CENTER U Ministries

Who are we?

CENTER U (Creatio Ex Nihilo Theological Experiential Retreat) Ministries plans to provide summer retreat experiences for skeptics, seekers, and Christians alike transitioning from their post-secondary educations into their vocational careers which focus on applied science and apologetics to discuss and interact with the tangible connections between the two realms. The retreats that CENTER U seeks to offer will vary from week-to-week and summer-to-summer, with different camp sessions focusing on different topics. Each of our staff, once selected, will have undergone rigorous in-camp and out-of-camp training to ensure that each is exceedingly prepared for the position they are taking. We will seek to provide a truly unforgettable experience for everyone who attends one of our carefully crafted sessions. Each one will bring selected guest speakers in the realms of science, theology, and apologetics to provide those attending a balanced view of various interpretations of scientific evidence while considering biblical truths. We hope to develop partnerships with Reasons to Believe, Answers in Genesis, The BioLogos Foundation, and/or The Discovery Institute to provide attendees the freshest, yet distinct, views on biblical and scientific evidence allowing each attendee to see how their own scientific worldviews might connect to the biblical worldviews being presented. Our desire at CENTER U is not to be one-size-fits-all, forcing each attendee to take our biblical interpretation of science; rather we seek to be a level playing field for individual discovery of faith and reason. CENTER U also hopes to provide year-round weekend retreat experiences for individuals and small groups, host outdoor school opportunities, and add a certified internship program in partnership with a university and our prospective non-profit affiliates.

What makes us different?

CENTER U’s direct competition is not another camp at all–in fact, no similar program to CENTER U appears to exist anywhere in the United States. Instead, we will be competing with college students’ time. Summer is an ideal time for internships, picking up additional credits, taking long vacations, or working to save up money. It will be our greatest challenge to show that our programming would be worth the sacrifice of time and money. But, through constant outreach, we plan to share the learning opportunities and experiences that we offer.

There is currently no apparent programming as the proposed plan for CENTER U in the United States. College students may attend retreats with groups or organizations from their campus, and K-12 students can attend regular Christian, science, or even a few science-based Christian camps, but no program currently exists for young adults to retreat together to experience the level of scientific inquiry and apologetics study that CENTER U seeks to offer. We hope to offer special presentations in conjunction with Reasons to Believe, Answers in Genesis, The BioLogos Foundation, and The Discovery Institute to allow word-of-mouth to spread to many regional audiences. Other presentations and special offerings held at various churches will hopefully allow for additional outreach. Eventually, continued fundraising and donations as well as countless volunteer hours from our counselors, crew, and other staff will help us keep our costs as low as possible for attendees. Low cost will make us an aggressive competitor to students’ time. Building permanent housing structures, offering for-credit experiences through local colleges, and other post-launch advances will help keep us relevant for each new wave of attendees well into the future.