL-sanctioned Super Bowl Breakfast which features the presentation of the

Bart Starr Award The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually to a National Football League (NFL) player who "best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community." Nominees are gathered from the public ...

"to honor the NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field and in the community."

Christian Embassy

Christian Embassy is an organization for politicians and diplomats.

Colleges

Despite a failed attempt during the 1980s to establish an "International Christian Graduate University" in San Diego, Campus Crusade still operates several theological colleges overseas. In 1998, Campus Crusade began running The King's College, a Christian school based in New York City.

FamilyLife

Following the 1975 evangelical Continental Congress on the Family, Campus Crusade staff members Ney Bailey and Don Meredith created a series of premarital and marriage seminars in response to marital disharmony among Crusade staff members. In response to growing interest from pastors, couples, and community leaders, Campus Crusade opened them to the public in 1978. This ministry became known as FamilyLife and used the Bible as a guide for issues relating to marriage, the family, gender roles, homosexuality, and abortion. While FamilyLife endorsed the male leadership, it also sought to accommodate modern

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

by promoting female leadership in ways that did not threaten traditional gender roles. Since 1976 more than 1.5 million people have attended marriage conferences. During the 1980s and 1990s, FamilyLife grew rapidly due to the strong emphasis on "

family values Family values, sometimes referred to as familial values, are traditional or cultural values that pertain to the family's structure, function, roles, beliefs, attitudes, and ideals. In the social sciences and U.S. political discourse, the conventi ...

" in US evangelical political discourses, particularly under the leadership of its director Dennis Rainey. Rainey played an important role in promoting

complementarianism Complementarianism is a theological view in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, that men and women have different but ''complementary'' roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership. The word "complementary" and it ...

among the Campus Crusade leadership. In 1993, FamilyLife published a manifesto called the ''Family Manifesto'' promoting male leadership in the family. During the 2000s, FamilyLife joined other conservative advocacy groups such as

James Dobson James Clayton Dobson Jr. (born April 21, 1936) is an American evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder of Focus on the Family (FOTF), which he led from 1977 until 2010. In the 1980s he was ranked as one of the most influentia ...

Focus on the Family Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is a fundamentalist Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations ...

and the

Family Research Council The Family Research Council (FRC) is an American evangelical activist group and think-tank with an affiliated lobbying organization. FRC promotes what it considers to be family values. It opposes and lobbies against: access to pornography, emb ...

in marshaling opposition against

, abortion, and pornography. Besides lobbying on moral issues, FamilyLife's primary activities included organizing conferences, radio programs, and publications. By 2008, FamilyLife had an annual budget of around US$40 million and had embarked on a $100 million fundraising campaign to build a new headquarters in

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

Inner City

Cru's inner city ministry (formerly known as Here's Life Inner City) currently trains and equips churches in 17 cities to meet immediate physical needs, while also providing long-term development programs such as Holistic Hardware for life skills and WorkNet for career preparedness.

The Jesus Film Project

The

Jesus Film Project The JESUS Film Project is an organization created in 1981 by Campus Crusade for Christ founder Bill Bright to distribute the 1979 film, ''Jesus'', not only in English, but also in many of the world's languages with the stated goal of reaching "ev ...

started in 1981 to translate the Hollywood film ''

'' into other languages so that it could be shown by missionaries to peoples around the world in their native languages. The origins of The Jesus Film Project date back to 1945 when Campus Crusade's founder

wanted to privately finance a film about the life of Jesus that was entertaining, biblically accurate, and which could be translated into non-English

languages Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

. Rather than making a film at that time, Bright instead focus on his campus ministry Campus Crusade. In 1976, with Campus Crusade's influence spreading beyond college campuses to sports, the marketplace and other aspects of society, Bright turned his attention once again to filmmaking. That year, the

British Jewish British Jews (often referred to collectively as British Jewry or Anglo-Jewry) are British citizens who identify as Jewish. The number of people who identified as Jews in the United Kingdom rose by just under 4% between 2001 and 2021. History ...

film and television producer

John Heyman John Heyman (27 April 1933 – 9 June 2017) was a British film and TV producer also involved in television production, consulting, and film financing. Early life and family Heyman was born in Leipzig to German-Jewish parents. His father ...

approached Bright to obtain funding for his ''Jesus'' film and his Genesis Project to produce film adaptations of both the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

and the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. This meeting proved productive and Bright assigned Paul Eshleman, the director of campus ministry, to consult with the film maker. Despite some unease within Campus Crusade's leadership about hiring a "non-believer" to produce a film on the Bible, Bright approved the project after watching Heyman's short film on the first two chapters of the

Gospel of Luke The Gospel of Luke), or simply Luke (which is also its most common form of abbreviation). tells of the origins, birth, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. Together with the Acts of the Apostles, it makes up a two-volu ...

