Sharon Welch is an activist and writer, having served as Provost and Professor of Religion for ten years at the Unitarian Universalist theological school, Meadville Lombard. She has held positions as Professor and Chair of Religious Studies, Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies and Adjunct Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Missouri. She was assistant and then associate professor of Theology and Religion and Society at Harvard Divinity School. Welch serves as a board member of the Interreligious Institute of Chicago Theological Seminary and the Chicago League of Women Voters.Welch is the author of After the Protests Are Heard: Enacting Civic Engagement and Social Transformation (NYU Press, 2019), Communities of Resistance and Solidarity: A Feminist Theology of Liberation (Orbis Books, 1984, Wipf and Stock, 2017), Real Peace, Real Security: The Challenges of Global Citizenship (Fortress, 2008), After Empire: The Art and Ethos of Enduring Peace (Fortress, 2004), and A Feminist Ethic of Risk (Fortress, 1989, and Revised Edition, 2000).
In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social ... more In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social engagement. Our role is not to simply denounce the real and announce the ideal. Our role is to be catalysts of justice, learning from the courage, the achievements, the limitations and even the failures of those who have embodied this commitment to equity, flourishing and plenitude in the past and are living it out now in their work as elected officials, as professionals, citizens and community activists.
The redefinition of abundance and success that we see in the world of social entrepreneurship may... more The redefinition of abundance and success that we see in the world of social entrepreneurship may seem new, but it is not. There are many other cultures who have lived out an economy of gratitude and reciprocity. We can learn from them, from their mistakes, from their successes, and from their honest accounts of what it takes to live with a greater awareness of interdependence.
Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of... more Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of inclusive and expansive social life. We are now experiencing a rise of authoritarianism in the United States that is as dangerous as the anti-Communism of the McCarthy era of the 1950s, potentially as deadly as the eradication of basic political and human rights for African Americans after the Reconstruction period following the civil war. We are also witnessing a resurgence in authoritarianism not seen in Europe since the rise of fascism in the 1930s. What is missing in much of the literature on authoritarianism is a recognition that what fuels interdependent creativity and expansive civic engagement is not emancipated individualism but openness to the new grounded in the solidity of the same. The ‘same’ is generative connections between adults and youth, and community practices of resilience, acknowledging and learning from both mistakes and successes. This book is meant to enable readers to take on this challenge with honesty and creativity, aware of the particularity of our experiences as members of different racial and social groups, and as members of different economic classes. First, we must be honest, acknowledging the scale of racist exploitation and its ongoing impact. Will we learn from the past and present structures of white exploitation and violence? Will we learn how to check these practices in the present?
We are in a struggle for the very soul of democracy, and all that we hold dear - interdependence,... more We are in a struggle for the very soul of democracy, and all that we hold dear - interdependence, reason, compassion, respect for all human beings, and stewardship of the natural world that sustains us,– is under direct, unabashed assault. This book is meant for those who are concerned about dangers to our democracy, and to our social health as a nation. It is for those who desire to work for social justice, and to respond to essential protests by enacting progressive change. The stories offered in this book provide examples of the critical work being done to create generative interdependence: a community that fully values diversity and connection, that nurtures creativity and scientific rigor, and that embodies responsibility for others and the freedom to find new and better ways of living out, and creating, expansive human communities of connection, respect and cooperation. In this book, we will explore the worlds of social enterprise, impact investing, and other attempts to create economic systems that are environmentally sound and economically just. And we will study the way in which universities and colleges are educating students to be critical participants in creating a truly just and sustainable social order. In each of these instances, activists are working from positions of power to transform institutional practices and structures to foster justice and equality. Their work, “after the protests are heard,” aims at actually enacting social change once injustices are brought to light.
In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social ... more In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social engagement. Our role is not to simply denounce the real and announce the ideal. Our role is to be catalysts of justice, learning from the courage, the achievements, the limitations and even the failures of those who have embodied this commitment to equity, flourishing and plenitude in the past and are living it out now in their work as elected officials, as professionals, citizens and community activists.
Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of... more Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of inclusive and expansive social life. We are now experiencing a rise of authoritarianism in the United States that is as dangerous as the anti-Communism of the McCarthy era of the 1950s, potentially as deadly as the eradication of basic political and human rights for African Americans after the Reconstruction period following the civil war. We are also witnessing a resurgence in authoritarianism not seen in Europe since the rise of fascism in the 1930s. What is missing in much of the literature on authoritarianism is a recognition that what fuels interdependent creativity and expansive civic engagement is not emancipated individualism but openness to the new grounded in the solidity of the same. The ‘same’ is generative connections between adults and youth, and community practices of resilience, acknowledging and learning from both mistakes and successes. This book is meant to enable readers to take on this challenge with honesty and creativity, aware of the particularity of our experiences as members of different racial and social groups, and as members of different economic classes. First, we must be honest, acknowledging the scale of racist exploitation and its ongoing impact. Will we learn from the past and present structures of white exploitation and violence? Will we learn how to check these practices in the present?
The fundamental goal of Engagement Scholarship is straightforward: the creation of mutually benef... more The fundamental goal of Engagement Scholarship is straightforward: the creation of mutually beneficial partnerships between universities and local communities to solve pressing social issues. The fulfillment of this goal requires learning two complex sets of skills and knowledges:How to be aware of histories of exploitation and injustice, and the likelihood of repeating those patterns in the present;How to create structures of genuinely working together to solve problems for the long haul – not short term or ideologically driven, naïve, or inappropriate fixes.
