Institute of the Church in an Urban Industrial Society (ICUIS) records
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Institute of the Church in an Urban Industrial Society (ICUIS) records
- Identifier
- BMRC.UIC.ICUIS
- Repository
- University of Illinois at Chicago, Special Collections and University Archives Department at the Richard J. Daley Library
- Language
- English
- Size
- 56.5 Linear feet
- Dates
- 1950-1988
- Creator
- Institute on the Church in Urban-Industrial Society.
Historical note
The Institute of the Church in an Urban Industrial Society was the umbrella organization for a number of Church organizations, including the Urban Training Center and Association for Christian Training. Founded in 1967, it acted as a clearing house, distributing literature on multiple topics related to the Church, civil rights, missionary work around the world, the environment, foreign and corporate policy, and community organizations. It provided world-wide information and consultation on training facilities for urban and industrial ministries and acted as an international reference center for literature and information in this field. The Urban Training Center (UTC) was an ecumenical institution, founded in 1962, devoted to the training of clergy and laity for Christian mission in the metropolis. Reverend Donald Benedict first proposed the idea for establishing a training center in Chicago whose staff would consist of representatives affiliated with several denominations. James P. Morton was the director of a staff that included Richard Luecke, J. Archie Hargraves, Carl Siegenthaler, Paul Kraemer, Niles Carpenter, and Stanley Hallett. The founders of the UTC believed that the Church had lost relevance in a modern, urban society, as it catered primarily to the affluent white middle class, whose values were reflected in the modern Church. Ignorant of the circumstances of the urban lower classes, the Church needed to develop new strategies of outreach into the urban environment. The purpose of the UTC was to expose its interns to as many realities of the city; immersion in the various communities was a key first step to understanding the multitude of issues facing those living in American cities. These institutions functioned into the 1980s, when a lack of funds forced their closure.
Scope and Contents note
The Collection is divided into four Series: ICUIS Archive, Urban Training Center for Christian Mission (UTC), Association for Christian Training (ACT), and Audio-Visual. The ICUIS Archive Series contains material related to church and community organizations throughout the world, but primarily within Chicago. It also holds numerous articles and essays related to developing the Church's role in urban community organizing.
Processing Information note
This collection was surveyed as part of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium's Survey Initiative on 2009 December 2 by Bergis Jules and Lisa Calahan.