and assigned Eshleman to work full-time on the ''Jesus'' film. While Heyman's initial cut of the Gospel of Luke ran more than four hours, it was shortened considerably following consultation with Bright and Eshleman. The ''Jesus'' movie was financed by Campus Crusade supporters Bunker and Caroline Hunt for a sum of US$6 million. The film starred British Shakespearean actor

Brian Deacon Brian Deacon (born 13 February 1949) is a British actor, known for portraying Jesus in the 1979 film ''Jesus'', which was made by the evangelical organization the Jesus Film Project. Deacon was chosen for the part out of a field of 900 actors s ...

as Jesus, Rivka Neumann as

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

Yosef Shiloach Yosef Shiloach ( he, יוסף שילוח; July 9, 1941 – January 3, 2011) was an Israeli actor. Biography Yosef Shiloach was born in Kurdistan. He immigrated to Israel at the age of nine.Saint Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers of ...

and

Niko Nitai Niko may refer to: People The given name is sometimes a short form of Nikola, Nikolas, Nikolaos or others. * Nikō (1253–1314), Japanese Buddhist disciple of Nichiren * Niko (musician), American musician active from 2002 * NiKo (born 1997), ...

Saint Peter Saint Peter; he, שמעון בר יונה, Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; ar, سِمعَان بُطرُس, translit=Simʿa̅n Buṭrus; grc-gre, Πέτρος, Petros; cop, Ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ, Petros; lat, Petrus; ar, شمعون الصفـا, Sham'un ...

. With the sponsorship of

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

, the ''Jesus'' movie was released in US theaters in late 1979. To promote the film, Eshleman worked with both evangelical and Catholic churches to arrange group trips and discounts. Four million reportedly watched the ''Jesus'' film in 1980. Despite its popularity among Christian audiences, Heyman failed to generate enough revenue to subsidize his Genesis Project since the film failed to attract general audiences, leaving the project US$4 million in debt. Following the ''Jesus'' movie's completion, the relationship between Campus Crusade and Heyman deteriorated. Heyman was unhappy that Campus Crusade had overlooked his contribution to the film and objected to the ministry making different versions of the film for their evangelism outreaches. During the late 1990s, Heyman sued Campus Crusade for producing a shorter version ''The Story of Jesus for Children'', which included new footage. The parties settled the dispute out of court. However, Bright was pleased with the film and Campus Crusade embarked on plans to turn ''Jesus'' into a global evangelistic tool. Campus Crusade dubbed the film into other languages and the film became part of the "Here's Life, World" campaigns. During the 1980s and 1990s, Campus Crusade produced and distributed dozens of dubbed versions of the ''Jesus'' movie in its evangelism outreaches in the developing world. These outreaches led Campus Crusade to partner with the

, charismatic and Pentecostal denominations and churches, and the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. In 2000, the Catholic Church collaborated with Campus Crusade to produce a version of the ''Jesus'' film that was more attuned to Catholic theology. Distribution of the ''Jesus'' film in the United States has included direct mail campaigns sponsored by churches to deliver a copy of the film to every address in select zip codes across the country. Project leaders claim that it has been viewed over 5 billion times by over 3 billion people. This claim has been greeted with skepticism by an evangelical leader.

Vinay Samuel Vinay Kumar Samuel is an Indian Anglican evangelical theologian, known for his work in holistic mission. Biography Samuel was born in August 1942 in Hyderabad, India, as the eldest boy of four children. He became a Christian in his teenage yea ...

, former executive director of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Mission Theologians has said: "These numbers are, to say the least, not gathered in a social-scientific way," and that "They have no way of knowing this."

Josh McDowell Ministries

In 1964, Josh McDowell became a traveling representative of Cru addressing campus groups about the Christian faith. By 2008, Josh McDowell Ministry had become a speaking and humanitarian ministry based in Dallas which partnered with Cru. Over the years his ministry has focused on

Christian apologetics Christian apologetics ( grc, ἀπολογία, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. Christian apologetics has taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in ...

, youth issues such as relationships and sexuality, and international humanitarian aid.

Criticism

Much of the criticism of Cru has stemmed from their stance on sexuality and not allowing queer members and leaders. Cru has been criticised and not recognised due to some of its positions. Cru was not recognised as a student organization by

Rollins College Rollins College is a private college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several graduate programs. It is Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institution. History Rollins Colle ...

in 2018, due to its values which prevent gay people from becoming campus leaders, in violation of the college's non-discrimination policy. While Cru's constitution has a non-discrimination policy, Rollins was concerned that Cru's binding

statement of faith A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets. The ea ...

could affect the admission of members or the selection of leaders. Other Christian organizations are recognised by Rollins.

Fundraising

Cru is currently a charter member of the

Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) is an American financial standards association representing Evangelical Christian organizations and churches, which qualify for tax-exempt, nonprofit status and receive tax-deductible co ...

