The Soul of Social Transformation: Recent Episodes
United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities
The Soul of Transformation: Exploring Vocations in Social Justice is for young people who not only see and name the realities of injustice in the world but can start imagining new and better solutions. This is for change agents, people who want to work towards achieving authentic racial justice, mitigating the dire impacts of climate change, facing the challenges of immigrants and refugees, and ensuring equality for people of all gender identities and sexual orientations. Here we team up with five diverse, effective, and dynamic social change leaders to explore how justice, spirituality, and our life’s work are interrelated. Our speakers come from different traditions and experiences while sharing a passion for a better world. The hosts of the show are Gary F. Green II and Justin Sabia-Tanis.
The world needs your voice, your action. It needs your passion, your commitment to justice—the belief that another, better world is possible. Let’s explore this together.
In our first episode, we look at our visions for a different world and what it takes to get there. What does vocation mean? What is our life’s work meant to be and how does that relate to the changes we need to see around us? Before serving as Lead Pastor for Plymouth Congregational, our guest DeWayne Davis previously worked as a policy analyst in the Office of Governmental Relations for the Episcopal Church, as a lobbyist for Sallie Mae, and a decade as a Senior Legislative Assistant for three members of the U.S. Congress. He is married to Kareem Murphy, director of Government Relations for Hennepin County.
This episode will invite participants to see themselves as a part of a long path of justice work, with foundations laid by our ancestors and continuing to this day. We will consider who created the ground we stand on and how we take participatory ownership in the work ahead. If the arc of the moral universe bends towards justice, who has contributed to its bending and how? And what is our responsibility for what is needed in the future? Our guest is Jim Bear Jacobs, a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation, an American Indian tribe located in central Wisconsin. He is Program Director for Racial Justice for the Minnesota Council of Churches and is founder of “Healing Minnesota Stories,” an initiative dedicated to creating events of dialogue, education, and healing, particularly within faith communities.
How do spiritual practices and tools further the work of social justice? What energizes our social justice work? We will also explore self-care as a revolutionary act, able to sustain justice workers and contribute to the thriving of our communities. Finally, we will examine spiritual practices that inform the practical dimensions of this work, such as preparing to engage in a protest, deescalate conflict, or celebrate a victory. Kelly Sherman-Conroy is a proud member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. A Native American theologian, activist, and storyteller, she walks with people of all cultures and dedicates her time exploring the intersections of identity, personal narratives, faith, and healing through an Indigenous lens.
How do the unique vocational gifts of each of us within the collaborative, collective, and necessarily ongoing nature of social justice work? How might our contributions relate to the wider community that is seeking wholeness? What is our responsibility to one another to create a better world? How do we find meaning and purpose in our part of the work, trusting others to do theirs? We're speaking with Jamil Stamschror-Lott. He and his wife are the founders of Creative Kuponya, a mental health practice in Minneapolis. In the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, mental health experts have seen a rise in Black people seeking therapy and Creative Kuponya looks to create a place for Black people to connect with Black therapists. His work has been featured in the New York Times.
What are next steps to explore your path? What else do we need to learn? Who do we need to talk to? What do we need to watch, read, listen to …? And we engage our moral imaginations: What does a just world look like? What methods of engagement do not yet exist that need to? What would enable our communities to thrive? Our guest Rev. Dr. Molly T. Marshall has served in theological education for nearly forty years. Marshall believes she was put on the earth to love students, teach theology, guide spiritual formation, and challenge patriarchal structures that would hinder women from full acceptance in all forms of ministry. She has worked as a youth minister, campus minister, pastor, scholar, and theological educator, seeking to dismantle all forms of oppression.