St. Sabina's mission statement affirms that the faith community, " ... believes in the transforming power of praise and worship...." Worship moves us to action, taking seriously the challenge of the Gospel's great commission: "the dismantling of structures, powers and principalities that create victims of us all, perpetuate crisis situations, and prevent us from being truly free and living in "the more." The challenge is in helping the congregants of St. Sabina make the connection between the worship experience and a life of social activism. But, this is also a challenge for all worshipping congregations, if their intention is to be a church that makes the gospel relevant.
This thesis presents the results of implementing an educational program developed using concepts from Resource Mobilization Theory, particularly focusing on the micro-resource of oppositional consciousness, and Transformative Learning Theory. The education program was designed to foster the participants' ability to make the connection between worship and social justice. The proposition is that such a connection would thereby move them to a greater level of participation in social justice activities that are essential to being disciples of Jesus Christ and to the mission of the church at large.
The educational program included components of reflection, discussion, and action, including participation in and reflection on a social justice activity. Changes in understanding of the connection between worship and social justice were measured using a pre- and post-program survey, as well as through participant observation during the educational program.
