This asynchronous online course will explore the history of Unitarian Universalist Prophetic Witness since the Merger in 1961, as expressed in activism and voted on by the annual Unitarian Universalist General Assembly. It will combine historical investigation of social justice actions and witness with deep analysis of Unitarian Universalist polity and how congregations transform affirmation into action. Students will trace the moral arc from 1961 justice issues like desegragation, disarmament, reproductive rights, migrant farmworkers, House UnAmerican Activities and capital punishment to those of the present, including Islamophobia, gun control and Black Lives Matter. Required texts will be drawn from the Ministerial Fellowship Committee’s reading list and will include The Arc of the Universe is Long, The Premise and the Promise, Prophetic Encounters, and Conrad Wright’s Congregational Polity.
Students will be evaluated by demonstrated preparation, class participation on Populi, class presentations on VoiceThread on Populi and a final paper based on class presentations.
For MDiv students. Relates to SKSM Thresholds: 2. Prophetic Witness and Work 4. History of Dissenting Traditions and the Theological Quest 6. Theology in Culture and Context and MFC Competencies: 4. Social Justice in the Public Square 6. Serves the larger UU Faith 7. Leads the faith into the future.
[Max. Enrollment: 30. Auditors excluded.]
