Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of a Divine Symbol

Theology, like culture, is dynamic and therefore
ought to be examined concurrently with social
movement as it takes place. At the same time,
because theology like culture is dynamic, campaigns
for social justice that provide theological
reasons for its mobilizing message will
articulate a relevant language to stimulate a
community and direct a mindset for social change.
Paul Tillich s Method of Correlation aims to connect
the questions produced through the analysis of modern
culture with the answers provided by the symbols used
in the Christian message. This method is applied to
an examination of theological reasoning behind the
Right to Life social movement (RTLM) to exhibit how
pro-life language has an inherent connection to
Tillich s articulation of symbols and to show how
this movement has shaped the political and religious
nature of the modern United States. This premise aims
to contribute a new dimension to the evaluation of
the pro-life argument, and demonstrate that in
viewing social activism through a Tillichian lens we
see the necessity for evaluating theology and culture
in tandem.

Autorentext

Ms. Vahey earned a Masters degree from the University ofColorado, and is currently a Doctoral candidate in HigherEducation and Student Affairs Leadership at the University ofNorthern Colorado. Her current research explores the process ofmaking meaning and teaching purpose recognition in daily workactivity for higher education employees.

Klappentext

Theology, like culture, is dynamic and thereforeought to be examined concurrently with socialmovement as it takes place. At the same time,because theology like culture is dynamic, campaignsfor social justice that provide theologicalreasons for its mobilizing message willarticulate a relevant language to stimulate acommunity and direct a mindset for social change.Paul Tillich's Method of Correlation aims to connectthe questions produced through the analysis of modernculture with the answers provided by the symbols usedin the Christian message. This method is applied toan examination of theological reasoning behind theRight to Life social movement (RTLM) to exhibit howpro-life language has an inherent connection toTillich's articulation of symbols and to show howthis movement has shaped the political and religiousnature of the modern United States. This premise aimsto contribute a new dimension to the evaluation ofthe pro-life argument, and demonstrate that inviewing social activism through a Tillichian lens wesee the necessity for evaluating theology and culturein tandem.