Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union

The Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, usually known as CICCU, is the University of Cambridge's most prominent student Christian organisation, and was the first university Christian Union to have been founded. It was formed in 1877, but can trace its origins back to the formation of the Jesus Lane Sunday School in 1827 and the Cambridge Prayer Union in 1848. CICCU's stated purpose is "to make Jesus Christ known to students in Cambridge".^[1]

Currently CICCU runs two main outreach activities – 'Events Week' in Lent term, and 'Big Questions' lunches on Fridays in St Andrew the Great which feature short talks and Q&As about questions of life and faith – along with a variety of occasional events, and bigger activities in colleges.

Students in many other universities followed Cambridge's lead in forming their own Christian Unions, beginning with OICCU being founded in Oxford in 1879. Initially CICCU was part of the Student Christian Movement, which it left in 1910 to provide a specifically conservative evangelical ministry in Cambridge.^[2] Again, OICCU and other Unions followed them in this move, and together they founded the Inter-Varsity Fellowship of Evangelical Unions in 1928, which now the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship or UCCF. UCCF spread to Canada in the same year and later to the United States, Australia (Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students), New Zealand (Tertiary Students Christian Fellowship) and across the globe.

Membership declaration

Students who become members of CICCU are asked to sign the following statement, "I desire in joining this Union to declare my faith in Jesus Christ as my Saviour, my Lord and my God". This was one of the issues in the dispute with the SCM.^[when?]^{[citation needed]} However, this declaration is not necessary to attend any events, or become involved with helping.

Leadership

CICCU is led by Christian students from a wide variety of backgrounds, united in a common desire to "make Jesus Christ known to students in Cambridge." Past CICCU members have included Josh Moody, Basil Atkinson, Helen Roseveare, John W. Wenham, John Stott and Vaughan Roberts. The leadership operates on two levels – university wide and within colleges. A committee of eight students, known as the Exec organise CICCU. Two reps in each college lead college events and meetings.

Structure

There are weekly meetings in almost every college during term time – these include Bible study, prayer and praise. The college groups then meet together as a whole for Bible Teaching and prayer each week. The CICCU organises weekly talks, explaining what Christians believe, and discussion groups (Christianity Explored courses). The college groups organise termly events in the colleges where people can come and find out more about Christianity. Every year there is a high-publicity main event, during which events are held in most of the colleges and there are lunchtime and evening talks.

Doctrinal basis

CICCU adopts the doctrinal basis of UCCF#Doctrinal basis, to which it is affiliated.

Controversy

Attitudes towards homosexuality have been a particular area of controversy, in particular during their 2004 Promise Week event, in which it was alleged that homosexual relations were equated with bestiality.^[3] CICCU members deny that their organisation is anti-gay, stressing "equality in the sight of God", and point out that they love homosexual and heterosexual friends equally, as does God.^{[citation needed]}.

Recent comment on the CICCU has been more ambivalent – surprised by the intense focus on sharing rather than simply maintaining their faith, but impressed by the warmth of their welcome, and the depth of their conviction.^[4]^[5]^[6]

Presidents

1877: A. Coote
W. Mitchell-Carruthers
1877–78: J.C. Taylor
1878–79: G.H. Pole
1879–80: J. Harford-Battersby
1880-2: Names lost
1882–83: J.E.K. Studd
1883–84: I.B. Wane
1884–85: Hon. W.G. Scott
1885–86: E.D.M. Hamilton
1886–87: A. Klein
1887–88: R.M. Webb-Peploe
1888–89: D.W. Carr
1889–90: A. Rouse
1890–91: L.F.D. Blair
1891–92: C.T. Horan
1892–93: N. Bennett
1893–94: A.H. Swann
1894–95: F.T. Woods
1895–96: A.G. Dodderidge
1896–97: H.F. Buxton
1897–98: D.R. Barclay
1898–99: T.W. Thompson
1899–1900: J. Stenhouse
1900–01: W.G. Hardie
1901–02: R. Hodgkin
1902–03: S. Donnithorne
1903–04: G.A. Barclay
1904–05: D.P. Robinson (afterwards Brereton)
1905–06: J.R.S. Taylor
1906–07: A.E. Bradley
1907–08: R.L. Pelly
1908–09: H.N. Rodgers
1909–10: A.C.B. Bellerby
1910: G.F.B. Morris
Lent 1911 – Easter 1912: H.W.K. Mowll
1912–13: G.B. Sellwood
1913–14: W.R.D. Robertson
1914–15: J.W.McK. Nicholl
1915–16: E.W. Hare
1916–17: G.R. Lindsay
1918–19: R.P. Dick
1919–20: B.G. Buxton
Easter 1920: M.H. Webb-Peploe
Michaelmas 1920: C.A. Martin
Lent 1921 – Easter 1921: T.S. Goodwin
1921–22: C.H.M. Foster
1922–23: C.G. Webb-Peploe
1923–24: F.H. Pickering
1924–25: C.J.B. Harrison
Michaelmas 1925: H.W. Boake
Lent 1926 – Easter 1927: H.R. Gough
1927–28: K.H. Hooker
1928–29: N.A.L. Miller
1929–30: H.A.Evan Hopkins
1930–31: J.N.D. Anderson
1931–32: R.G. Allison
1932–33: R.J. Cobb
1933–34: C.G. Scorer
1934–35: H.T. Hughes
1935–36: B.C. Gough
1936–37: R.J. Knight
1937–38: R.J.B. Eddison
1938–39: D.C. Argyle
1939–40: F.D. Kidner
1940–41: R.F. Hettlinger
Michaelmas 1941 – Michaelmas 1942: O.R. Barclay
Lent 1943 – Easter 1943: J.D. Davis
1943–44: G.K. Barker
1944–45: J.H.F. Batstone
1945–46: R.S. Dell
Michaelmas 1946: J.C. Pollock
Lent 1947 – Easter 1947: J.A. Boyes
Michaelmas 1947 – Lent 1948: G.F. Grobecker

