This course will provide an overview of moral injury, including what can lead to moral injury; how to recognize it; how it differs from but is related to post-traumatic stress; and the theological, social, and spiritual implications of recognizing moral injury in diverse populations. We will focus, in particular, on moral injury within two contexts – carceral systems and extremist groups – making critical connections between the histories of colonization, war, and violence and their current manifestations as unaddressed moral injuries. Pathways to recovery will be examined, including peer support strategies, the arts and ritual technologies, and the role of communities and collective action. The course will be especially helpful to chaplains, community organizers, congregational leaders, and activists seeking to further the work of recovery, repair, care, and transformation in their contexts.

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Dates & Times:

October 16, 23, 30, and November 6
6:30 PM – 9:00 PM EST
Online Course
Registration Deadline: October 2, 2025

Meet the Instructors:

Rita Nakashima Brock, Ph.D., is the first Asian American woman to earn a doctorate in philosophy of religion and theology. She was born in Fukuoka, Japan, raised in the U.S. military, and now lives in Minnesota. A scholar, educator, editor, and an award-winning author, her publications include Soul Repair: Recovering from Moral Injury After War (2012, with Gabriella Lettini); Saving Paradise: How Christianity Traded Love of This World for Crucifixion and Empire (2008) and Proverbs of Ashes: Violence, Redemptive Suffering, and the Search for What Saves Us (2001, both with Rebecca Parker); and Journeys By Heart; A Christology of Erotic Power (1988). A professor for 18 years, Dr. Brock held the Endowed Chair in the Humanities at Hamline University from 1990 until 1997. She then became Director of the Fellowship Program at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. From 2001-2002, she was a fellow at the Harvard Divinity School Center for Values in Public Life, and from 2002-2012, she was a visiting scholar at the Starr King School for the Ministry at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA, as well as the senior editor in religion at The New Press from 2006-2008. In 2012, she co-founded the Soul Repair Center at Brite Divinity School. From 2017 to 2025, she was Senior Vice President for Moral Injury Recovery Programs at Volunteers of America.

kristine chong (they/she), MDiv, MPP, is a spiritual care practitioner, network weaver, and facilitator. kristine’s formation is in community organizing, coalition building, peer support groups, and accompaniment (movement chaplaincy & spiritual direction) among BIPOC, queer, immigrant, refugee, formerly incarcerated, maritime worker, survivor, and activist communities. She practices with Plum Village engaged Buddhism, Korean folk religions/spiritualities, freedom movements, and healing justice care. 정 (jeong, a Korean relationality of interconnectedness and kinship) is the root of their ethos, solidarity, and engagement. Networks and communities they collaborate with include Woori Network, PANAAWTM (Pacific, Asian, and North American Asian Women in Theology and Ministry), and API RISE. Kristine was Director of the Shay Moral Injury Center at Volunteers of America from 2021 to 2025.