Upcoming Events 2024-2025

Veritas Forum
Beyond Optimism: Searching for Hope in a World like ours
Thursday, May 1 @ 7 pm | Lutkin Hall | rsvp

Optimism is trending. Self-help books promise transformation through positive thinking; social media influencers offer curated happiness. As we engage the complex world around us, we quickly realize that optimism often isn’t enough to confront today’s real challenges: political polarization, climate change, uncertain economy. Is there something better than optimism that allows us to be hopeful and honest about our world?

Our speakers will explore theological and literary perspectives on hope, where they find hope based on their worldviews, and what it means for us to live hopeful lives today.

RSVP here

first friday Chapter Gathering: NU Prof Sean Ebels-Duggan
May 2 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

NU Philosophy Professor Sean Ebels-Duggan will share about his faith journey, his work, and the way his view of apologetics has shifted over time. Prof. Ebels-Duggan has been at NU for almost 20 years. He completed his doctoral work in Logic and Philosophy of Science at UC Irvine and is a Wheaton College alum. He is married to Prof. Kyla Ebels-Duggan, who is also in the philosophy department.

1st friday Chapter Gathering: Formal & ordination to daily work
June 6 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

As the academic year winds to a close, unwind with us as we celebrate the end of the year at our GCF Formal and pray over our graduating friends. The Ordination to Daily Work is a tradition our sister grad fellowship at Harvard developed decades ago and reminds us that God has called us to the daily work he gives us. Come dressed to impress. There will be delicious food, music, a chance to hear from some of our graduating students, and prayer.

Past Fall & Winter 2024-2025 Events

Ice cream and Pizza Social
september 21 @ 5 pm | Frio Gelato | Free!

We will meet at FRÍO Gelato (1301 Chicago Ave). From there, we'll walk to Alie and Noah’s apartment for pizza and board games. If you can't make our meet-up time, call/text Mickey at 781-708-3573 to know where we are at a given time.

first friday Chapter Gathering: NU Prof. Kyla Ebels-Duggan
Oct 4 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

Our Fall Faculty Focus on the integration of faith and work begins in the Humanities as we hear from NU Philosophy Professor, Kyla Ebels-Duggan. Prof. Ebels-Duggan has been at NU for almost 20 years, after completing her doctoral work at Harvard, was Director of Graduate Studies, and is currently Director of the Bradley Program in Ethics and Public Life. In 2022, she had a chapter called “Why I am Christian” published in The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Philosophy and Religion.

Ice Skating social
October 26 @ 12:30 pm | Robert Crown Community Center | Free!

Join GCF Saturday, October 26 at the Robert Crown Community Center for some ice skating! (No experience necessary. 🙂) We will meet for the public skating session at 12:30pm. Please bring your student ID for an ice pass and skate rental, and let us know if you need a ride. We look forward to seeing you there!

first friday Chapter Gathering: NU Dean Richard Leuptow
Nov 1 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

Our Faculty Focus on the integration of faith and work continues* as turn our attention to STEM and hear from NU McCormick Dean Richard Lueptow. Dean Lueptow has been at Northwestern for 36 years, is in the Mechanical Engineering department, did his graduate work at MIT, and serves as a Co-Chair of the Faculty Roundtable on Science & Religion at Northwestern.

*We focused on the Humanities and heard from NU Philosophy Professor, Kyla Ebels-Duggan in October.

Friendsgiving POTLUCK
Nov 16 @ TBD | location: TBd

Join us in preparing for Thanksgiving by enjoying Friendsgiving with us! It’s potluck style so you get to show off your holiday culinary skills or keen culinary sensibilities in what you bring (don’t worry if you’re not able to bring anything, though). More details coming soon!

first friday Chapter Gathering: Christmas party!
Dec 6 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

As fall classes end, come unwind with us as we celebrate Christmas together. Come dressed in your best ugly Christmas sweater (or however you like). There will be yummy food, games, and perhaps even an opportunity to show off your karaoke skills.

gcf midwest Winter retreat: learning to love god’s word
jan 17-19, 2025 | cedar lake Ministries | register

Would you like to have a better understanding of how to read the Bible? Join grad students from U Chicago, Purdue, UIUC, and others as we learn how to hear from God through his Word. Tim Keller said that even after 40 years of preaching, what he learned through this InterVarsity retreat was still “the basis for every talk, lecture, or sermon.”*

*Taken from the introduction of Keller’s Encounters with Jesus

first friday Chapter Gathering: NU Prof Terence Halliday
Feb 7 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

Our Faculty Focus on the integration of faith and work continues as NU Prof Terence Halliday shares about the Global Faculty Initiative and how scholars around the world are working to think through the intersection of faith and many disciplines. Prof. Halliday is a sociologist by training and has worked on the sociology of international law until his retirement through the American Bar Foundation located at NU’s Law School.

first friday Chapter Gathering: NU Alum Dr. Nader Sahyouni
March 7 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

Our focus shifts to Mental Health this month as Dr. Nader Sahyouni shares about the importance of relationships, as well as how to form and keep them. Dr. Sahyouni is an alumnus of Northwestern’s Engineering School, both undergraduate and graduate level. He worked in the private sector for over 20 years and then switched to counseling and spiritual direction.

first friday Chapter Gathering: IV Staff Dr. Lance HigginBotham
April 4 @ 7 pm | TGS Commons | rsvp | Dinner Provided

This month, to kick off our Spring small group curriculum, Dr. Lance Higginbotham will give an overview of the book of Ecclesiastes and dive a bit into through the first section. Ecclesiastes is a book that asks if life has any meaning in light of the nature of the world. Also, in light of Easter, he will connect Ecclesiastes to the gospel and Jesus’ resurrection. Dr. Higginbotham has a Ph.D. in Old Testament from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and teaches Old Testament at Wheaton College and Trinity.

2025-2026 GCF Leadership info session
April 14 @ 6:30 pm | Stephen & Jared’s Apt | rsvp | Dinner Provided

Interested in exploring what it might be like to join GCF’s leadership team? Want to make friends that will last well beyond grad school? Would you like to shape our ministry at Northwestern? Join us to hear about the history of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and GCF, reflect on why we exist, hear from our current leaders, and dream about what might be possible in the coming year.