. Prior to the late 1970s, Campus Crusade had raised the vast majority of its revenue by asking families, friends, and churches to pledge funds towards the salaries of its staff members. By the later 1970s, the increasing scale of Campus Crusade's domestic and foreign evangelism projects led the organization to solicit funds from wealthy conservative donors such as

Wallace E. Johnson Holiday Inn is an American chain of hotels based in Atlanta, Georgia. and a brand of IHG Hotels & Resorts. The chain was founded in 1952 by Kemmons Wilson, who opened the first location in Memphis, Tennessee that year. The chain was a division ...

Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...

, and

Nelson Bunker Hunt Nelson Bunker Hunt (February 22, 1926 – October 21, 2014) was an American oil company executive. He was a billionaire whose fortune collapsed after he and his brothers William Herbert and Lamar tried to corner the world market in silver ...

. In 2007, Campus Crusade was ranked 107 in fundraising efficiency among the top 200 U.S. charitable organizations, according to ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' magazine (2007). Ninety-three percent of its funds go directly to programming, and 7% to overhead expenses. In 2008, the ''Chronicle of Philanthropy'' ranked Campus Crusade for Christ No. 23 in private funding in its "Chronicle of Philanthropy 400", with annual giving of $514 million. In 2012, ''Forbes'' ranked it No. 19 in its list of the largest charities in the United States, with a total revenue of $519 million. The top salary for any Campus Crusade employee was $164,206 in the fiscal year ending 2011. In 2020, ''Forbes'' ranked it at No. 25 in the top 100 largest U.S. Charities.

Worldwide presence

Cru Global operates under various names around the world: *Korea – Korea Campus Crusade for Christ

History

According to the historian Turner, the

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

Idowu Johnson, a student at UCLA, became Campus Crusade's first overseas representative in 1954. After returning to Nigeria, Johnson became an evangelist at his home university. In 1958, the South Korean Dr. Joon Gon Kim became Campus Crusade's first permanent overseas staff member and established the group's first overseas mission. A Pakistani Fuller Seminary student Kundan Massey founded Campus Crusade's first chapter in Pakistan. By the end of the 1950s, Campus Crusade was active in three countries. Campus Crusade's overseas expansion accentuated friction with the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, which also maintained overseas chapters. In 1961, Bill and Vonette Bright participated in the evangelistic ministry

World Vision In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

's Tokyo crusade and used it as an opportunity to expand Campus Crusade's outreach in Japan. During the 1960s, Campus Crusade's expanded its international outreach and expanded to 45 countries including the United Kingdom. As a result, Bright appointed Ray Nethery and Bob Kendall as directors of the group's work in Asia and Latin America respectively. In 1967, Bill sent 55 Campus Crusade workers to establish the ministry's presence in British universities. Campus Crusade's British outreach became known as Agapé. That same year, branches were established in Canadian and Australian campuses which eventually became known as the

Power to Change Ministries Power to Change Ministries is the Canadian ministry of Cru, an interdenominational evangelical organization that was founded in 1951 in the United States. Power to Change is one of the larger Christian ministries in Canada, with approximately ...

. Following the resignation of Campus Crusade's Asia director Nethery in 1968, Bill Bright appointed Bailey Marks as the new Asia director and tasked him with bringing more organizational unity to Crusade's Asian ministries. After touring the nine Asian countries where Crusade had a presence, Marks built a training center in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

for the purpose of training all Asian staff in the organization's philosophy and techniques. While Campus Crusade did not abandon its principle of indigenous leadership, more emphasis was placed on ensuring that local leaders followed the organization's policies. Opposition to increased central control led a third of the 90 Asian staff members to resign from Campus Crusade. Their replacements embraced Crusade's evangelism models. Building on the success of

, Campus Crusade organized the Explo '74 conference in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, which reportedly attracted 300,000 delegates. One of the conference's evening meetings reportedly attracted an estimated 1.5 million people with 320,000 reportedly converting to Christianity. Bill Bright also expressed support for the conservative, anti-Communist South Korean President

Park Chung-hee Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...

, who imposed martial law and assumed dictatorial powers in 1972. Bright claimed that the Explo '74 conference indicated that Park's regime preserved religious freedom. During the late 1970s, Campus Crusade began to shift its emphasis from university evangelism to encouraging students to serve as Crusade missionaries upon graduation. According to the historian Turner, the number of American staff serving overseas doubled to 660 between 1977 and 1981. In 2011, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that Cru has 25,000 missionaries in 191 countries.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campus Crusade For Christ Christian youth organizations Christian organizations established in the 20th century Christianity in Orlando, Florida Christian parachurch organizations International student religious organizations Christian organizations established in 1951 Religious tract publishing companies Student religious organizations in the United States 1951 establishments in California Fellowships Anti-communist organizations in the United States Student societies in the United States

History

Early beginnings

''Four Spiritual Laws''

Confronting the counter-culture movement

Riding the conservative wave, 1970s and 1980s

1990s and 2000s

Ministries and partners

Athletes in Action

Christian Embassy

Colleges

FamilyLife

Inner City

The Jesus Film Project

Josh McDowell Ministries

Criticism

Fundraising

Worldwide presence

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links