Exploring Society

“At the center of the spiritual life, of life with God, is a twofold relationship with God, and with the world of the everyday (including the way the world of the everyday is structured).”  –Marcus J. Borg

Goal: Help the students think about the world in which they live from a distinctly Christian perspective and enact their calling to be change agents in the world.

Students who complete this semester will develop skills that will help them analyze, understand, and engage with inequity and injustice at the personal and systemic levels. They will also understand the distinctly Episcopal approach to these issues. Students will gain a deeper understanding of Baltimore as a city that has suffered as a result of systemic racism and look at ways that the Church of the Redeemer is involved in addressing inequity and injustice. Students will also learn ways to think about how the New Testament offers relevant messages to address the issues we face today.

Calendar:

January, 19, 2020: Power and Authority
Students will look at the concept of justice and discuss how Jesus spoke about power and authority in the Gospels. Students will explore some of the concepts of justice in the Old Testament and how Jesus expanded upon them in the New Testament.

February 2, 2020: Civil Disobedience
Students will discuss civil disobedience in history - what it is, who has practiced it and why. We will also look at the concept as discussed in the New Testament and explore questions such as “Did Jesus practice civil disobedience?”

SERVICE OPPORTUNITY
Saturday, February 15, 2020: The class will gather in the church Parish Hall and kitchen to help prepare food for Paul’s Place. RSVP on the website by February 9th.

February 16, 2020: The Problem of Good & Evil
Students will explore Christian terms surrounding social justice and look at the debate over the concepts of good and evil. We will talk about how Jesus talked about these things and how the church talks about them today.

March 1, 2020: Social Inequality
Students will discuss New Testament coverage of social inequity by looking at how Jesus interacted with the poor and outcast. We will discuss how social inequality is seen in our society today and what the Episcopal church is doing to respond.

March 15, 20202: The Kingdom of God
Students will think about the term “the Kingdom of God” and how Jesus used the term in the New Testament. We will also discuss what it means to Christians and what it might look like to bring the Kingdom of God to Baltimore.

April 5, 2020: Understanding Baltimore
Students will read about and discuss the history of Baltimore through a social justice lens, and we will discuss how we might help bring the Kingdom of God to Baltimore.

CLASS ACTIVITY: EXPLORE BALTIMORE
Saturday, April 25 : 9:30am-3:30pm: Students and parents are invited to a day-long exploration of African American history and culture in Baltimore. We will start at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, eat lunch downtown, and then conclude with a walking tour of a local Baltimore neighborhood to experience history in person. Please RSVP here by April 5th.

May 3, 2020: Deep Dive into Social Justice
The students will select a social justice topic involving Baltimore for their spring presentation. This topic will provide them with an opportunity to conduct research on an issued they care about .

CLASS PRESENTATION
May 10, 20120: Youth Sunday
On Redeemer Youth Sunday, the J2A class will participate in the service and following the service will give a presentation to the church on what they have learned during the semester.

May 17, 2020: Charity vs. Justice
Students will discuss different approaches to helping the disadvantaged and marginalized. We will discuss how the church approaches this and ways we can think through from a distinctly Christian way.

June 7, 2020: Year in Review
Students will review the past year, discussing highlights and lows and ways they grew individually.