Welcome to Faith in Detroit

Founded and facilitated by Christ Church Cranbrook, Faith in Detroit aims to empower Metro Detroiters to tell their stories of faith and share them publicly. 

• Funded by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., the project devotes $5,000,000 in funding over four years starting January 1, 2026. ​
• Faith in Detroit brings together diverse partners, including Christ Church Cranbrook, Detroit PBS, Detroit Opera, Oakland University, The Cranbrook Project, and Detroit-based startups and artists. ​
• We will produce documentaries, an opera, an app, storytelling fests, and more to share stories of faith.
• The dual purpose is to highlight the faith of Detroit's people and to reframe the city's narrative of rise-and-ruin to resilience-and-resurrection.

Calling all Metro Detroiters! We want to hear your stories of faith:

By building a storytelling ecosystem, we not only hope that the people of faith in Detroit will see themselves as part of a larger interconnected whole, but we also seek to inspire people who look to Detroit as a model and mirror:

• As a mirror, Detroit is a representative city due to its history as the center of the U.S. auto industry and its subsequent struggles and revitalization efforts. It embodies larger national themes of industrial decline, urban renewal, and community resilience, making it a case study for other cities facing similar challenges. The faith stories we aim to share will inspire others navigating these same challenges.
• As a model, Detroit’s faith communities, artists, activists, and cultural institutions offer creative, grounded responses to adversity. So many people in Detroit see God working through them as they work to create a new present and future for our city. This renewal comes from people who hold deep faith and are committed to partnership and mutuality at the local level. Seeing Detroit as a model lifts up what the rest of the country might learn from its people, its faith, and its ongoing reinvention. This is what we hope the storytelling ecosystem will do.

Working with and through our different partners, we hope to engage three audiences: 

• People of faith in Detroit: Individuals and communities living in Metro Detroit and following the way of Jesus. They are grounded in local congregations across denominations, cultures, and expressions of Christian faith and are deeply connected to the life of the city. Their faith is expressed in everyday acts of courage, care, and resilience, engaging in community-building activities, responding to the realities of the city with compassion and hope. The vision that informs their actions is shaped by the beauty, complexity, and struggle of Detroit.
• People who believe in Detroit: This group includes Christians, people of other faiths, and spiritual seekers who live in and around Metro Detroit and hold a deep, often spiritual, belief in Detroit’s history and value as a remarkable city. Their commitment is shaped by hope, human dignity, and the sacred worth of every place and person. As bridge-builders and allies, they help reframe Detroit as a place of spiritual renewal, love, and justice.
• People who look to Detroit as a mirror and model: These are leaders, learners, and seekers who look to Detroit for guidance, inspiration, and prophetic insight. They are drawn to how Detroit communities navigate faith and justice, or how churches and other faith communities practice hospitality, resilience, and hope in difficult circumstances. They amplify Detroit’s voice in broader conversations about faith and justice. Inspired by its stories, they will seek deeper connection in their own context and help reframe Detroit as a city of resilience, faith, and love.