UMS : Unit: DM9018W

Content

According to some scholars there are more than 2,000 references to poverty and justice issues in the Bible, however the topic of poverty has had a history of neglect in many Protestant Christian traditions. In this unit students will explore the reasons for this omission and evaluate different ways of understanding poverty. Students will also explore empowering and sustainable means of addressing poverty in local, national and international contexts.

Unit code: DM9018W

Unit status: Approved (New unit)

Points: 24.0

Unit level: Postgraduate Elective

Unit discipline: Missiology

Delivery Mode: Face to Face

Proposing College: Whitley College

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Learning outcomes

1.	Evaluate problems associated with modern worldviews that are not holistic in relation to issues of poverty.
2.	Articulate the meaning of transformational development and how it differs from previous understandings of the ways to address issues of poverty.
3.	Communicate a holistic and comprehensive understanding of what the Bible teaches about poverty and transformation.
4.	Articulate differences between healthy and unhealthy models of poverty alleviation.
5.	Critically assess interventions into issues of poverty.
6.	Develop a contextually appropriate and empowering program for addressing issues of poverty that takes into consideration what this means for Christian witness.

Unit sequence

This unit can be taken as part of postgraduate awards which allow for a focus on mission and intercultural studies. A prerequisite is a foundational unit in the Hebrew Bible or in the New Testament.

Pedagogy

The ‘Circle of Courage’ framework will guide the delivery of this Unit where the teacher is a co-learner and facilitator and the whole class is involved in the process of teaching and learning. The Circle is made up of Belonging, Mastery, Independence, and Generosity and each of these components will be a part of the learning process.

Indicative Bibliography

Barker, Ash. Make Poverty Personal. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2009.
_______. Risky Compassion. Birmingham: Urban Life Together Publishing, 2014.
Christian, Jayakumar,God of the Empty-Handed. Rev. ed, Melbourne: Acorn Press, 2011.
Corbett, S. & B. Fikkert. When Helping Hurts. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2012.
Lupton, Robert, Toxic Charity. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2011.
Myers, Bryant, Walking with the Poor. Maryknoll: Orbis, 2016.
Payne, Ruby, De Vol, Philip, & Smith, Terri, Bridges Out of Poverty. Highlands, TX: aha! Process Inc., 2009.
Sider, Ron, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger. Edinburgh: Thomas Nelson, 2015.
Snyder, Howard, The Radical Wesley. Franklin: Seedbed Publishing, 2014.

Assessment

Type	Description	Word count	Weight (%)
Essay	2,500 words Essay	2500	35.0
Critical Review	Critical Review: 1,500 words	1500	20.0
Oral Presentation	30 minute presentation: 3,000 words equivalent	3000	45.0

Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by John Capper on 19 Oct, 2018

Unit record last updated: 2019-06-07 07:47:44 +1000