Group connects through religion

Some read the scripture out of their worn Bibles, while others scrolled through it on an iPhone application.

The conversation eventually turned to whether or not Jesus has existed as long as God.

“If you have a helmet, put it on,” said Nick Pridemore, the group’s campus pastor. “Because I’m about to blow your mind.”

Eight members of Resolved IU met in a Ballantine Hall classroom Tuesday to discuss the book of John. 

Resolved IU is a religious network that strives to find the meaning of following Jesus in a modern age. Pridemore created the organization when he came back to Indiana after being in the Marine Corps and said he wanted to get into full-time ministry.

“I sent some resumes out to some local churches, but things didn’t really pan out,” he said. “Eventually my friend asked if I was aware that IU was in need of some good one-on-one type ministering, and I had never considered that. I talked to a local pastor and went on staff there as the college pastor, and last January we had our first Bible study on campus.”

Resolve meets every Tuesday for an informal biblical discussion, as well as on Mondays for a ladies-only Bible study. The group also supports missionaries through taking contributions at meetings. This week, the organization began an ongoing attempt to help the homeless community in Bloomington.

Pridemore’s wife, Merry, stressed that the group is also about openness.

“We’re not going to change our stance on what we believe, but we’re not going to be closed off,” she said. “We’ve gotten involved with meeting with other groups to discuss what we believe truth is, so it’s been interesting for these different groups to interact with each other.”

Even the members themselves vary in terms of church affiliation.

Senior Andrew Roberts and his wife, Olivia, joined the group while searching for a congregation that was a good fit for them.

“Olivia and I were looking for a church in Bloomington that we really liked,” Roberts said. “We found a church called Cornerstone and met Nick and Merry on the first day and had lunch with them ... they told us about Resolved and we’ve been coming ever since.”

Group member Eddy Price, however, joined the group because he did not like the structure of most churches.

“I like the discussion format,” he said. “It’s really comfortable. I prefer to be able to speak up when I want to. You’re expected in church to just sit there, but with this there is more give and take.”

The openness of the group also extends into members’ affiliations with IU.
“We have a wide variety,” Merry Pridemore said. “Some people are students. Some people are past students. Others aren’t students at all.”

Nick Pridemore said that Resolved is primarily about love.

“Jesus was asked one time what is the greatest commandment, and his response was to love God and to love people,” Pridemore said. “We are constantly trying to be more proactive about loving people. Whatever we can do to love people, that is what we will do.”