Passion Conferences (also referred to as Passion and the 268 Generation, originally named Choice Ministries) is a
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...
organization founded by
Louie Giglio
Louie Giglio (pronounced GIG-leo; born June 30, 1958) is an American Christian pastor. He is the leader of Passion City Church, located in Atlanta, Georgia. The founder of the Passion Movement, he is an author and public speaker.
Biography
Gigli ...
in 1997. The organization is known for its annual gatherings of young adults between the ages of 18–25, more specifically college students. The organization is also responsible for
sixstepsrecords, the worship band
Passion, and the
megachurch
A megachurch is a church with an unusually large membership that also offers a variety of educational and social activities, usually Protestant or Evangelical. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research defines a megachurch as any Protestant ...
Passion City Church, which serves as the organization’s headquarters. Until 2009, the headquarters were in
Roswell
Roswell may refer to:
* Roswell incident
Places in the United States
* Roswell, Colorado, a former settlement now part of Colorado Springs
* Roswell, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta
* Roswell, Idaho
* Roswell, New Mexico, known for the purported 194 ...
, a suburb of
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...
, Georgia. The first conference was Passion '97, held in
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
. According to the organization, its purpose is to unite college students for a "spiritual awakening in this generation". The foundation of the organization's purpose can be found in
Isaiah 26:8.
Since its start, Passion Conferences has operated national conferences annually. In 2008, Passion Conferences launched its first global tour that visited 17 countries, starting in
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, Ukraine and finishing in
Sydney, Australia. Since then, Passion Conferences have continued to host gatherings and tours nationally and globally.
History
1985–1997: Early years
In 1985, Louie and Shelley Giglio founded Choice Ministries at
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...
in
Waco, Texas
Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and Interstate 35, I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin, Texas, Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the List ...
.
Choice Ministries began as a campus-based student ministry and after 10 years of ministry at Baylor, Louie and Shelley moved to Atlanta, Georgia. In 1997, Giglio founded Passion Conferences in Atlanta under the banner of Choice Ministries to see a spiritual awakening among college students all across the United States and the world.
1997–2007: National success

The first conference took place in Austin, Texas where thousands of college aged students came together during January 1–4, 1997.
Passion have hosted five more national gatherings in the next decade (1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007), which involved more than 70,000 college students in total.
During this decade, thousands of additional college students connected with Passion through one of several other gatherings, including the OneDay Gatherings in 2000 and 2003
and the Passion Experience Tour. Passion also became known for its worship albums over this decade, which featured many prominent contemporary Christian artists like
Matt Redman
Matthew James Redman (born 14 February 1974) is an English Christian worship leader, singer-songwriter and author. Redman has released 16 albums, written 8 books, and helped start three church-plants. He is best known for his two-time Grammy A ...
,
Chris Tomlin
Christopher Dwayne Tomlin (born May 4, 1972) is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, and worship leader from Grand Saline, Texas, United States, who has sold over 7 million records. He is a member of Passion Conferences an ...
, and
David Crowder
David Wallace Crowder (born November 29, 1971), known professionally by his mononymous stage name Crowder since 2012, is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and author. He was the lead singer in the ...
.
2008–present: Passion City Church and world tours
In June 2008, while speaking for pastor
Andy Stanley
Charles Andrew Stanley (born May 16, 1958), known as Andy Stanley, is an American who is the founder and senior pastor of North Point Ministries, a nondenominational evangelical Christian church with several campuses across the north metro Atlanta ...
, Giglio announced the planting of Passion City Church in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...
with
Chris Tomlin
Christopher Dwayne Tomlin (born May 4, 1972) is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, and worship leader from Grand Saline, Texas, United States, who has sold over 7 million records. He is a member of Passion Conferences an ...
. Along with Tomlin, Matt and Beth
Redman, and a small core team, Passion City Church officially gathered in fall of 2008. Passion City Church held its first service on February 15, 2009, in Atlanta, Georgia at
The Tabernacle
The Tabernacle is a mid-size concert hall located in Downtown Atlanta, Georgia. Opening in 1911 as a church, the building was converted into a music venue in 1996. It is owned and managed by concert promoter Live Nation Entertainment and has ...
. In 2017, Passion City Church announced plans to expand to two new locations - Passion City Church, Cumberland and Passion City Church, D.C.
Also in 2008, Passion Conferences embarked on its first world tour, reaching out to 17 different cities in all six continents. Passion has continued to launch world tours and regular tours throughout the years, including Passion NYC Subway Series, Regionals '07–'08, Passion 2010 University Tour, Passion 2012 University Tour, A Night of Worship with Passion Tour, Passion: Let the Future Begin Tour, and Passion: Take It All Tour.
