Workshop 9: An Ethic of Risk

Beautiful orange sunset over a deep blue ocean. — Tapestry is Sunsetting

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Part of What We Choose: Ethics for Unitarian Universalists

In This Section

Introduction
From What We Choose

It is possible for there to be a dance with life, a creative response to its intrinsic limits and challenges… — Sharon Welch Unitarian Universalist ethicist and theologian Sharon Welch’s work was born of her observation that those who engage in justice struggles always do so from a position of…
Workshop-at-a-Glance
From What We Choose

Activity Minutes Welcoming and Entering 0 Opening 2 Activity 1: Opening Scenario 15 Activity 2: Reflection and Conversation 20 Activity 3: An Ethic of Risk 25 Activity 4: Dolores Huerta 25 Faith in Action: Multiple Perspectives Closing 13 Alternate Activity 1: The Music of Justice 20…
Spiritual Preparation
From What We Choose

Set aside time for journaling, reflection, prayer, and/or meditation, using these focus questions: What have you done in your own life to work toward justice? What grounds your work? Have you become discouraged or cynical about the results of justice work? What were/are the circumstances?…
Welcoming and Entering
From What We Choose

Materials for Activity Sign-in sheet and pen or pencil Pocket folder, pen/pencil and paper for each participant Name tags, single-use or durable Newsprint, markers, and tape Optional: Refreshments Preparation for Activity Using the Workshop-at-a-Glance as a guide, create and post the agenda on…
Opening
From What We Choose

Activity time: 2 minutes Materials for Activity Worship table or designated space Chalice, candle, and lighter, or LED/battery-operated candle Singing the Living Tradition, the Unitarian Universalist hymnbook Preparation for Activity Arrange the worship table or designated space. Description of…
Activity 1: Opening Scenario
From What We Choose

Activity time: 15 minutes Preparation for Activity Review the two scenarios and select the one you will use. Description of Activity Share one of these two scenarios and lead a discussion using the questions in your chosen scenario….
Activity 2: Reflection and Conversation
From What We Choose

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity Journals or notebooks, one for each participant Writing and drawing materials, such as pens, pencils, fine point color markers, and color pencils Preparation for Activity Set out writing and drawing materials where all can reach them. Write on…
Activity 3: An Ethic of Risk
From What We Choose

Activity time: 25 minutes Materials for Activity Handout 1, Sharon Welch and an Ethic of Risk Preparation for Activity Read Handout 1, Sharon Welch and an Ethic of Risk. Copy it for all participants….
Activity 4: Dolores Huerta
From What We Choose

Activity time: 25 minutes Materials for Activity Story, “Dolores Huerta” Preparation for Activity Print the story, “Dolores Huerta.” Prepare to read it aloud or prearrange with a volunteer to do so, and give the volunteer the story in advance. Write on newsprint, and post: What surprises or…
Closing
From What We Choose

Activity time: 13 minutes Materials for Activity Unlined paper, and a selection of writing and drawing tools, such as calligraphy pens, color pencils, and fine point markers Taking It Home handout Preparation for Activity Set out materials where all can reach them….
Leader Reflection and Planning
From What We Choose

Consider these questions as you review the workshop with your co-leader: Which parts of the workshop most engaged participants? Why? Were there parts that did not work as well? What could we have done differently? Where was it easy for you to work together? Where was it difficult?…
Faith In Action: Multiple Perspectives
From What We Choose

Materials for Activity Newsprint, markers, and tape Preparation for Activity Research your congregation’s social justice projects that involve local community issues. Examples include fair housing, homelessness, environmental justice, and immigration. Choose a project that involves a significant…
Alternate Activity 1: The Music of Justice
From What We Choose

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity Newsprint, markers, and tape Music player(s) for sharing cassette tapes, MP-3s, and/or CDs Preparation for Activity Before this workshop, invite participants to bring recordings of music that has inspired them in resisting oppression. Tell the…
Taking It Home: An Ethic of Risk
From What We Choose

It is possible for there to be a dance with life, a creative response to its intrinsic limits and challenges… — Sharon Welch Contemplate the visual response you made to workshop questions about what it means to be a moral person. Share your thoughts, questions, doubts, and challenges with a…
Dolores Huerta
From What We Choose

In September 1965, Filipino grape workers in Delano, California, went on strike for more pay and better working conditions. A week later, the predominantly Mexican American National Farm Workers’ Association joined the strike….
Handout 1: Sharon Welch and an Ethic of Risk
From What We Choose

Sharon Welch was raised in a small farming community in West Texas, the daughter of two social gospel ministers. She writes of her parents: They lived lives of service but with no sense of guilt, duty, or sacrifice. They acknowledged defeat, but with no sense of fallenness or original sin. They…
Find Out More
From What We Choose

By Sharon D. Welch A Feminist Ethic of Risk (Minneapolis: Fortress Press,1990) Sweet Dreams in America: Making Ethics and Spirituality Work (New York: Routledge, 1999) “The Machiavellian Dilemma: Paradoxes and Perils of Democratic Governance,” Tikkun Magazine, May/June 2010 About Dolores Huerta…

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Workshop 9: An Ethic of Risk

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