Unit rationale, description and aim
A commitment to social justice is an essential characteristic of a life lived according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Christianity holds that human reason, combined with insights drawn from scripture and human experience, can provide a valid interpretation of the social order, can animate that order with authentic values and can provide guidelines for action.
This unit introduces students to the Christian ethical tradition. It explores Christian reflection on social structures and patterns of moral behaviour as they are expressed in, as well as applied to, economic, social and political contexts. Students will be introduced to the foundational biblical texts relating to justice as well as Christian theologies and theological texts, particularly from the Catholic Church, that shed light on understanding and practising social justice in contemporary times. The biblical and theological principles that underpin Christian tradition on social justice will then be applied to a number of important social issues facing people in the rapidly changing context of the contemporary world.
Campus offering
No unit offerings are currently available for this unit.Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
Demonstrate understanding of the Christian foundat...
Learning Outcome 01
Apply the principles of Christian social ethics to...
Learning Outcome 02
Critically analyse a contemporary social justice i...
Learning Outcome 03
Construct and creatively present a contemporary Au...
Learning Outcome 04
Content
Topics will include:
Understanding social justice: definitions and types
The foundational biblical tradition relating to justice both in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible.
Theological methods for social justice: See-Judge-Act and Pastoral Circle
Examination of the major documents of the Christian Churches, particularly in the Catholic Church, in the modern era that deal specifically with social justice issues.
Identification and examination of the principles that underpin social thought and practice in Christianity, especially in the Catholic Church
Catholic Social Teaching and its four permanent principles: human dignity, common good, solidarity and subsidiarity
Study of salient contemporary theologies oriented toward social justice, e.g. liberation theology.
Application of Christian ethical principles to particular social justice issues experienced in a globalised contemporary world, e.g. globalisation and poverty.
“Everyday Christianity, Everyday justice”: Social justice in everyday life.
Assessment strategy and rationale
In order to pass this unit, students are required to attempt all assessment tasks and achieve an overall grade of Pass (50% or higher).
The assessment tasks for this unit are designed for students to demonstrate their achievement of each learning outcome.
Task 1 asks students to critically analyse a contemporary social justice issue using Christian ethical principles to enable them to display achievement of learning outcome 1 and 2.
Task 2 asks students to construct and do a creative presentation on a contemporary Australian Christian theology of social justice in order to enable them to display achievement of learning outcome 3.
Overview of assessments
Analytical and Application Task: Requires the stu...
Analytical and Application Task: Requires the students to critically analyse a contemporary social justice issue using Christian ethical perspectives to help them make connections between unit content and the contemporary world
50%
Critical and Creative Reflection Task: Requires s...
Critical and Creative Reflection Task: Requires students to construct and do a creative presentation on a contemporary Australian Christian theology of social justice to help them synthesise and contextualise unit content in a meaningful and, at the same time, creative manner
50%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning. The total includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials, online learning, video-conferencing, or supervision. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research, and the preparation of tasks for assessment.
The unit is offered in either fully-online or intensive format. Students learn through formally structured and sequenced learning content and activities that support the achievement of the learning outcomes. These learning resources and activities enable the students to critically and reflectively engage essential theological knowledge and perspectives. These learning resources and activities are also meant to more effectively accompany the students in the various stages of the unit in order to help ensure a meaningful and fruitful learning experience. Learning and teaching in this unit, therefore, is designed to be participatory and critically-reflective.