In 2017, Passion held its annual collegiate event in Atlanta's Georgia Dome, former home of the Atlanta Falcons before renovations. That year, Passion encouraged participants to sponsor more than 7,000 children from
Compassion International
Compassion International is an American child sponsorship and Christian humanitarian aid organization headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that aims to positively influence the long-term development of children globally who live in pov ...
. The conference also saw the debut of sixsteprecords latest artist
Jimi Cravity
Maurice Eugene Willis (born December 4, 1984), who goes by the stage name Jimi Cravity, is an American Christian musician, who primarily plays a style Christian pop, EDM, R&B, and hip hop music. He has released two musical works, both being ex ...
and the guest appearance of country music singer
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single " Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bil ...
, which incited backlash from some right-wing Christian fundamentalists.
Passion 2019 was held in four sold-out arenas and churches throughout the United States, including Atlanta's
State Farm Arena
State Farm Arena (formerly Philips Arena) is a Multi-purpose stadium, multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Atlanta Hawks. It also served as home to t ...
, Duluth's (Georgia)
Infinite Energy Center, and in the cities of
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County wi ...
and
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Passion 2020 was held at
Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in August 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it serves as the home stadium of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL ...
in Atlanta, Georgia, a return to a single stadium. More than 65,000 people were in attendance, the largest of the Passion gatherings.
Conferences
Passion's annual conferences attract around 50,000 participants. Every year, the conference invites prominent Christian speakers and musical artists.
Speakers
Pastor
Louie Giglio
Louie Giglio (pronounced GIG-leo; born June 30, 1958) is an American Christian pastor. He is the leader of Passion City Church, located in Atlanta, Georgia. The founder of the Passion Movement, he is an author and public speaker.
Biography
Gigli ...
, founder of Passion, often speaks during the conferences.
John Piper is also a frequent speaker at Passion Conferences. Other speakers that have spoken at Passion Gatherings include:
Francis Chan
Francis Chan ��恩藩(born August 31, 1967), is an American Protestant author, teacher, and preacher. He is the former teaching pastor of Cornerstone Community Church, an Evangelical church in Simi Valley, California founded by Chan in 1994. ...
,
Andy Stanley
Charles Andrew Stanley (born May 16, 1958), known as Andy Stanley, is an American who is the founder and senior pastor of North Point Ministries, a nondenominational evangelical Christian church with several campuses across the north metro Atlanta ...
,
Beth Moore, Judah Smith,
Christine Caine, Carl Lentz,
Lecrae
Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur.
He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the in ...
,
Gary Haugen
Gary Alan Haugen (born April 16, 1963) is an American attorney who is the Founder, CEO, and former President of International Justice Mission, a global organization that protects the poor from violence throughout the developing world. Internat ...
, Ben Stuart,
Ravi Zacharias
Frederick Antony Ravi Kumar Zacharias (26 March 194619 May 2020) was an Indian-born Canadian-American Christian evangelical minister and apologist who founded Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). He was involved in Christian apologeti ...
,
Matt Chandler, Levi Lusko, and Jay and Katherine Wolf, authors of the book "Hope Heals".
Music
Passion (worship band)
Passion is a contemporary worship music band, a central part of Passion Conferences in Atlanta, Georgia.
Passion band have released 28 albums over the span of two decades under the name Passion. Most of the Passion albums are live albums, recorde ...
has released 28 albums over two decades. Most of the Passion albums are live albums, recorded during performances in conferences or tours. Passion Conferences also owns the record label
Sixstepsrecords, whose artist roster includes
Crowder
Crowder may refer to:
Places in the United States
*Crowder, Oklahoma
*Crowder, Mississippi
*Crowder, Missouri
*Crowder College
*Fort Crowder
Other uses
* Crowder (musician), contemporary Christian musician
*Crowder (surname)
*Crowder, someone who ...
and Passion.
Sixstepsrecords artists form the core group of artists performing at the Passion Gatherings, including
Chris Tomlin
Christopher Dwayne Tomlin (born May 4, 1972) is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, and worship leader from Grand Saline, Texas, United States, who has sold over 7 million records. He is a member of Passion Conferences an ...
,
David Crowder
David Wallace Crowder (born November 29, 1971), known professionally by his mononymous stage name Crowder since 2012, is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and author. He was the lead singer in the ...
,
Charlie Hall,
Matt Redman
Matthew James Redman (born 14 February 1974) is an English Christian worship leader, singer-songwriter and author. Redman has released 16 albums, written 8 books, and helped start three church-plants. He is best known for his two-time Grammy A ...
,
Christy Nockels
Christy Lynette Nockels (Married and maiden names, née Hill, born November 17, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter of contemporary Christian music. She was also one of the lead members of the band Watermark (band), Watermark, along with her hu ...
