Tag: Accompaniment Series

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June 5, 2026

Rev. Dr. Justin Sabia-Tanis to Be Appointed Inaugural Occupant of the Wilson Yates Chair in Theology and the Arts

Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, June 5, 2026 — United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities is elated to announce that Rev. Dr. Justin Sabia-Tanis will be appointed as the first-ever occupant of the Wilson Yates Chair in Theology and the Arts. Until now, he has served faithfully as the McVay Associate Professor of Christian Ethics and Social Transformation, as well as Director of the Social Transformation Program. Before joining United, Rev. Dr. Sabia-Tanis served as a congregational minister in Boston, Honolulu, and San Francisco, and was Director of Leadership Development for Metropolitan Community Churches, after which he joined the United Church of Christ (UCC). Rev. Dr. Sabia-Tanis’ ministry includes community organizing and advocacy. He has served as managing director at the Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies in Religion (CLGS) as well as communications director for the Hawai’i Equal Rights Marriage Project, the National Center for Transgender Equality, and Out & Equal Workplace Advocates. He received his PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies from Graduate Theological Union in 2017, his DMin from San Francisco Theological Seminary in 2003, and his MDiv from Harvard Divinity School in 1990. His teaching experience spans courses at the University of Arizona, Pima Community College, Iliff School of Theology, and Pacific School of Religion. As an eminent academic and theologian, Dr. Sabia-Tanis’ scholarship has deepened the study of the intersection of art and LGBTQ+ religious identity. He recently completed writing Queer Spirituality, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity in Contemporary Visual Art, to be released later this year by Bloomsbury Academic. Dr. Sabia-Tanis also wrote the groundbreaking book Transgendered Ministry, Theology and Communities of Faith (Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 2003; Wipf & Stock, 2018) and authored a chapter in Transbiblical: New Approaches to Interpretation and Embodiment in Scripture (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025).  In 2024, he gave a lecture in the art gallery of Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis, MN, on the life and art of Keith Haring. Dr. Sabia-Tanis is himself an artist, and he hones and cultivates the creative expression of the artist-theologians enrolled in his courses. In his announcement of the news to United students, Dr. Kyle Roberts—Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs—connected Rev. Dr. Sabia-Tanis’ education and qualifications to the field of theology and the arts. “Dr. Sabia-Tanis appreciates and champions the legacy of Dr. Yates and the leadership of United in the area of arts and theology,” Dr. Roberts asserted. “He also advocates for the intersection of the arts with movements for social justice and will bring to his teaching and leadership a synergy of theology and arts, along with his contributions to the education of social transformation at United.” Rev. Dr. Molly T. Marshall, President, commended the news for this esteemed member of the faculty. “The wide-ranging scholarship of Dr. Justin Sabia-Tanis will elevate this position as the arts serve as a medium for social transformation.” Established in 2025 by generous gifts from friends, alums, and former United faculty, the Wilson Yates Chair in Theology and the Arts is an endowed faculty position named after Rev. Dr. Wilson Yates, President Emeritus and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Religion, Society, and the Arts. Yates joined United’s faculty in 1967, became Dean in 1988, and was made President in 1996. He retired from the seminary in 2005, having led and innovated in theology and the arts, deepened scholarship, and integrated the subject as a pillar of United’s academic programs. Rev. Dr. Yates celebrated the news and is eager to see Rev. Dr. Sabia-Tanis installed into the chair. He reflects, “I am very excited about Justin’s selection for this role. His studies at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley will provide an important background to this work. Justin brings a solid understanding of the relationship to the arts in theology, the church, and everyday life. It is not incidental that he is also a practicing artist.” On his appointment to the chair, Rev. Dr. Sabia-Tanis shares, “United has valued and integrated the arts since our founding. They are critical to how our students are formed, and in the ministries and projects they will lead when they graduate. I am so honored to move into this important role at United and continue the incredible legacy of Wilson Yates. And I'm looking forward to the ways this program will evolve and grow in the coming years.” The installation of Dr. Sabia-Tanis into the Wilson Yates Chair in Theology and the Arts will be formally celebrated at Fall Convocation on Thursday, September 24, 2026. Details will be announced in the coming months. About United Founded by the United Church of Christ (UCC) as a welcoming, ecumenical school that embraces all denominations and faith traditions, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities has been on the creative edge of progressive theological thought and leadership since it was established in 1962. Today, United continues to educate leaders who, through the eyes of faith, engage in the dismantling of systems of oppression, exploring multi-faith spirituality, and pushing the boundaries of knowledge. Contact Nathanial Green (he/him) Director of Marketing and Communications press@unitedseminary.edu • 651.255.6138 Admissions and Enrollment admissions@unitedseminary.edu