From this point the usual tenure was from the Easter Term of one year to the Lent Term of the next

1948–49: D.J. Drew
1949–50: J.F. Sertin
1950–51: J.T.C.B. Collins
1951–52: M.C. Griffiths
1952–54: Names lost
1954–55: A.A.W. Kimpton
1955–58: Name lost
1958–59: J. Morris
1959–63: Names lost
1963–64: S. Baldock
1964–69: Name lost
1969–70: M. Cuthbertson
1970–71: M. Elston
1971–72: D. Evans
1972–73: D. Hunt
1973–74: R. Capper
1974-75: P. Doyle
1975–76: J. Glauert
1976–77: J. Samuel
1977–78: J. Partington
1978–79: P. Weston
1979–80: J. Barclay
1980–81: J. Stuart
1981–82: T. Green
1982–83: T. Pickett
1983–84: C. Naylor
1984–85: Tim Law
1985–86: I. McIntosh
1986–87: V.E. Roberts
1987–88: A. Horn
1988–89: K. Green
1989–90: T Thomas
1990–91: T. Cole
1991–92: J. Moody
1992–93: G. Treece
1993–94: U. Mayr-Harting
1994–95: J. Rea
1995–96: D. Horrocks
1996–97: J. Sidders
1997–98: D. Gobbett
1998–99: S. Wearn
1999–2000: J. White
2000–01: R. Mann
2001–02: R. Evans
2002–03: K. Butler
2003–04: J. Percival
2004–05: G. Shearer
2005–06: D. Pfeiffer
2006–07: B. Monteiro
2007–08: C. Butler
2008–09: J. Young
2009–10: M. Pilkington
2010–11: P. Hammersley
2011–12: C. Nickerson
2012–13: M. Lewis
2013–14: A. Greaves
2014–15: J. Thompson
2015–16: G. Sterlini
2016–17: D. Palmer
2017–18: J. Payne
2018–19: T. Colpus
2019–20: T. Saer^[7]
2020–21: A. Webb
2021–22: K. Heasman
2022–23: P. McCartney
2023–24: D. Read
2024–25: T. France

Sources in the Cambridge University Library

Affiliation

UCCF (Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship)
IFES (International Fellowship of Evangelical Students)

References

^ CICCU website
^ Goodhew, David (January 2003). "The rise of the Cambridge inter-collegiate Christian union, 1910-1971". The Journal of Ecclesiastical History. 54 (1): 62–88. The causes of the split were plain: CICCU stood for a conservative Evangelical view of the Bible and deeply mistrusted higher criticism, whilst SCM accepted the validity of new views of the Bible
^ Jozwiak, Gabriella; Foley, Laura-Jane 1 (6 February 2004). "Predator – Pray? CICCU defends itself from accusations of homophobia" (PDF). Varsity. No. 594. pp. 1–2.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ Tegelaars, Rosie (29 January 2010). "Confessions of a Chr*sti*n". Varsity.
^ Wilkinson, Hannah (13 February 2014). "My week with Jesus". Varsity.
^ Sheard, Sarah (16 February 2015). "Searching for salvation". Varsity.
^ "CICCU Executive". ciccu.org.uk. Retrieved 11 May 2019.

Bibliography

Old Paths in Perilous Times: an account of the Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, Basil F. C. Atkinson : London, Inter-Varsity booklet, 1932.
A Cambridge Movement, J. C. Pollock: London, John Murray, 1953.
Whatever Happened to the Jesus Lane Lot?, Oliver R. Barclay : Leicester, Inter-Varsity Press, 1977, ISBN 0-85110-396-0.
From Cambridge to the world: 125 years of student witness / Oliver R. Barclay and Robert M. Horn : Leicester, Inter-Varsity Press, 2002, ISBN 0-85111-499-7.
'The Rise of the Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, 1910–1971', David Goodhew, in Journal of Ecclesiastical History Vol.LIV no.1, pp. 62–88.

External links

Official website
Tomorrow – CICCU Events Week 2019 website
Life – CICCU Events Week 2020 website

[1] CICCU website

[2] Goodhew, David (January 2003). "The rise of the Cambridge inter-collegiate Christian union, 1910-1971". The Journal of Ecclesiastical History. 54 (1): 62–88. The causes of the split were plain: CICCU stood for a conservative Evangelical view of the Bible and deeply mistrusted higher criticism, whilst SCM accepted the validity of new views of the Bible

[3] Jozwiak, Gabriella; Foley, Laura-Jane 1 (6 February 2004). "Predator – Pray? CICCU defends itself from accusations of homophobia" (PDF). Varsity. No. 594. pp. 1–2.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[4] Tegelaars, Rosie (29 January 2010). "Confessions of a Chr*sti*n". Varsity.

[5] Wilkinson, Hannah (13 February 2014). "My week with Jesus". Varsity.

[6] Sheard, Sarah (16 February 2015). "Searching for salvation". Varsity.

[7] "CICCU Executive". ciccu.org.uk. Retrieved 11 May 2019.

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