motive magazine

A publication from the Global Board of Higher Education and Mission hosted at Boston University School of Theology.

motive (always spelled with a lowercase “m”) was the official magazine for the Methodist Student Movement from its founding in 1941 and, for a few years at the end of its life, for the entire University Christian Movement (UCM). Much celebrated even at the time for its avant garde editorial and artistic vision, in 1966, Time magazine said it stood out among church publications “like a miniskirt at a church social.” It was the single runner-up to Life as Magazine of the Year in 1965. Ultimately, its strong stands on civil rights, Vietnam, and emerging gender issues became more than the Methodist Church officials could take. They withdrew funding, and it ceased publication in 1972. An entire generation of religious activists was shaped by its vision. Each issue can be viewed and browsed via the table of contents or searched using the search box in the upper right-hand corner. Learn more about the history of this digitization project and its contributors on our About page.