,
Kristian Stanfill
Kristian Paul Stanfill (born April 9, 1983) is an American Christian music singer, songwriter and worship leader from Atlanta, Georgia. His 2011 album '' Mountains Move'' reached No. 64 on the ''Billboard'' 200. He is currently the worship past ...
, Melodie Malone, Brett Younker, and
Jimi Cravity
Maurice Eugene Willis (born December 4, 1984), who goes by the stage name Jimi Cravity, is an American Christian musician, who primarily plays a style Christian pop, EDM, R&B, and hip hop music. He has released two musical works, both being ex ...
.
Other artists that have performed at Passion Gatherings include
Lecrae
Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur.
He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the in ...
,
Hillsong United,
Jesus Culture
Jesus Culture is a Christian revivalist youth-oriented organization that was formed at the Bethel Church of Redding, California
Redding is the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California and the count ...
,
Kari Jobe
Kari Brooke Jobe (born April 6, 1981) is an American contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter. Since her first album in 2009, she has received two Grammy Award nominations and ten Dove Award nominations, six of which she won.
Biograp ...
,
Tenth Avenue North
Tenth Avenue North was an American contemporary Christian music (CCM) band from West Palm Beach, Florida that was active from 2000 to 2021.
The group was formed while its founding members attended Palm Beach Atlantic University took its name ...
,
Shane and Shane
Shane & Shane is a Texas-based contemporary worship music band known for acoustic praise and worship music. The band consists of Shane Barnard (vocals, acoustic guitar) and Shane Everett (vocals). They are often joined by their drummer and manag ...
,
SonicFlood
Sonicflood (sometimes stylized as SONICFLOOd) is an American contemporary worship music band from Nashville, Tennessee, that has been touted as "The Fathers of the Modern Worship Movement." The group took the name "Sonicflood", a reference to a l ...
,
Gungor
Gungor is a musical collective formed by husband and wife duo Michael Gungor and Lisa Gungor. The group's music has been compared to the music of Sufjan Stevens, Bon Iver and Arcade Fire.
The band has released seven studio albums, the last one ...
,
Rend Collective
Rend Collective (formerly known as Rend Collective Experiment) is a Northern Irish Christian folk rock worship band originating from Bangor, Northern Ireland. The current lineup consists of Gareth Gilkeson, Chris Llewellyn, Ali Gilkeson, Patr ...
, and Sean Curran of
Bellarive
Bellarive was a Christian pop rock band that originated in Orlando, Florida in 2009. The band is composed of Sean Curran (vocals, keys and guitar), Melissa Mage (vocals and percussion), Mike Mage (programming, guitar and vocals), Zach Glotffelty ( ...
.
Door holders
The men and women who volunteer at the conferences are called door holders.
They serve on different teams such as community groups, logistics and registration and are considered to be at the core of the gatherings. They travel from all over the nation to serve at these gatherings. At various times throughout the year Passion City Church has special events for Door Holders.
Charitable contributions
In 2011, Passion started the Do Something Now fundraising campaign, later renamed 72DaysForFreedom. The fundraising campaign encourages participants in Passion's annual conferences to donate to different charitable organizations. In the Passion 2011 conference, more than 22,000 students raised over $1.1 million towards multiple causes. At the 2012 conference, students raised $3.3 million to fund seven different organizations that battle
sex trafficking. Passion 2013 saw the launch of the End It Movement, an anti-human trafficking fundraising campaign. Attendees gave more than $3.6 million towards various causes at this conference.
At the 2015 Atlanta conference, attendees collected items to donate to Atlanta's
City of Refuge homeless ministry. In 2016, participants raised more than $800,000 towards ''Project Haraka'' حركة, a partnership with
World Vision USA to fund the building of a health facility in Syria. The building is intended to serve as the first newborn
ICU
ICU commonly refers to:
* Intensive care unit, a special department of a hospital
ICU may also refer to:
Organisations Universities
* Information and Communications University, South Korea
*Istanbul Commerce University, Istanbul, Turkey
* Intern ...
in
opposition-controlled Syria. Passion 2017 saw the start of the Make History Together fundraising campaign, in which the organization partnered with Compassion International to sponsor children in poverty around the world. The students sponsored more than 7,000 children in total, including all of the Compassion International children from El Salvador, Rwanda, Indonesia, and Tanzania, and another 900 children from Bolivia, creating the largest surge of sponsorships in Compassion International's 65-year history.
External links
*
References
{{Authority control
Evangelical Christian conferences
Evangelical Christian music festivals
Recurring events established in 1997
Sixstepsrecords artists
Annual events in the United States
Annual events
International conferences
Youth conferences
Youth festivals
1997 establishments in Texas