Once we recognize that a situation is unjust, once we grant the imperative of including the voice... more Once we recognize that a situation is unjust, once we grant the imperative of including the voices and experiences of all peoples, how then do we work together to build just and creative institutions? A twofold form of social engagement, with as much attention to implementation and impact as to critique or vision, is possible because of nuanced histories of successful social movements and of contemporary developments in the behavioral sciences. This chapter explores what it means to live out a theology of liberation from the point of view of the oppressor who genuinely sees the cost of systemic injustice, sees their/our role in perpetuating that system, and commits to using their/our power in solidarity with the oppressed and in the service of equitable human flourishing.
In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social ... more In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social engagement. Our role is not to simply denounce the real and announce the ideal. Our role is to be catalysts of justice, learning from the courage, the achievements, the limitations and even the failures of those who have embodied this commitment to equity, flourishing and plenitude in the past and are living it out now in their work as elected officials, as professionals, citizens and community activists.
The redefinition of abundance and success that we see in the world of social entrepreneurship may... more The redefinition of abundance and success that we see in the world of social entrepreneurship may seem new, but it is not. There are many other cultures who have lived out an economy of gratitude and reciprocity. We can learn from them, from their mistakes, from their successes, and from their honest accounts of what it takes to live with a greater awareness of interdependence.
Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of... more Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of inclusive and expansive social life. We are now experiencing a rise of authoritarianism in the United States that is as dangerous as the anti-Communism of the McCarthy era of the 1950s, potentially as deadly as the eradication of basic political and human rights for African Americans after the Reconstruction period following the civil war. We are also witnessing a resurgence in authoritarianism not seen in Europe since the rise of fascism in the 1930s. What is missing in much of the literature on authoritarianism is a recognition that what fuels interdependent creativity and expansive civic engagement is not emancipated individualism but openness to the new grounded in the solidity of the same. The ‘same’ is generative connections between adults and youth, and community practices of resilience, acknowledging and learning from both mistakes and successes. This book is meant to enable readers to take on this challenge with honesty and creativity, aware of the particularity of our experiences as members of different racial and social groups, and as members of different economic classes. First, we must be honest, acknowledging the scale of racist exploitation and its ongoing impact. Will we learn from the past and present structures of white exploitation and violence? Will we learn how to check these practices in the present?
We are in a struggle for the very soul of democracy, and all that we hold dear - interdependence,... more We are in a struggle for the very soul of democracy, and all that we hold dear - interdependence, reason, compassion, respect for all human beings, and stewardship of the natural world that sustains us,– is under direct, unabashed assault. This book is meant for those who are concerned about dangers to our democracy, and to our social health as a nation. It is for those who desire to work for social justice, and to respond to essential protests by enacting progressive change. The stories offered in this book provide examples of the critical work being done to create generative interdependence: a community that fully values diversity and connection, that nurtures creativity and scientific rigor, and that embodies responsibility for others and the freedom to find new and better ways of living out, and creating, expansive human communities of connection, respect and cooperation. In this book, we will explore the worlds of social enterprise, impact investing, and other attempts to create economic systems that are environmentally sound and economically just. And we will study the way in which universities and colleges are educating students to be critical participants in creating a truly just and sustainable social order. In each of these instances, activists are working from positions of power to transform institutional practices and structures to foster justice and equality. Their work, “after the protests are heard,” aims at actually enacting social change once injustices are brought to light.
In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social ... more In this chapter we explore the ethical and spiritual challenges of altermodern, catalytic social engagement. Our role is not to simply denounce the real and announce the ideal. Our role is to be catalysts of justice, learning from the courage, the achievements, the limitations and even the failures of those who have embodied this commitment to equity, flourishing and plenitude in the past and are living it out now in their work as elected officials, as professionals, citizens and community activists.
Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of... more Our context is one of growing threats, resilient critique, and deeply rooted alternative forms of inclusive and expansive social life. We are now experiencing a rise of authoritarianism in the United States that is as dangerous as the anti-Communism of the McCarthy era of the 1950s, potentially as deadly as the eradication of basic political and human rights for African Americans after the Reconstruction period following the civil war. We are also witnessing a resurgence in authoritarianism not seen in Europe since the rise of fascism in the 1930s. What is missing in much of the literature on authoritarianism is a recognition that what fuels interdependent creativity and expansive civic engagement is not emancipated individualism but openness to the new grounded in the solidity of the same. The ‘same’ is generative connections between adults and youth, and community practices of resilience, acknowledging and learning from both mistakes and successes. This book is meant to enable readers to take on this challenge with honesty and creativity, aware of the particularity of our experiences as members of different racial and social groups, and as members of different economic classes. First, we must be honest, acknowledging the scale of racist exploitation and its ongoing impact. Will we learn from the past and present structures of white exploitation and violence? Will we learn how to check these practices in the present?
The fundamental goal of Engagement Scholarship is straightforward: the creation of mutually benef... more The fundamental goal of Engagement Scholarship is straightforward: the creation of mutually beneficial partnerships between universities and local communities to solve pressing social issues. The fulfillment of this goal requires learning two complex sets of skills and knowledges:How to be aware of histories of exploitation and injustice, and the likelihood of repeating those patterns in the present;How to create structures of genuinely working together to solve problems for the long haul – not short term or ideologically driven, naïve, or inappropriate fixes.
Once we recognize that a situation is unjust, once we grant the imperative of including the voice... more Once we recognize that a situation is unjust, once we grant the imperative of including the voices and experiences of all peoples, how then do we work together to build just and creative institutions? A twofold form of social engagement, with as much attention to implementation and impact as to critique or vision, is possible because of nuanced histories of successful social movements and of contemporary developments in the behavioral sciences. This chapter explores what it means to live out a theology of liberation from the point of view of the oppressor who genuinely sees the cost of systemic injustice, sees their/our role in perpetuating that system, and commits to using their/our power in solidarity with the oppressed and in the service of equitable human flourishing.
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