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December 5, 2023

Caregivers in a Care-less Society: A Panel on Care Work and Social Justice

What difference would it make if the many caregivers of our world—doulas, chaplains, mothers, fathers, grandmothers, pastors, nurses, doctors—accompanying those with whom they care, worked together to transform our careless social structures?  What if the remedy to widespread caregiver burn-out was to be found in building infrastructures of care rather than in promoting marketized practices of self-care? The COVID-19 pandemic reminded us of our dependence on one another for life and, perhaps especially, our collective need for care. It made visible the radical inequalities produced by a social and economic system that prioritizes profit over people. As many have noted, those who were most at risk of infection and death from the virus—elderly, poor, disabled, incarcerated, migrants, unhoused people—received little support from existing public infrastructure or were neglected and abandoned altogether.  And yet, we live in a society of many caregivers. We have caring professionals (nurses, doctors, midwives, doulas, pastors, chaplains, therapists, social workers, etc.) and unpaid caregivers (friends, parents, communities of faith, etc.). How do our careless systems and structures affect our caregivers and those for whom they provide care? How might reflecting on experiences in caregiving help us reimagine a more caring social life? What is the role of caregivers in the struggle for a more just world? To discuss these questions further, we are delighted to welcome four panelists who are experts in medical care work and social justice: Rev. Dr. Jessica Chapman Lape Rev. Dr. Jessica Chapman Lape is United’s assistant professor and program director for interreligious chaplaincy who received her PhD in Practical Theology from California’s Claremont School of Theology. Jessica’s research inhabits the intersection of spiritual care, healthcare, and reproductive justice. Her dissertation, missTreated: A Womanist Clinical Pastoral Theology on the Mistreatment of African American Women in U.S. Healthcare, explores Black women’s perception of cultural violence in U.S. healthcare systems and the subsequent role of spiritual care in interrupting such violence. Jessica’s current research is working to expand paradigms of clinical spiritual care to include contextualized spiritual care practices such as Black indigenous birthwork. Dr. Michael Westerhaus Dr. Westerhaus, who graduated from Harvard Medical School in 2006, practices at HealthPartners’ Center for International Health. “As a medical anthropologist,” Dr. Westerhaus writes, “I am very interested in understanding the impact of socioeconomics and culture on health and illness. In my role as a member of the global health faculty at the University of Minnesota, I work both here in Minnesota and in northern Uganda to improve community-based primary care delivery, teach about the social determinants of health, and build partnerships based upon respect and equality that advance health for all.” He is also on the leadership committee of EqualHealth. Dr. Aarti Bhatt Aarti Bhatt is an assistant professor of internal medicine and pediatrics at the University of Minnesota, where she completed a chief residency year in Global Health. She is also an associate program director for the Med-Peds residency program and works as a primary care physician at the Community University Health Care Center (CUHCC). She is an active member of the Social Medicine Consortium and does community organizing through the Equal Health Campaign Against Racism (which also has a Minnesota chapter). Dr. Bhatt is a founding board member for Minnesota Doctors for Health Equity. She has a particular interest in using narrative health and community centered approaches to dismantle the social forces of systemic racism that drive health inequity.  Rev. Laura Cannata Rev. Laura Cannata (a 2013 United alum) is a Disability Justice Minister at Robbinsdale Parkway UCC. She is also on the Disability Ministries’ Board of Directors for the National UCC. She lives with chronic illnesses and mental health issues but is disabled by attitudes and societal structures. She speaks the truth to power and writes prophetic poems. She quotes the Bible almost as much as she quotes The Lord of the Rings and loves both people and animals. Register below:

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