Vision and Values

Vision

RUF is a community at UVa seeking to experience the gospel in community with others, equip leaders for service on campus and in the world, and extend God's work of changing lives, building community, healing our world, and renewing our culture.

Values

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the heart of RUF.  The gospel announces that by sheer grace God has broken into history in the person of Jesus Christ  to restore us to himself and to renew the world he loves.  As we reshape our lives around the gospel, we have an opportunity to join God in his work of pursuing these vitally important values.

Changing Lives

The gospel alone holds the power to truly change us.  When we rely on Jesus' work and record rather than our own for our relationship with God, God not only forgives us, but lavishes his love and acceptance upon us as adopted sons and daughters.  And the way in which we grow in the Christian life is the same way in which we enter it – by receiving Jesus and relying on what he has done for us by his grace.  That is why we are devoted to helping one another become more like Christ by growing in grace.  We affirm that deep, lasting change occurs by studying the Bible, developing a prayer life, participating in worship, and forming authentic relationships with others.

Building Community

Jesus not only calls us to follow him as individuals, but also gathers us into a community in which we learn to apply the gospel to every aspect of our lives.  In our relationships with one another, we strive to reflect the counter-cultural values of the gospel, and as we do we provide the world around us with a glimpse of who God is and what his coming kingdom entails. In light of the fact that God calls us to himself in order to be a vehicle of blessing to others, we are committed to sacrificially serving others on our campus and in our world.

Healing Our World

We believe the gospel is true, and, therefore, it cannot be kept to ourselves. We are committed to thoughtfully and respectfully communicating the gospel through the words we speak, the deeds we perform, and the community we embody so that we might give others the opportunity to discover the true story of God’s grace.  In light of the fact that the salvation Jesus brings is comprehensive and affects the whole person, we are committed to tangibly expressing God’s care for the world by seeking wholeness for the poor, justice for the oppressed, and restoration for the physical world.

Renewing Our Culture

Christianity is a way of seeing all of life.  Rather than dividing the world into sacred and secular realms, we recognize that every sphere of life belongs to God and provides us with an opportunity to serve him. W e aim, therefore, to discern our unique vocations within the world and to pursue them with excellence, distinctiveness, and integrity so that our university as well as our culture might experience the renewal of the gospel.