The quest for justice is joined with spirituality in social life through activism and work to bring about heaven on earth in the form of a better world. Classes in this discipline prepare you to do this work with grounding and effectiveness.

Engaged Spirituality - Spring 2017 Fellowship Church

A course to help you affirm or discover your personal imperative; understanding when you feel called to act and discerning your choice from among many possibilities. This is a group oriented course often centered on a particular book or resource. Participants join in community to support and affirm each other as they learn.

RSSP-2470 Spirituality and Nonviolent Social Transformation: Gandhi, King, Day, and Chavez

This course will explore quests for social transformation through the methodology of nonviolence as exemplified in the lives of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Day, and Cesar Chavez. Critical to the course will be an emphasis on the connection between spirituality and social action. What were the influences that shaped the zeitgeist of the times in which they lived? How were strategies determined and employed? What is essential to an effective nonviolent campaign? What were the faith foundations of these extraordinary leaders? What were their relationships to their communities? How did they manage to keep their resolve in times of disappointment? These are some of the questions the course will explore.

Dr. Howard Thurman: The Search for Common Ground in the 21st Century

Considered a 20th Century prophet by historian, Lerone Bennett, Howard Thurman created an impressive body of spiritual insights exploring the relation between mysticism and social action. He was among the first African Americans to meet with Mahatma Gandhi, 1936, and was a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was co-founding minister of the nation’s first avowedly interracial, interfaith congregation, The Church for The Fellowship of All Peoples. This course will focus on comprehending the ideal of community as expressed through the thought and ministry of Dr. Howard Thurman. Essential to the journey together will be the discernment of evidence of oneness across racial, sexual, gender orientation, cultural, religious and national boundaries.