Restoration Movement

Christian movement seeking church reformation and unification

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We include updates on Lyndon B. Johnson, James A. Garfield, Jim Jones, Churches of Christ, John Schnatter, Pepperdine University, Chapman University, Texas Christian University, International Churches of Christ, Junior Bridgeman, Max Lucado, Transylvania University, Eureka College, Lucretia Garfield, Lipscomb University, Abilene Christian University ... and more.

March 22 2025 Public memorial service to be held at the Southeast Christian main campus.
March 11 2025 Ulysses Lee 'Junior' Bridgeman Jr. passed away.
March 11 2025 Passed away, marking the end of his remarkable life as a professional athlete and successful businessman.
March 11 2025 Passed away, leaving behind a significant business legacy.
March 11 2025 Died in Louisville after suffering a heart attack at an event at the Galt House Hotel.
March 11 2025 Passed away at the age of 71.
December 2024 Lawsuits against ICOC were refiled in the Superior Court in Los Angeles, California (State Court).
September 24 2024 Purchased a 10% interest in the Milwaukee Bucks, with the deal valuing the franchise at $4 billion, buying out interests of several minority owners.
March 2024 The ICOC reported having 112,000 members.
July 2023 The federal lawsuits are voluntarily dismissed, and similar lawsuits are filed in the Superior Court in Los Angeles, California.
July 2023 The initial federal lawsuits were voluntarily dismissed at the request of the plaintiffs.
July 2023 Federal lawsuits against ICOC were voluntarily dismissed without prejudice at the request of the plaintiffs.
March 20 2023 Giannis Antetokounmpo surpassed Bridgeman's record of 711 games played for the Milwaukee Bucks, becoming the new franchise record holder for most games played.
2022 Most ICOC congregations begin conversations about racial inclusion, diversity, and justice, though significant structural changes remain limited.
2022 Multiple US federal lawsuits were filed against ICOC and International Christian Churches, alleging sexual abuse coverup and exploitation of members between 1987 and 2012.
2022 Abilene Christian University announced major changes to its academic structure, creating three new colleges while maintaining the total number of colleges. This reorganization was designed to help the university market itself as a national university.
October 18 2022 Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced Manna Capital Partners would invest in a bottling facility in Hope Hull, Alabama, to be operated by affiliate Manna Beverages & Ventures.
August 2022 Abilene Christian University applied to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a construction licence for a molten salt research reactor, with plans to achieve criticality by December 2025.
May 26 2022 Announced a partnership with Ball Corporation to construct and operate an integrated secondary aluminum mill in Los Lunas, New Mexico, through Manna Capital Partners.
2021 Commented on the Milwaukee Bucks' NBA Finals appearance, reflecting on his own team's past Eastern Conference Finals experiences.
2021 The Religion Media Centre noted that the ICOC's discipling system and university campus activities made it one of the more controversial new Christian groups in the UK.
2021 Many local ICOC churches establish their own SCUAD groups, though facing some member backlash regarding discussions of racism.
2021 ACU left the Southland Conference and joined the Western Athletic Conference.
2020 ICOC banned from operating at multiple Australian universities, with the UNSW Lions group repeatedly renaming itself to maintain campus presence.
December 2020 Purchased Ebony and Jet magazines for $14 million through Bridgeman Sports and Media after the magazines declared bankruptcy.
2019 Received the Gold Cup award from Greater Louisville Inc. for his business contributions and community involvement.
November 15 2019 Doug Burleson and Kyle Pope held an informal series of reconciliation discussions at Freed-Hardeman University's Renaissance Center in Dickson, Tennessee, exploring Biblical principles of benevolence, treasuries, and institutions in an attempt to bridge differences between non-institutional and mainstream Churches of Christ.
October 2019 Truth Magazine and Gospel Advocate published six articles discussing Biblical questions surrounding institutionalism, with Doug Burleson and Kyle Pope each contributing three articles to the dialogue.
2018 Signed a letter of intent to buy bottling operations in Canada.
2017 Became a bottler for The Coca-Cola Company as President and CEO of Bridgeman Foods Inc.
2017 ICOC forms SCUAD (Social, Cultural, Unity and Diversity) organization to champion racial conversation, education, and action among ICOC churches.
August 23 2017 The NCAA Board of Directors voted to pass ACU through to full Division I status, making them eligible for postseason play.
2016 Appointed to the University of Louisville Board of Trustees.
2016 Sold his Wendy's and Chili's restaurant franchises after owning over 100 locations.
2016 Forbes ranked Bridgeman as the fourth-wealthiest retired athlete in the world, with an estimated income of $32 million.
2016 The university recognized Voice, an LGBT student association.
July 2015 The university signed a lease for an expansion campus in Addison, Texas, called ACU Dallas, to offer new graduate programs including an MBA and Ed.D. in organizational leadership.
2014 Inducted into the Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame, acknowledging his business success.
2012 Alleged end of the period of sexual abuse and financial exploitation by ICOC leaders, as claimed in federal lawsuits.
2012 Appointed to the board of directors of Churchill Downs.
August 25 2012 Abilene Christian's board of trustees accepted Southland Conference's invitation to rejoin the conference, effective for the 2013-14 academic year.
2010 Appointed to the board of governors of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles International Churches of Christ, Junior Bridgeman, Abilene Christian University & Churches of Christ (non-institutional), which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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