New Life Christian Fellowship (NLCF) is an

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 ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

in Blacksburg,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

that ministers to the

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

and New River Valley communities. An estimated 200 worshipers attend one of the church's three weekly gatherings, most of whom are college students attending services on the Virginia Tech campus.

Beliefs and practices

Regarding the

Apostles' Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century Ga ...

and the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

, members of NLCF "stand together with Christians everywhere across the centuries that have embraced these basic statements of faith. These creeds form the core expression of our faith." The tripartite mission of NLCF is to: #invest in spiritual growth, #invite others to follow Jesus, and #inspire each other to change the world. Although NLCF's weekly services draw large crowds, much of the church life takes place in small groups. Members meet on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays in "homegroups" that attract between 20 and 40 in the same age bracket. Smaller "lifegroups" with 5 to 10 members, typically all male or all female, also meet for more weighty spiritual discussions, Bible study, and prayer. Because the majority of NLCF's members are college students, the church's staff members must raise support for their own salary. This process typically lasts at least nine months after training.

History

JR Woodward
founded in church in 1989 as a part of Great Commission Ministries, a quasi-denominational organization. NLCF leaders have cited the church's "sending capacity" as being more important than its "seating capacity." In 2003, Woodward and other members of NLCF planted a church in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

name
Kairos Los Angeles
and in 2008, NLCF partnered with a church in Maryland to establish another seed church in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. Closer to home, the church branched off into two congregations in 2007: a "downtown" congregation that serves non-student New River Valley residents and a Virginia Tech congregation that caters to the younger student population. NLCF also purchased the old Red Cross building in Blacksburg to increase its visibility in the local community, although renovations have delayed the new site's opening.

Virginia Tech shooting

Following the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007, NLCF received widespread media coverage.

Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...

reported that two NLCF members died in the shootings and ten others were somehow connected to the church in a feature article on the church. NLCF pastor Jim Pace was a guest on '' Larry King Live'' and ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...

'', and

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...

created a video of the church's memorial service. Several other newspapers, magazines, and radio shows carried quotes from NLCF pastors. On the night of the shooting, Pace told a national audience on ''Larry King Live'' that the church was

just trying to focus on giving some people a variety of different ways they can deal with this. We have some larger group things for people that want to process this with lots of people. And then we've got some smaller things for people that want to hole up in their -- in their dorm or in their apartment and just kind of try to sort this out with a few friends. We're just trying to be as many places as we can. We're helping out with what the university is doing, as well, and just trying to lend our support there.

In response,

Dr. Phil McGraw Phillip Calvin McGraw (born September 1, 1950), better known as Dr. Phil, is an American television personality and author best known for hosting the talk show '' Dr. Phil''. He holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, though he ceased renew ...

applauded Jim Pace's comments and efforts on ''Larry King Live'', saying, "God bless Pastor Pace for being on site and stepping up and providing a place for people to go to share their thoughts, share their feelings." The morning after the shooting, Pace responded to a request on ''Good Morning America'' for a single comforting sentence by saying that "any sentence would probably just sound fairly trite." He also pointed to free will as part of the cause of the incident and encouraged people to draw closer to God. ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' reported that Pace said, "We learned evil is real and evil can hurt us, but God's love is real." Matt Rogers, another NLCF pastor, was interviewed on NPR's ''

Morning Edition ''Morning Edition'' is an American radio news program produced and distributed by NPR. It airs weekday mornings (Monday through Friday) and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 5:00 to 9:00 AM ...

'', encouraging people to "overcome evil with good".

Notes

External links

New Life Campus Fellowship (official site)

JR Woodward

Kairos Los Angeles

Richmond Church Plant
{{coord, 37.2300, -80.4156, type:landmark_region:US-WV, display=title Evangelical churches in Virginia Blacksburg, Virginia Great Commission church movement Virginia Tech Virginia Tech shooting 1989 establishments in Virginia