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Live Report!
Transformative Religious Education: Community Engagement and Theological Reflection
(Chicago, IL - March 10, 2001) At this workshop attended by about
fifteen participants, Harlow invited those present to consider methods of
understanding social justice and community involvement through the lens of
theological and religious language, and what methods can be used to help members
of our congregations explore the religious dimensions of urban life.
 The
workshop leader, the Rev. Susan Harlow of Meadville/Lombard
Theological School, invited participants to reflect on the question, "Who
am I?" She asked them to "think about one profound experience or incident
in your life where your religious life and your social justice life came together
in a transforming way," and to share that reflection. Individuals often experience
changes in the personal spiritual journey, she said, "from activism, to a
journey into the interior spiritual self. What we need is social engagement
that is spiritually fueled, religiously grounded [so that] the passions come
out. Because we want to say, 'I believe in the existence of all humanity for
centuries to come; because these [stated elements] are my religious principles
and values, and that is what my community stands for,' the power that can
come out of that coalition is very powerful. "We need," said Harlow, [to have]
"more intentionality about naming the kind of experiences we have had as religious
experiences."
Harlow suggested that our reflective processes move on a continuum: from
action to reflection to theologizing to new action. In the 1970's, she said,
"this praxis circle was developed. In UUism, there was a hole where we had
difficulty discussing what it meant to be religious. Students had to go through
processes to convince the Ministerial Fellowship Committee that they should
be fellowshipped, but we didn't have ways of helping one another talk about
religious language. But the job, despite the presence of academic theologians,
is up to all of us, to make sense of what goes on in our congregations."
Harlow continued, "there are at least three dimensions to what I call theologizing:
- personal reflection (who am I, am I valued for who I am?) - 'faith' reflection
to build UU tradition and heritage (you can be a Buddhist in the US without
being a UU Buddhist. But there are UU Buddhists who choose to use the term
to help describe where they are on a religious journey. There is something
about UUism which enables those folks to do this. We tend to assume we are
all UUs, and we don't need any more identity and connection that that… but
the shades of difference, and clarification, that come from claiming UU heritage
and tradition along with other things (Buddhism, humanism, Christianity) calls
us to reflection and deepens faith. This builds identity, helping us claim
some of who we are - Reflection in the presence of difference."
Discussing the first dimension, of personal reflection, Harlow said, "in
many congregations, we are well-versed at being polite; we have learned rules
and regulations on how to co-exist, a down-side of the word tolerance. What
that symbolizes to religious communities is that if we scratch the surface,
we will find people who feel alienated in our midst, even though they come
week after week and they call themselves members of this community. If you
pushed and probed them about feeling valued, known, part of the community,
they would come to terms [with this alienation]. So we need to do personal
reflection which is mutually affirming - not just individualistic."
The technique which Harlow uses to develop these feelings, is known as deep
listening. It is, said Harlow, a technique in which the participants "share
various things, and you as the person speaking are the focus of the interaction
and the relationship. The partner, doing deep listening, refrains from saying
"I had an experience like that" and asks, 'this is what I heard you say? Am
I correct that this is what you said?' or takes it in, or engages in enjoyment
of the story - not analyzing the story or thinking about how you are going
to say something to that person. In youth encounters, this is a powerful experience."
Proceeding with an exercise in deep listening, Harlow asked participants
to "recall a time when you were deeply heard… when you were trying to express
something about your experience and were deeply heard…Often we as listeners
are very uncomfortable…and the listener gets in the way of listening. If you
are a speaker, to help the [other person in this exercise] listen in greater
ways, you can direct your partner in what you need…" The participants then
engaged in this process.
In discussing this exercise, Harlow said, "this was designed to give you
a slight moment of experience in mutual reflection and sharing with small
groups. What is it about UUism in the deep teachings of our faith that might
encourage this kind of deep reflection in our congregations? Is there something
about UUism which affirms sharing on this kind of level? Is there something
coming through the telling of the stories [we tell each other], that would
support 'holy' listening? It instills deeper trust in one another… we need
to examine some of the theological resources in our tradition that would support
this process…I think of Channing and Emerson, and their reflection on the
'divine seed' in each one of us, that can help to describe what this is that
would help us to flourish.
"I call this faith reflection," said Harlow. "[And we encounter this] in
all aspects of UUism. We have contemporary UUs who write or speak or talk
in these ways…" She noted the book "All
Are Chosen," as one example of such reflection, and encouraged deeper
exploration of other methods that promote engagement with one another at a
deeper and more transformative level.
Reported for the web by Deborah Weiner;
formatted for the web by Julie Albanese.
Workshop Background:
Transformative Religious Education: Community Engagement and Theological
Reflection
Workshop leader:
Susan Harlow
About the Workshop:
This workshop looks at methods for understanding social justice and community
involvement through the lens of theological and religious language. How is
what we do as an urban church "religious?" What methods are available
to assist congregational members in exploring the religious dimensions of
urban life and transformative praxis?
Workshop leader biographies:
The Rev. Dr. M. Susan Harlow is Angus MacLean Associate Professor of Religious
Education at Meadville/Lombard Theological School and president, Board of
Trustees, The Peoples Church of Chicago, an urban church with ministries of
housing for the homeless, meals programs, employment placement, and involvement
in community development/organizing inititives through the Organization of
the NorthEast (ONE).
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