The Salvation Army Booth College

The mission of God demonstrates compassion, justice, and response to human need as one of the central beliefs of Christian life and practice. In this unit you will explore social and community services as an important part of holistic Christian mission. You will be able to examine structural disadvantage and social issues while learning how they impact the delivery of social services in Australia today.

The unit code contains information on the level of study, field, discipline, unit and college. Click here to learn what the unit code for this unit represents.

This unit is running as an online intensive.

5 to 16 February 2024

As this is an intensive unit, it is expected that students will be available every day during the two-week period. There will be a mix of personal work and online class discussions. 

Students will be required to engage with the online material each day and then join a Teams meeting for discussion most afternoons. Students should come to each class discussion having engaged with the material outlined for each day. The class discussions will assume students have worked through the online material and will be a discussion of the ideas and concepts of those topics. Please note: Times subject to variation based on student locations and time zones.  

• Monday 5 February 10am – 11:30am (AEDT) Time TBC  
• Tuesday 6 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• Wednesday 7 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• Thursday 8 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• No online class Friday 9 February  
• Monday 12 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• Tuesday 13 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• No online class Wednesday 14 February  
• Thursday 15 February, Class discussion 2pm – 3pm (AEDT) 
• Friday 16 February, 2pm – 3pm Final reflections (AEDT) 

24 points post-graduate foundational in Field D, or equivalent

Please note:  This is a new EBC unit which contains similar content to the Social and Community Mission 1 unit.

In an asynchronous environment students will engage carefully designed learning materials which may include readings, audio and video materials, a variety of learning activities, response to questions, refection upon practice. They will also attend structured synchronous online engagement sessions which will promote peer to peer engagement and learning.

*This unit is offered at Undergraduate and Postgraduate level. Students may engage with people across both levels when this unit is delivered.

1 x 2,000 word Critical Review - 30%

1 x 2,000 word Learning Resource - 30%

1 x 3,000 word Case Study - 40%

Upon successful completion of this unit, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Articulate the biblical and theological convictions which underlie Christian engagement in social and community mission.

2. Appraise key developments in the provision of social services, both within the church and within civil society.

3. Apply a holistic (integral) mission response to the needs of the poor and marginalised and demonstrate its application in Salvation Army context.

4. Examine key components of contemporary social issues and identify constructive ways the Christian church can form part of the response to these issues.

5. Demonstrate an ability to apply Jesus' teaching concerning justice and compassion through mobilising the local church.

There is no required text for this unit.